Vertical catwalks in Milan as fashion brands get an eco-friendly make-over

Posted by Richardg — 26 February 2013 at 5:48pm - Comments

It's about time that major fashion labels cleaned up their act. They're still using toxic chemicals and buying from companies that are chopping down rainforests.

We wrote to 15 of the world's largest fashion houses - labels like Gucci, Louis Vitton and Valentino - to ask them to ensure their clothes weren't costing the earth.

But their answers weren't very promising. Only Valentino promised to detox its clothes and support zero deforestation. Most are doing too little - and four brands couldn't even be bothered to respond.

That's just not good enough - so we've been taking action to get them to clean up their clothes.

During New York Fashion Week, our clean-up crews visited Prada, Dolce & Gabbana, Chanel and Hermès, decorating store windows with giant images of forest destruction and toxic pollution. In Milan, Greenpeace Italy unveiled a vertical green catwalk at the start of Milan Fashion Week and used 'clean graffiti' outside of flagship stores.

Join the Fashion Duel and help us clean up fashion.

No one wants the Amazon to be cut down for a belt, or our rivers to be polluted to make a pair of jeans. It's time for these companies to set a new trend and commit to making their clothes as environmentally-friendly as they are fashionable. Chiara Campione from our Italian office says it best: “Beautiful fashion does not need to cost the Earth.”

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