The legislative updates planned for 2023 by the European Union are game changers in the communication of fashion brands. If until now there were no limitations on what could be called “sustainable”, now the Marketing Managers of fashion companies must know in detail what are the criteria to take into account when disclosing messages related to the sustainability features of their products. In this article we give you the keys to avoid fake sustainability and learn to communicate in compliance with the upcoming anti-greenwashing regulations.

With greenwashing accusations against brands using misleading claims in their marketing messages on the rise, the European Union is working on a legislative proposal to substantiate companies’ “green claims” due to come out in the first quarter of 2023. An initiative very close to the British Green Claims Code created to prevent misleading the end consumer and guarantee compliance with the law.

Given the requirements that are anticipated in the European market to disclose messages related to sustainability, many companies are responding with the so-called “greenhushing” or also known as “ecosilence”. A new marketing technique that consists of eliminating any message related to sustainability for fear of putting brand reputation at risk.

At BCome we believe that the solution to avoid the feared accusations of greenwashing doesn’t consist in hiding the sustainable features of your product. Instead, we strongly recommend that our clients learn how to communicate their sustainable performance honestly, clearly and accurately.

We defend that the essential requirement to disclose aspects related to the sustainability of your articles is based on not deceiving the final consumer. To do this, we show you how your Marketing team can use the tools of a Global Sustainability Management Platform to support all the sustainability claims of your business without the risk of falling into unintentional greenwashing.

Guarantee the accuracy of your messages through impact figures

It’s essential that your sustainability claims don’t include exaggerations or can be misunderstood. For this, it’s relevant to have data that supports your communication. Whether providing information on the traceability of the product or impact figures, you will gain accuracy in your messages by adding data that guarantees the credibility of your statements.

BCome’s e-commerce integration allows you to directly share relevant data with your final consumer that supports the information disclosed for each of your products.

Talk about the product in its entirety thanks to Life Cycle Assessment

One of the aspects that will gain relevance after the approval of the new legislation is the consideration of all the processes that the product has undergone in order to make a specific statement. This implies that when communicating the impacts of an article, these must have been calculated taking into account all the stages of its value chain, that is, through an environmental evaluation that covers the entire product, such as a Life Cycle Assessment.

Through the BCome platform, you will be able to access the allocation of the environmental impact of each of your products throughout the supply chain.

Support your messages through reliable and accessible methodologies

Publishing your claims together with some attractive impact figures can raise many alarms if that information doesn’t refer to the standards used for the evaluation of the products. It’s important to confirm the accuracy of the figures published by facilitating access to the methodologies behind the data.

At BCome we are committed to transparency, which is why we make all our methodologies public through our Radical transparency section. In this way you can share with your community directly what are the criteria that have been followed when evaluating your products.

Provide credibility through information verified by a third party

Since sustainability claims must be true and accurate, in addition to making the methodologies used public, it will be essential to work with an external entity to validate the published information.

At BCome, we always recommend that any material displaying brand evaluations be accompanied by our “powered by BCome” badge. In this way it’s guaranteed that the brand has passed an external audit and that these data have been verified by a third party.

One of the excuses that many brands use to avoid delving into the sustainability messages of their collections is the end user’s lack of knowledge of technical terms. Being educational with your community is a long-term investment that will increase the value of your products and have a positive impact on your positioning.

Below we suggest some tools to present impact data in a clear and understandable way to your potential customers.

Use equivalences to make your impact tangible

At BCome we’re aware that sometimes it can be complex to communicate the sustainable performance of the brand to your final consumer. To do this, we provide you with equivalences that allow you to transform your data into more tangible indicators without losing accuracy.

Compare the impact of your products with the industry standard

Do you think your product has a sustainable performance above the market average? Prove it through the LCA benchmark tool that our platform offers you. Communicate the savings for each of your products and discover which items in your collection have better environmental performance compared to the industry standard.

Master the language of sustainability with the BCome Glossary

We’re working on the last details to put at your fingertips the ultimate dictionary of textile sustainability. Through this tool we want to make it easier to communicate terms that can be quite complex. We explain in your own words all those concepts that you need to understand in order to transfer them to your final consumer.

In the coming months, the guidelines included in the European legislative proposal to substantiate “green claims” will be known. However, at BCome we invite you to anticipate these measures and start working on the correct communication of your sustainable performance.

We have a team of experts in communication and sustainability that will help your business to clearly and accurately disclose all the sustainable features of your products. Count on our tools to add value to your brand and rely on the best partner to comply with the upcoming anti-greenwashing regulations. Do you want to know how? Let us show you!