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The “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle” Commitment of H&M

The fashion industry is rot with waste and is causing detrimental effects on the

environment, a pattern that clothing brand H&M is working tirelessly to change. In 1947 a

company called Hennes opened in Sweden selling women’s clothing, and in 1968 they bought

Mauritz Widforss to expand their business to include men’s and children’s clothing as well

(“History”). The brand, Hennes & Mauritz (H&M), has since grown to operate globally and

online in 61 distinct markets, with 3,926 stores, 148,000 employees, 6 unique brands, and sales

totaling SEK 210 billion (“H&M Annual Report” 11, 21, 54). H&M has become a leader in

fashion sustainability, with a variety of different initiatives aimed at reducing their

environmental impact, creating an ethically sound work ethic, and establishing their values

throughout their production chain. Since 2010, H&M has focused heavily on the use of organic

and sustainable materials, as well as providing safe and fair working conditions for their

employees. Their sustainability mission states that H&M believes in “a better fashion future—

one that makes fair and sustainable fashion affordable and desirable for all” (“Our Vision”). In

the H&M Conscious Actions: Sustainability Report 2015, there is a comprehensive outlining of

their practices, which include providing fashion for conscious consumers, choosing and

rewarding responsible partners, being ethical and climate smart, reducing, reusing and recycling,

using natural resources responsibly, and strengthening communities—each of which have

detailed initiatives within (2). H&M’s most publically visible commitment to “Reduce, Reuse,

Recycle” consists of adopting a circular business model and sustainably eliminating waste.

These two branches of the initiative demonstrate the environmental obligations the company

faces; however, I believe increased dialogic communication with industry partners is necessary

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to spread their initiatives throughout the fashion industry, as well as increased transparency to

show all of the business benefits they receive from these practices.

H&M’s, “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle” commitment demonstrates their commitment to

increased environmental awareness through becoming a circular business and eliminating waste

wherever possible. The H&M Conscious Actions: Sustainability Report 2015 outlines the

environmental issues that the fashion industry causes, citing the U.S. EPA report that found close

to 5% of American landfills consist of unwanted, discarded textiles, of which 95% could be

recycled or reused according to H&M (86). While this brand is working to decrease the amount

of clothing that gets thrown into landfills, the problem is much larger than one company can

solve. That is why H&M hopes to set an example for the fashion industry to follow in time

through knowledge of their initiatives and a variety of different partnerships. Also as a leader of

textile sustainability, H&M hopes to find new technology and systems to help increase the

amount of clothes they can recycle, to extend the lifetime of each garment, and to help decrease

the environmental impact of each item produced (“H&M Annual Report” 90).

The sustainability commitment to reduce, reuse and recycle where possible is

demonstrative of the H&M focus on moving towards a 100% circular business model. H&M

understands that our planet’s resources cannot sustain the fashion industry’s modes of production

and consumption, and hopes to move “away from a linear production model to one that uses

once-created products as the resource for new desirable fashion” (“H&M Conscious Actions”

89). The linear model that dominates the current fashion industry consists of a “take-make-

dispose” system that is extremely harmful to the environment and cannot be sustained over time.

The circular model depends on two main focuses of sustainable product development, based on

the waste hierarchy. The first step is to extend the life of a given garment; this includes

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increasing an item’s durability and quality, as well as finding secondary uses for unwanted

products, such as second-hand clothes or cleaning cloths (“H&M Conscious Actions” 90, 92).

The second step of this process is recycling unwanted garments to create new fashion; H&M has

initiated a garment collection service specifically for this new model (it will be discussed in

detail later on). H&M has created many partnerships to help develop their circular business

model and stresses the importance of dialogue and collaboration to accomplish a goal that is

larger than any one company or organization. The Ellen MacArthur Foundation “works with

business, government and academia to build a framework for an economy that is restorative and

regenerative by design,” in order to, “accelerate the transition to a circular economy” (“About”).

EMF believes that fashion should be seen as a service rather than just a profit avenue, and that

changing the understanding and mindsets of those in this industry is the most important initial

step (“H&M Conscious Actions” 91). H&M is one of seven companies currently working with

EMF to develop this circular business model.

The initiative to “close the loop on textile fibers” consists mainly of H&M’s garment

collection to reuse and recycle unwanted textile into new clothes they can sell to customers.

These garment collection bins were first implemented in 2013 and have since resulted in 22,000

tons of collected items, 12,341 of those coming in 2015 alone (“H&M Conscious Actions” 92).

These bins are located in almost every H&M store where they are highly visible and encouraging

for customers to utilize. When these clothing items are collected by H&M the fibers are reused

or recycled into new H&M products, meaning less textiles are thrown away into landfills but

rather end up back on the racks as new trends. One very important aspect of collecting the

garments has been raising awareness of the issues surrounding textile waste for H&M

consumers. The company also produced a viral video in 2015 to help inform consumers of the

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environmental impacts their daily fashion choices lead to. When customers are aware of the

implications of their clothes, there are more likely to become conscious consumers, demanding

more sustainable products from all of their companies, which in turn will help aid in solving this

problem on a wider scale.

