The fashion industry is at a critical juncture, facing mounting environmental challenges and new legislative demands. In response, SUSTAIN20™ has emerged as an ambitious platform offering a comprehensive directory of circular fashion solutions. Co-founded by Ana Kristiansson and Klas Kristiansson, the platform aims to simplify access to sustainable partners, services, and strategies for brands, designers, and consumers. We sat down with Ana to delve deeper into the mission behind SUSTAIN20™, its innovative features, and its potential to transform the fashion landscape.
What inspired you to create SUSTAIN20™, and what gaps in the fashion industry were you aiming to fill with this platform?
– Initially we were frustrated that there was no ONE platform – a Directory to find circular fashion solutions. We’ve been working in the fashion industry for 25+ years and worked with hundreds of brands, and circular solutions are now more important than ever, especially with the coming legislation. We wanted to create THE ONE PLACE for brands, partners, and people working in the industry to have access to all the amazing circular solutions available. Besides the Directory, on the same platform you can find the SUSTAIN20™ circular framework with 20 principles developed from working with 300+ brands. It’s 20 building blocks to help brands build circular apparel businesses.
Can you explain the key principles of circular fashion and how the SUSTAIN20™ Directory supports businesses in embracing these practices?
– Circular fashion is all about keeping clothes in use for as long as possible, minimizing waste, making sure we’re using resources wisely, and when the product is ‘done,’ we make sure to put it back into the system through recycling or upcycling, for example. We’ve focused on designing for durability and longevity, resource efficiency, recycling and upcycling, additional business models like resell, rental, subscription, etc., and full traceability and transparency.
– Our platform acts as the resource for businesses looking to integrate circular fashion practices by connecting them with circular solutions in all aspects of the business journey. We also promote circularity, transparency, and traceability through the 20 building blocks and companies on the platform.
How does SUSTAIN20™ ensure that the solutions and services listed on the platform align with sustainable and circular business principles?
– We have an internal vetting process that companies have to pass to be accepted. It’s 20–25 ‘boxes’ to tick off, depending on the type of company.
How do you envision SUSTAIN20™ evolving over time, and what future developments are you most excited about for the platform?
– We want the Directory platform to be THE place for collaboration and community where brands and companies work together to move towards circularity. At all events, we hear that collaboration is key in advancing … now there is a platform to quickly find collaborators and the community needed to network with and start projects with. It’s a platform for finding people to get stuff done with. Regarding the SUSTAIN20™ framework—we can now do workshops to help brands implement the framework in their brands, and it’s also becoming a book.
What do you hope to achieve with SUSTAIN20™ in terms of impact on the fashion community, both for established brands and emerging designers?
– We want to make it easy for them and give them the tools to get stuff done—fast. Brands have enough stuff to do without sitting and googling for solutions and trying to find partners.
The platform is free to use, and it’s free to add solutions—so there is no entry barrier for using the site. The faster they can find solutions and partners, the faster they can implement them in their business—and thus reduce their environmental footprint.
