The context speaks for itself. The constant disruptions in the supply chain, the climate urgency or the demands set by legislation are just some of the levers that have made sustainability a priority for the fashion industry. Time is running out and textile companies have to learn quickly to integrate this concept into their business model. While so-called gurus are taking advantage of the situation, industry leaders rely on tools created to manage this great transformation. In this article, we invite you to learn in detail what a Global Sustainability Management Platform is and how the big players in the industry are using it to make a difference in the market.

For the second consecutive year, the professionals in the textile sector surveyed for The State of Fashion report once again pointed out sustainability as one of the biggest business opportunities for the coming months. In addition, technology and digital tools are becoming increasingly relevant in guaranteeing more accurate traceability throughout the value chain.

“From data platforms to facilitate information gathering across all production stages to rigorous data standards to track sustainability metrics […] Brands that are best equipped to make meaningful and credible change will be those that ensure every part of their operations is doubling down on sustainability, not just talking about it”.

The State of Fashion 2023 report

But what type of technology is optimal when it comes to digital tools to drive sustainability? The need to simplify such a complex concept has led to the development of different solutions, however, not all of them are equally efficient. Sustainability, by definition, must be transversal to the entire company, that is, it must be carried out comprehensively. Having access to a platform for the global management of sustainability is the most complete solution that your business can access.

What is a Global Sustainability Management Platform and what is it for?

It’s a software designed for the assessment, interpretation, monitoring and disclosure of information related to the sustainability of a business. Its main objective is to simplify the execution of these tasks by grouping them in one place, allowing their automation and the communication of relevant data directly and transparently to the final consumer.

At BCome we’re aware of the special features to which the fashion industry responds. It isn’t the same to carry out an impact assessment of a store than of a piece of clothing that has gone through more than 20 different processes. Textile supply chains are complex and, as such, require exclusive solutions that cover the uniqueness of the fashion industry. BCome is a platform for the global management of sustainability created to meet the specific needs of the textile sector. These are the features that it puts at your fingertips:

Supply chain traceability

This tool refers to the collection of relevant data from suppliers and materials to have more information about the journey of your products.

Measurement of the environmental impact of the collections

It consists of calculating the environmental footprint of each of your items. In the case of BCome, it provides the four indicators recommended by the European Union: water scarcity, global warming, eutrophication and abiotic depletion.

Industry standard impact benchmarking

This feature allows you to compare the environmental impact of your products with the sector average to identify in which aspects your collections stand out from the market.

Evaluation of the holistic impact of the items

A Global Sustainability Management Platform not only focuses on the environmental footprint, but also assesses items based on different areas of impact: planet, people, transparency, and circularity. At BCome, this evaluation is materialized in our Eco-Score. A qualification system that rates the good practices associated with each of the impact areas.

Reporting of relevant data for stakeholders

The information related to sustainability must be clear and easy to understand. This feature simplifies the collection and interpretation of data so that it can be shared with different stakeholders.

Creation of smart labels

An easy and simple way to share this information with the end customer is through smart labels, just like we do at BCome. It consists of a version of digital passports through which textile companies can link the impact information with the physical article through a QR. In this way, anyone can access the sustainability insights of the product they have in their hands. They are part of the mandatory impact labels being introduced in countries like France.

Integration of sustainability reports in e-commerce

Beyond smart labels, the integration of data in e-commerce allows the company’s transparency to expand to all those who visit its online store, thus avoiding possible greenwashing practices.

Comparative calculation of environmental impact

Having a tool that allows you to compare the environmental impact of different alternatives throughout the supply chain can be very useful when making decisions. 80% of the environmental impacts are determined at the design stage, following ecodesign principles will not only be mandatory by regulation but a great way to promote more sustainable products. BCome clients access this information through our Stage Comparator.

Through the unified tools in BCome’s all-in-one platform, we seek to simplify the coverage of all the needs of the fashion industry to ease its sustainable development. Having an end-to-end solution that covers the requirements of the company in a transversal way is essential to guarantee its success.

