In a linear economy, a product is valuable because of the various steps required to produce it, such as the design phase, production itself, retailing, marketing, branding and finally reaching its peak value when it is sold to the consumer. On the contrary, according to the circular economy, the life cycle of a product doesn't end when it is sold to a consumer. If the consumer decides not to throw it away when he's finished using it, but to give it a second life, its value starts to increase again. A circular business model therefore includes operations such as remanufacturing, reuse, repair or recycling, and makes the most of resources by using them for as long as possible. Hence, the aim of implementing circularity in the fashion industry is to close the loop by considering product design, material sourcing, manufacturing, working conditions, retailing, use and disposal of garments to ultimately design fashion pieces for longevity.
So fashion brands need to look at their operations and actions to become circular. It all starts with the choice of fabrics and materials. Fashion companies face a dilemma when deciding which fabrics to use in their collections - some are more sustainable than others. For example, fabrics can be natural, eco-friendly, biodegradable, upcycled or recycled, or they can be non-recyclable, synthetic and derived from fossil fuels, such as nylon, polyester and acrylic. What's more, what we often see with fast fashion is that it's not durable as it's not made to last. High-quality and timeless pieces, on the other hand, allow consumers to wear them for much longer. In addition, sustainable fashion labels incorporate circularity by educating consumers about garment care and promoting repair services. To close the loop, at the end of their first life cycle, garments can be donated, sold, given away for recycling or up-cycled to ultimately reduce pollution and landfill waste.
At this point, let's take a quick look at Walter R. Stahel's, a Swiss architect and economist who is one of the co-founders of the Circular Economy, Resource Efficiency Loop, which consists of two cycles. The first aims to keep a product in use for as long as possible - taking into account repair, maintenance, sharing and reuse. But things don't last forever. So the second cycle focuses on recycling. Stahel's model shows that recycling is better than throwing a product away and sending it to a landfill, but reuse is far better than recycling in reducing the environmental impact of the fashion industry - in this case.

While the concept of a circular economy sounds great, there are many challenges that organizations in the fashion industry need to consider. The first big question we need to ask ourselves is whether circular, and therefore secondary production activities actually have the potential to reduce primary, linear production. If they don't, then we've actually achieved the opposite of what we wanted - an even greater environmental impact caused by additional secondary business activities. In addition, there are other issues that are primarily related to the successful implementation of a circular business model and thus to its financial viability. Firstly, there is a need for long-term investment to scale up business activities such as sorting, repair and recycling in order to operate efficiently. Linear models, on the other hand, are much cheaper because they only produce to sell - as much as possible. Furthermore, circularity is an issue that encompasses many different stakeholders - ultimately everyone who exists, as we are all consumers. The circularity discussion may start in organizations where founders and designers decide how to operate and strategically position themselves, but it also involves manufacturers, policy makers and consumers. Companies are constantly working to develop breakthrough recycling technologies, sustainable fibers and digital product passports, but the end consumer often doesn't know about sustainability and the impact of their purchasing behavior when it comes to fashion. Educating consumers about the immense social and environmental impact of the fashion industry and its take, make, dispose pattern is therefore a major challenge. It also seems inevitable that we will have to rethink our individual buying patterns and question how current trends and the appeal of fast fashion retailers really influence our purchasing behavior.
In conclusion, by buying less but better clothes, investing in timeless pieces that we really love, considering vintage shopping and caring for the clothes in our wardrobes, we can support a circular economy. Meeting the challenges of circularity is something we can only do together. The Ellen MacArthur Foundation sums it up perfectly: "Collaboration is key. Working with partners across the supply chain, securing buy-in from leaders and sharing knowledge creates the conditions for broader, industry-wide change. It's time to step up the pace and scale of progress."