While H&M has begun their move towards recycling, already creating 1.3 million

garments consisting of 20% recycled cotton, there are still many obstacles in their way before

they are able to claim success (“H&M Conscious Actions” 86). Unfortunately, the current fiber

recycling technologies are not very advanced, so only 20% of any new garment can be made

from recycled materials before there is a loss of quality or longevity (“H&M Conscious Actions”

92). H&M is working to lead the initiatives of finding new technology that will create the ability

to use more recycled products in each new garment, with the hopes of creating a 100% circular

business model. While recycling cotton and wool fibers have proven to be tricky, H&M is

having a great deal of success with their work with polyester. In 2015, H&M recycled 90

million PET bottles to create new polyester products (“H&M Conscious Actions” 93). These

new innovations have lead to partnerships with scientists and innovators to create more textile to

textile recycling, including a partnership with Worn Again in the UK (“H&M Conscious

Actions” 93). Worn Again describes their mission as the development of “a chemical textile to

textile recycling technology that will enable end of use clothes and textiles to be collected,

processed ad made back into new yarn, textiles and clothes again and again” (“Product Becomes

System”). The more awareness the public has of these issues, the more the industry will be

forced to respond and develop these new technologies, and it is at that time that these

partnerships and collaborations will be so vital in making a lasting change.

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The final aspect of H&M’s “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle” commitment is their focus on

eliminating their waste in a sustainable way. This focus on waste reduction revolves around their

commitment to eliminating cardboard, paper and plastic waste in their stores, offices and

warehouses. In 2015, H&M’s warehouses were able to recycle 94% of their waste, which totaled

50,000 tons of materials—65% cardboard, 10% paper, and 7% plastic (“H&M Conscious

Actions” 95). There have been more challenges with in-store recycling because each store

depends on the recycling systems of the community or building they are renting retail space. In

places where existing systems are not ideal, much of store waste will be returned to an H&M

factory to be properly disposed of. In 2015, only 61% of H&M stores were involved in recycling

systems, but their report ensures they are looking to raise 100% of their stores to this standard

(“H&M Conscious Actions” 95). Overall, we see the H&M commitment to reducing their

carbon footprint and environmental impacts across their entire business system through reducing

the need for rapid production through the creation of durable products, reusing unwanted

garments in various other outlets, and recycling textile fibers to create new clothes, as well as

recycling the copious amounts of waste from their operations.

H&M’s “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle” commitment demonstrates two main ethical

perspectives—relationship and duty. The relationship perspective is what will take H&M’s

initiatives to a more global scale that will allow it to reach beyond just their services to include

all members of the fashion industry. The relationship perspective focuses on, “dialogue [as] the

basis of successful relationships and that, ultimately, productive relationships are the foundation

for ethical action among individuals and within (and across) cultures” (May 18). H&M

exemplifies the relationship perspective in the way they have developed their circular business

model and sustainability measures across their wide range of operation systems. These

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innovations are not contained to one specific department, but rather stretch from production to

sales to management, which requires high levels of dialogic communication. H&M gathers

feedback from all of their stakeholders when considering these new initiatives, which I believe is

extremely integral to their success (“H&M Conscious Actions” 12). There is also a large

presence of partnerships in the H&M Conscious Actions: Sustainability Report 2015 that have

produced significant strides in environmental preservation strategies. While H&M is commonly

recognized as the leader in these innovative sustainability measures, they cannot make a large

difference alone but must rely on others in the industry following suit (Kaye). In order to fully

embrace the relationship perspective, it is necessary for H&M to engage in dialogic

communication past their own employees and departments in order to make this change more

globally accepted. H&M’s new business model should be approached as “power with” rather

than “power over” their industry, collaborating to find the most effective solutions and holding

one another accountable for these changes in order to make a larger impact (May 18). If their

intentions are truly out of a sense of duty and obligation to the environment they have a hand in

destroying rather than making a greater profit, then these collaborative relationships are integral

to their wide-scale success.

The duty perspective focuses on the actions that are performed “because of an obligation

to follow a set of standards or rules” (May 14). H&M’s focus on environmental impacts and

developing sustainable business practices reflects their perception of environmental protection as

an obligation of the fashion industry and their systemic practices that directly relate to these

issues. This perspective is extremely important for H&M as they market their intentions by

working so tirelessly for textile sustainability reform. When analyzing H&M’s “Reduce, Reuse,

Recycle” initiative, it is important to consider the intent of the organization in its relation to their

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outcomes. It is my belief that a corporate social responsibility initiative should not be primarily

self-serving, but in many cases, these intents and benefits are difficult to truthfully decipher. The

duty perspective in particular focuses on intent as an aspect of making decisions ethically, and it

is unclear if H&M’s circular business model is based on genuine intentions of environmental

protection or if their intentions lie in financial benefits and marketing a philanthropic image

