Maggie Stearns

H&M Going Green

Maggie Stearns

Project

03/2022

SUMMARY
Going Green is an eco-friendly reestablishment of H&M. New clothing will be
produced with the aspects of sustainability at the forefront of our decision-
making. H&M has the ability to be the driver of change within the clothing
industry, and this rebranding is set to do just that. With new fabric changes,
modeling regulations, and factory practices we are sure that H&M will be a
company of the future. We are uniquely valuable as H&M has gone under heavy
scrutiny for practices. Our remodeling not only removes what has been
unsustainable but goes above the standard to strive for near full sustainability.
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CURRENT H&M

Sustainable fashion refers to garments and accessories that are produced

and/or accessed in an ecologically and socially responsible manner. H&M’s
Conscious Collection has failed to meet this definition.
Fair Wages: Multiple case studies were done on H&M’s worker wages, and
every study found factories paying workers minimum wage. This is especially
troubling since it contributes to the company’s greenwashing scheme. H&M
has multiple pages about how they pay their workers, but when one looks
further, they see the pages do not discuss what they are paying the workers.
Instead, it is an extended definition of what ethically paying a worker is. They
do not compare themselves to these ethics, deeming them to be
greenwashing since they appear to be striving for sustainability but are
actively harming their workers.

Sustainability:
 Nonpolluting- H&M produces 3 billion garments per year. With 7.8
billion people in the world, H&M produces enough clothing for half of
the population of the world to receive a garment. Clearly, this is
extremely wasteful as the vast majority of the clothing will end up in a
landfill. H&M also uses factory suppliers that have been linked to the
pollution of chemicals such as sodium hydroxide and sulphuric acid.
 Organic fibers- H&M uses some sustainable fabrics, but the methods
they use (such as Pinatex) use extensive amounts of water to produce.
 Circularity- There is no current circularity (recycling & recusing clothes
after being used) system in place at H&M

 Commitment to Improvement- H&M has on the surface level shown a

commitment to improvement. They are very good at marketing their
company as being sustainable, however, writing pages upon pages of
fake information do not make them truly committed to improvement.
Whilst they claim to strive for improvement, the lack of effort with
employee ethics, sustainability, and greenwashing, H&M has not shown
any action linking them to improvements.

 Aesthetic & Quality | The pieces in the conscious collection are not
attractive and appropriate for everyday wear. Most clothing they

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produced in this line is catered to one style and cannot be worn in many
different ways. Long flowy cotton dresses are beautiful but impractical
when the goal is to have an item of clothing that can be worn in multiple
different ways. In order to create a more versatile line of clothing, a
simplistic approach would be preferable as opposed to 2010’s
bridesmaid appearing dresses.

 Size Inclusion- H&M offers up to a 2XL in sizing. This is a wider range of

sizes as opposed to other brands such as Zara and Brandy Melville. It is
Ideal to have sizes up to 5Xl, which H&M does not have. In addition, the
clothing options for the larger clothing are very limited. Once you start
looking in the XL+ section all the pieces are very modest and boring. It is
vital for companies to produce the same clothing pieces for all sizes
without significant altercations to design.
 Representation- The H&M conscious collection is simply average with
their representation in often cases companies will hire one or two POC
models to appear as being representatives. This is evident in the
marketing for this collection. The models are mostly white with very
little diversity shown. The sizing representation is also lacking, in fact,
there is not a single model above a size medium shown.
 Secondhand- The collection claims 50% of the fabric is sustainable.
This can be improved significantly when the new business model Is
adopted.

 Factories-H&M has factories based in China, Bangladesh, and India.

Numerous accounts of mistreatment have been recorded detailing the

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horrible conditions the workers face. Worker strikes, buildings

collapsing, and low wages show how abusive of a work environment
this is. H&M does not use ideal factories to produce their clothing.