But, what are the advantages of using a Global Sustainability Management Platform compared to other alternatives?

On many occasions, professionals prefer to keep using more rudimentary tools such as spreadsheets or hire consultancies through which they outsource their evaluations. However, the use of a Global Sustainability Management Platform has great advantages when it comes to efficiently addressing the demands of a textile company:

• Organization of information related to sustainability in one place. Why have three different tools when there is one that brings them all together? Efficiency in management is also reflected in the performance of the company.
• Automatic extraction of results. You don’t need to be a sustainability expert, the platform already does the calculations for you. Knowing that the methodologies behind your data are accurate is a guarantee of peace of mind.
• Ease of interpretation of the information. Going back to the previous point, a platform like BCome has graphic and explanatory resources that make the data understandable by anyone who has access to it.
• Optimization of the team involved. The easier a tool is to use, the more agile the work is and, therefore, the smaller the volume of employees that must be involved in the tasks that the platform already handles.
• Accessible and updated data. Forget about remembering which is the last document on which changes have been made. Data is in-house, updated and accessible from anywhere through a username and password.
• Reduced time spent. While with other solutions you could spend weeks or months trying to get accurate impact data, BCome is much faster. Choose which tasks you spend your time on and let technology work for you.
• Agility in interdepartmental work. The fact that all the information is in one place and is accessible to and easy to understand for all team members stimulates more agile work between departments.
• Economic savings. A single platform that optimizes work and guarantees a lower investment of team time results in long-term economic savings for the company.

To these great advantages are added the tasks that a Global Sustainability Management Platform allows to accelerate within a textile company. From the CEO, through the Purchasing Manager to the Marketing Director, they find in this technological solution their perfect ally to guarantee the optimal performance of the company.

What benefit can your fashion business get from a platform like BCome?

If you still have doubts about how your company can rely on BCome to cover some of its great pain points, we share with you how the great fashion leaders are taking advantage of the use of technology applied to sustainability:

• Optimization of suppliers from a greater visibility of the supply chain. In order to choose suppliers that are aligned with your principles, it’s necessary to locate them and assess their impact.
• Choice of more sustainable materials. When you know the impact of the materials used in your collections, you have the ability to look for alternatives that allow you to reduce the footprint of your products.

“BCome allows us to know through science the impact of each phase in order to make better product decisions, modifying processes or promoting some designs over others”.

Fede Sainz, Founder at Sepiia

• Development of innovative materials. Creating specific materials adapted to the needs of your business implies having data that supports their impact.
• Evidence of the company’s sustainable commitment. When it comes to protecting against greenwashing, the disclosure of the company’s impact data is a guarantee of transparency towards the final consumer.

“Thanks to the support of BCome we can measure the impact of our products and show the results with total transparency to our community”.

Marta Magaña, Brand Manager at HOFF

• Increased brand recognition. EVERYTHING is content, also the sustainability reports of your articles. Using this information to improve engagement with your audience will be more efficient and longer lasting than investing in other kinds of strategies.
• Security in compliance with legislation. Having the support of a trusted data provider that verifies that the impact information required by the new regulations is true will save a lot of headaches and avoid greenwashing claims.
• Acceleration of the company’s transition towards sustainability. What until now was a long and complex process is now simplified through the use of a single platform. Once you start working with BCome, the sustainable transformation of your business has already begun.
• Sales volume scaling. It’s a reality, when brands are transparent with their end customer, the public responds positively to the products that they identify as being aligned with their values.

“Thanks to BCome we have impact data that has allowed us to increase our conversion rate sales by 13%”.  

Javier Bosque, E-commerce Manager at Ecoalf

Do you need more arguments to launch the transformation of your business through a Global Sustainability Management Platform? Each company is different and at BCome we are experts in paying attention to the demands of each business. Our sustainability experts will be happy to listen to your needs to suggest the solutions that best suit the reality of your company.

We are here to make sustainability easy for your business, start the transformation of your company today with BCome.