Kontoor rolls out new global design standards
US fashion group Kontoor Brands has announced a new Global Design Standards roadmap for its two most prominent denim businesses, Lee and Wrangler.
The guidelines focus on developing products using preferred materials, at least 70% of which must be selected from Kontoor’s own preferred materials list, in addition to denim fabrics considered “low impact” in terms of mills’ freshwater usage, according to independent assessment through the group’s Indigood programme.
Garments must also satisfy the criteria for low-impact finishing, as calculated by Jeanologia’s environmental impact measurement (EIM) tool, which takes water, energy, chemistry and worker health into account.
Kontoor explained that the new design standards will help its global product teams make articles with lower social and environmental impacts for both people and planet, effectively eliminating the need for guesswork.
“While we initially aim to have each of our products meet one of the three standards, we are actively striving to reach new levels of innovation and sustainability that will continually improve the sustainable performance of our products,” said vice-president of sustainability, innovation, product development and procurement, Jeff Frye.