H&M Going Green

Sustainability:
 Nonpolluting
We will strictly monitor how much of the clothing is needed to be
produced. Instead of constantly producing the item, the clothing will be
released in waves. There will be a certain amount of clothing made each
time. Analyst’s will track how much was sold, wanted, and the trend
cycles that may have impacted the sales. From this data collection, a
new amount of clothing being produced in the cycle will be decided
upon. The cycles should be roughly 1 month apart from each other as a
short, but not rapid, time increment is necessary to ensure up-to-date
production. Release dates may be adjusted depending upon the
demand. If there is evidence of a lack of demand from the consumers
the product will not be produced anymore as there is no use in
continuously making an item of clothing that will not be worn. Any
access clothing made that was not sold should be donated to
partnerships created with companies such as American Red Cross,
Crisis Shelters, and Homeless Shelters. The goal is to have the piece of
clothing be worn no matter what. It is against eco-friendly practices to
hoard products that will never be used. This is not to say that H&M will
purposely produce clothing to donate, rather they will donate when there
is an excess product that cannot be sold. The pollution rates will be
addressed in the factory portion of the business plan.
 Organic fibers
High-quality organic cotton fabric will be used to allow for recycling.
Heavy dyes will be replaced with the new Color Zen system. Color Zen is
a treatment process done before the dying process that reduced water
and chemical usage by 90%. This is currently the most effective and
sustainable option for dying fabric.
Some benefits of organic cotton include having a lower carbon
emission process, being more allergy-Friendly, and being safer for
workers who produce the cotton.

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 Circularity- Our products are manufactured to maximize the life and

recyclization of the material. Once the consumer is finished with the
piece of clothing, they can drop it off at any store location. The used
clothing will be collected from stores then brought to a facility well it’ll
be sanitized. The process takes apart the product to be used for tread
and other materials. The thread can be re-spun and make new fabric
that can be reinvented into new pieces. This cycle helps reduce the
wastage of material seen currently. The lifespan increases drastically to
reduce its impact on the environment.
 Commitment to Improvement- H&M will actively be held to a high level
of honesty. In order to overcome the greenwashing committed, detailed
reports of the company will be released quad-annually. These reports
will include:
- Amount of clothing sold
- Revenue from clothing sold
- Clothing in excess/what is being done with it
- Water usage
- Factory conditions
- Worker wages
- Goals for the next semester
- How do they compare to their goals from the last semester?

 Aesthetic & Quality – No more will H&M offer clothing that looks like
your grandmother’s couch. New and remodeled pieces will be available.
Refer to the product and service offerings for more information.
 Size Inclusion- All clothing proceeds will go up from an XXS to a 5XL.
The design of the clothing will be consistent throughout the sizing, and
the production of the size will match the demand so that it will be
available in all sizes that need it.
 Representation- Models of all races, ethnicity, and identity will be hired
for the Going Green remodeling. All body types and sizes will model the
clothing. A new aspect will include an option where consumers can
choose what size they wear on the website, and they will see someone
who was the same size as them modeling the garment. This has been
implemented with companies such as Old Navy and has been
successful. Our version of it is more extensive than seen before.

 Secondhand- Refer to Circularity.

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 Factories-Whilst I do not have access to specific manufacturer info

(because it requires a lot of connections and $) here are the guidelines
that H&M will follow within their factories and programs for employees.

- Possibly based In Sweden (H&M's home country) or any other

country with strict workers' laws
- MINIMUM wage of $20 an hour for all factory workers
- Anonymous surveys that workers fill out that account for their
experiences. These MUST be responded to If there Is an Incident
of mistreatment. A team will be created specifically to address
any issues and respond to the reports/surveys.
- Regular building and work environment inspections to ensure the
safety of workers
- Diversity education for all employees
- Tuition reimbursements for employees to help pay for education

COMPETITION

CURRENT ALTERNATIVES TARGET BUYERS ARE USING

There are currently other companies Implementing sustainable practices. The

Issue Is most of these companies are on smaller scales and don’t match the
principles we establish. However, the main goal of Going Green Is not to out-
market other sustainable brands, but to rather remake a current brand so that
Is no longer fast fashion-oriented. This change Is more self-care than
competition-based. Here are some other eco-friendly brands doing great things

Ten Tree
-Ethical Manufacturing
-Sustainable Materials
-Plants 10 trees for every item purchased

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-Transparent with company information

-Includes an FAQ section detailing the program
People Tree
-Extremely transparent information
-Tracks environmental pledges
- Fair Trade Certified
-Lists all fabrics, dyes, and treatments
-Lists every group their working with and provides information about them
-Participate in a regular “Social Review” to hold themselves to standards set
Ninety Precent
-Lists Factories and Materials
-Shares 90% of their distributable profits with workers and charity
-Not much information otherwise
How much competition is out there?

