Meet the Sustainability Calculator That Tallies Benefits of Resale

Buying previously owned jeans instead of new ones saves the planet 279 liters of water and 11 driving miles; a cotton dress, 218 liters of water and 9 miles; a wool sweater, 101 liters and 18 miles, and a viscose top, 20 liters and 6 miles. Those are tallies made by a sustainability calculator being introduced by The RealReal, allowing its consignors and buyers to understand the extent to which their activities on the e-commerce resale site are softening luxury’s blows to the environment. The calculator uses proprietary methodology to calculate the amounts of greenhouse gases, energy and water used in the apparel manufacturing process that are saved when products are consigned instead of newly produced. “If something has a high production impact, that’s even more reason to ensure it has as long a life as possible,” explained Allison Sommer, director of strategic initiatives at The RealReal. “It’s better to buy something used that greatly impacts the planet than to have a new one produced.” The RealReal also chose Earth Day today to announce that it’s the first resale site to join the Fashion Industry Charter for Climate Action, alongside brands such as Kering and Levi’s, and partners such as Stella McCartney. “We’re a member

Follow WWD on Twitter or become a fan on Facebook.

Read More...

from WWDWWD http://bit.ly/2IMdBsF