Date published: 01.09.08 - not release date

LONDON FASHION WEEK - Litegreen Research

LONDON FASHION WEEK

Consumer information website Litegreen unveils a new survey showing that when it comes to the clothes you buy, price and principle can go hand in hand.

‘Estethica’, London Fashion Week’s area dedicated to promoting eco-sustainable designs is in its second season - it’s obvious the new trend in fashion is ‘doing the right thing’.

There has been a phenomenal rise in Fairtrade sales over the past few years, but this still accounts for a tiny percentage of our spending on clothes; probably less than 1%.1 Which begs the question how ‘fair’ is the remaining 99%?

So to coincide with London Fashion Week, Litegreen has released its findings on many of the leading fashion brands.
And well over half the brands reviewed come up short.

The website categorises the brands into those it believes are ‘Litegreen’ and ‘Not Litegreen’. To achieve a Litegreen rating, companies must show clear and positive policies towards addressing and improving their impact on the planet and workers rights issues. For example,

5 Litegreen Brands

Gap
H&M
Marks & Spencer
Monsoon
Next

To find out all the winners and losers visit www.litegreen.com

Most of us now understand that the way we live can damage the planet. But few people are ready to sell the car, give up foreign holidays completely and turn their backs on mainstream brands. But that doesn’t mean they don’t want to do their bit.

Ian Millward, a founder of Litegreen said

‘It is great news that Fairtrade sales are on the up but we believe the real secret is making it easy for people to make better decisions all of the time. We were really disappointed with how many brands seem to outsource their conscience at the same time as outsourcing production. Nevertheless, as our review shows, whatever you want to buy there will usually be an option that is just as fashionable, costs little or nothing extra and is better for the planet and its people.’

In honour of London Fashion Week, Litegreen is launching ‘Litegreen Fashion Week’. During the next week the site will look at different issues surrounding fashion, highlighting shopping choices you can make that literally don’t cost the earth.

More details are available by visiting www.litegreen.com. As well as telling you which brands receive a Litegreen rating, it also includes a brief note summarising the strengths and/or weaknesses of each brand.

Litegreen will plant a tree for every person who registers at the site. The website aims to plant 1 million trees by the end of 2007.


For more info please contact:

Ian Millward at Litegreen
Telephone: 07966 289061
Email: ian@litegreen.com

Notes to Editors

1. In 2004, ethical clothing sales in the U.K. grew 30 percent to £43 million, according to The Co-operative bank: 2005 ethical consumer report. Those figures represent a fraction of overall household expenditures on clothing, which totalled £44.6 billion, in 2005, according to the U.K.'s National Statistics office.

•Research for the site has been compiled using information from the Ethical Consumer Research Association (ECRA)

•Litegreen considers data from a range of categories looking at the planet and its people including Climate Change, Environmental Reporting, Habitat and Resources, Pollution and Toxics, Human Rights, Supply Chain Policies and Workers Rights including exploitative use of child labour

•Achieving a rating is not a guarantee of good practice but is generally recognition that a company has reasonably clear policies and a good track record in each of the categories