PRODUCT OR SERVICE OFFERINGS

PRODUCT OR SERVICE

Our clothing designs are meant to be simple yet stunning to match what Is
needed in everyday wear. Here are some ideas for the new re-design.

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Reports from H&M

Co, H. M. (2012). Conscious actions - H&M group. Conscious-Actions-Sustainability-Report-201. Retrieved
February 23, 2022, from https://hmgroup.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/Conscious-Actions-
Sustainability-Report-2012.pdf

Conscious collection – sustainable style at H&M. H&M Group. (2011, February 3).
Retrieved February 23, 2022, from https://hmgroup.com/news/conscious-collection-
sustainable-style-at-hm/

H&M, C. (2011). Conscious Actions Sustainability Report 2011. Retrieved February 23,
2022, from
https://about.hm.com/content/dam/hmgroup/groupsite/documents/masterlanguage/CSR/re
ports/Conscious%20Actions%20Sustainability%20Report%202011.pdf

H&M, C. (2012). Conscious Actions Sustainability Report 2012. H&M. Retrieved February
23, 2022, from
https://hmgroup.com/content/dam/hmgroup/groupsite/documents/masterlanguage/CSR/re
ports/Conscious%20Actions%20Sustainability%20Report%202012.pdf

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H&M, C. (2014). H & M Hennes & Mauritz GBC AB – H&M Conscious Actions
Sustainability Report 2014: UN Global Compact. H & M Hennes & Mauritz GBC AB –
H&M Conscious Actions Sustainability Report 2014 | UN Global Compact. Retrieved
February 23, 2022, from https://www.unglobalcompact.org/participation/report/cop/create-
and-submit/learner/139801

H&M, co. (2013). The H&M way. The H&M Way. Retrieved February 23, 2022, from
https://about.hm.com/content/dam/hmgroup/groupsite/documents/en/hm-
way/HM%20Way_en.pdf

H&M, co. (2021, March 31). H&M Group Sustainability Performance Report 2020. H&M
Group. Retrieved February 23, 2022, from https://hmgroup.com/news/hm-group-
sustainability-performance-report-2020/

Contextualization articles
Denim Brands - Int'lNews·December 25, 2015·3 min read·18 views, also, S., Int'l, D. B.-,
News, Reports, D., & Brands. (n.d.). H&M Green and conscious exclusive collection.
Denimandjeans Global Trends News and Reports Worldwide. Retrieved February 23,
2022, from https://www.denimsandjeans.com/brands/denim-brands-international/hm-
green-and-conscious-exclusive-collection/18537

Shen, B. (2014, August 15). Sustainable Fashion Supply Chain: Lessons from H&M.
Shanghai; Donguha University.

Aggarwal, P. (2011, October). Greenwashing: The Darker Side Of CSr. India; Indian
Journal of Applied Research .

Brain, E. (2019, August 8). H&M Norway called out for "Greenwashing" conscious collection
marketing. HYPEBEAST. Retrieved February 23, 2022, from https://hypebeast.com/2019/8/h-m-
conscious-collection-greenwashing-sustainability-norwegian-consumer-authority

“ESG Ratings Information for Hennes & Mauritz.” CSRHub,

https://www.csrhub.com/CSR_and_sustainability_information/Hennes-and-Mauritz.

Naste, Conde. “Glossary - Condé Nast.” Glossary- Conde Nast,

https://www.condenast.com/glossary/key-elements-of-fashion-and-sustainability.

Shen, Bin. “Sustainable Fashion Supply Chain: Lessons ... - Researchgate.” Sustainable Fashion
Supply Chain: Lessons from H&M, 2014,
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/275555624_Sustainable_Fashion_Supply_Chain
_Lessons_from_HM.

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Thorisdottir, Thorey. “Sustainability within Fashion Business Models: A ...” Sustainability

within Fashion Business Models: A Systematic Literature Review, 2019,
https://res.mdpi.com/sustainability/sustainability-11-02233/article_deploy/sustainability-
11-02233.pdf.

“What Is Greenwashing and Why Is It Bad for Sustainability?: Verive.” Verive.eu,

https://verive.eu/en/articles/what-is-greenwashing-en.

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