(May 15). By recycling materials that have been donated to H&M, production costs are much

lower, and these savings will only increase over time as donation numbers increase and

technology advances, generating large profit increases for the company. In addition to these

profits, H&M is attracting more business through their philanthropic persona that is able to be

marketed; conscious consumers and those looking to do a good deed are more likely to shop at

H&M if they know their practices, which in turn creates higher demands that the cyclical model

cannot sustain. While the data points to their contributions are presented, the H&M Conscious

Actions: Sustainability Report 2015 only provides raw data about their initiatives and not any

indication of what percentage of their inventory contains these recycled materials. Some critics

speculate that the “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle” initiative benefits the company more than it benefits

the environment it is trying to protect due to their massive growth in recent years (Bain). In

order to maintain a duty perspective, I would recommend an increase in transparency about the

specifics of the initiatives in order to decrease speculation about their intentions. I believe

H&M’s actions are based on their sense of obligation to the environment, but in order to for this

sense of duty to succeed there needs to be increased transparency to their customers about all the

benefits of the implemented initiative.

The H&M corporate social responsibility initiatives have the potential to make a

significant impact, but at these early stages their impacts remain low. The report outlines the

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effects the textile industry has on the environment, including landfill dumping, energy used, and

waste from their stores, offices and warehouses, but it does not provide any indication on the

large scale impact their efforts have made. There is data to support the successes of their

initiatives, but no indication on if this is changing the wider environmental issues. I do think that

their impact can be measured through their progress towards developing new means to reduce

these environmental burdens because if no one ever begins developing the innovative solutions

the problem does not have a hope of being solved. I think H&M is on track to having large and

lasting impacts in the fashion industry, and in the immediate future should look towards

developing more advanced technology to help overcome their current obstacles. Once the

initiative is further developed I believe it will begin to be adopted by others in the industry, and

then we will begin to see much larger impacts. The work that H&M is doing is important and

impactful, having already made beneficial contributions to the protection of the environment, and

will continue to increase impact over time.

Overall, the H&M Conscious Actions report is well written, stylistically engaging, and

outlines the various actions this company has taken over the past year to address their

responsibilities beyond just making a profit. “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle” serves the public good

through addressing a timely and pressing concern over environmental sustainability that will

affect our planet for years to come. In my opinion, the most successful aspect of this initiative

comes from its ability to connect a problem with the operations and mission of H&M. Being a

clothing company and a major player in the textile industry, H&M is an appropriate company to

shed light on the environmental effects that are caused through textile production, sales and

waste. The initiative’s compatibility is similar to Anheuser-Busch, a large beer company, taking

the initiative to “promote alcohol responsibility” because the misuse of their product is directly

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linked to problems such as alcohol abuse, underage drinking, and safety hazards due to alcohol

consumption (“Responsible Drinking”). By addressing the issues that a company is responsible

for or closely connected to, there is usually higher public response to the initiative because they

have taken some form of direct responsibility for the effects their business creates. H&M does

not focus on the issues that their company is not connected to, but rather addresses the

consequences of their business creates and working to find a solution for the greater good.

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Works Cited

"About." Ellen MacArthur Foundation. N.p., 2015. Web. 20 Apr. 2016.

<https://www.ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/about>.

Bain, Marc. "Is H&M Misleading Customers with All Its Talk of Sustainability?" Quartz. N.p.,

16 Apr. 2016. Web. 20 Apr. 2016. <http://qz.com/662031/is-hm-misleading-customers-

with-all-its-talk-of-sustainability/>.

"History." About. H&M, n.d. Web. 20 Apr. 2016. <http://about.hm.com/en/About/facts-about-

hm/people-and-history/history.html#cm-menu>.

"H&M Annual Report 2015." About. H&M, N.p., 27 Jan. 2016. Web. 20 Apr. 2016.

<http://about.hm.com/content/dam/hm/about/documents/en/Annual%20Report/Annual

%20Report%202015_en.pdf>.

"H&M Conscious Actions: Sustainability Report 2015." Sustainability. H&M, 1 Apr. 2016.

Web. 20 Apr. 2016.

<http://sustainability.hm.com/content/dam/hm/about/documents/en/CSR/

2015%20Sustainability%20report/

HM_SustainabilityReport_2015_final_FullReport_en.pdf>.

Kaye, Leon. "H&M, The Ethical Fast Fashion Leader?" Triple Pundit: People Planet Profit.

N.p., 10 Apr. 2012. Web. 20 Apr. 2016. <http://www.triplepundit.com/2012/04/hm-

sustainability-report-2011/>.

May, Steve, ed. Case Studies in Organizational Communication: Ethical Perspectives and

Practices. 2nd ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, 2013. Print.

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"Our Vision." About H&M. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Apr. 2016.

<http://about.hm.com/en/About/sustainability/hm-conscious/sustainability-vision.html>.

"Product Becomes System.” Worn Again. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Apr. 2016. <http://wornagain.info>.

"Responsible Drinking." AnheuserBusch. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Apr. 2016. <http://anheuser-

busch.com/index.php/our-responsibility/alcohol-responsibility-our-families-our-roads/

responsible-drinking/>.

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