The sustainable fashion industry presents both investment opportunities and challenges, delegates were told on the third and final day of the sustainability summit at BEYOND Expo 2023.
The fashion industry is a notorious polluter, with some experts deriding the idea of sustainable fashion as a myth. According to the United Nations Environment Programme, fashion is responsible for the production of up to 10 percent of the global carbon dioxide output and accounts for 20 percent of the 300 million tons of plastic produced annually around the world.
This afternoon’s sustainable fashion panel featured Yuheng Zhao the founding partner of ethical investors Shen Impact Venture; Kevin Zhu, the founder of Super Crab; Shilei Chen, the co-founder of biotech textile firm BloomGEM; Ron Chiong, the managing partner of impact investors AvantFaire Investment Management; and Bonnie Wang of Heroad Investments, a venture capital firm that emphasises social value entrepreneurship.
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Zhu told delegates that there were three important elements involved in developing sustainable consumption. A company had to be financially sound besides being environmentally sound. It had to have the desire to promote sustainability hardwired into its brand vision. Finally, it had to be careful in how it approached the market.
“We don’t want to kidnap our customers with the concept of environmental friendliness”, Zhu said.
Sustainable fashion companies had to match other brands in terms of overall quality, on top of being sustainable, he added.
Chiong asked if sustainable fashion startups would be threatened if an established garment brand entered the field.
Zhu said that high-end brands would “not try to enter the niche”, while Chen said that “In the field of sustainable [consumption], it’s more like they are complementary to each other, instead of wanting to overpower the indie brands”.
The fashion panel concluded the three-day sustainability summit.
Beyond Expo has been bringing together hundreds of professionals, entrepreneurs and academics at the Venetian Macao, with three component conferences looking at the impact of technology on our planet, our daily lives and our bodies.
—With reporting by Almond Li.
Macao News is an official Macao media partner of BEYOND Expo 2023.
