Why does environmental labelling inspire confidence?

Environmental labelling has become a crucial issue in the textile industry, the second most polluting industry in the world and the fifth biggest emitter of greenhouse gases. In fact, this sector emits 4 billion tonnes of CO2 every year, as a result of the production and sale of over 100 billion garments.

In an era when consumers are demanding greater transparency on the provenance and composition of products, brands need to make quality information available to existing and potential customers in order to win their loyalty and trust. This is particularly the case with the meteoric growth of fast-fashion since the early 2000s.

Since 2020, measures taken by the French government to encourage eco-responsible production in the textile sector have made environmental labelling a very important issue for companies.

Environmental labelling: definition

According to ADEME (Agence De l'Environnement Et de la Maîtrise de l'Énergie, the French Environment and Energy Management Agency), environmental labelling is an initiative launched in 2009 as part of the Grenelle Environment Round Table, with the aim of raising consumer awareness of the environmental impact of products and services. 

This approach requires manufacturers and distributors to make available to consumers the technical data used to communicate the environmental performance of their products.

The principles of environmental labelling

This display is based on 3 principles: 

• An index (A, B, C, D, E) to compare two products in the same family, such as T-shirts;
• Visibility: environmental information must be visible to consumers, so that they can observe it even before adding the product to their shopping cart; 
• Comparability: environmental labelling must make it possible to compare the impact of products on the basis of the same information, whatever the brand.

The aim is to provide consumers with all the information they need to make an informed purchasing decision. Brands undertake to be transparent about their environmental impact and that of their products.

Why adopt the environmental display approach?

As mentioned above, more and more consumers are paying attention to their purchases, as well as to the conditions of production, design and materials that make up the products they buy.

According to a survey carried out by poll&roll for Helios, 81% of French people are concerned about global warming, and 48% have been for several years. Protecting the environment requires changes in consumer habits, and responsible purchasing favors local consumption and products with low environmental impact.

Brands can no longer afford to miss out on transparent, clear information, with the aim of gaining consumer trust and converting more customers.

This approach to ecological transparency will now be applied to all players in the textile sector, as the French government is following a precise timetable for the application of environmental labelling to various industries. Like the Nutri-Score in the food industry, the label is based on a rating from A to E according to the ecological impact of clothing. The 9 criteria taken into account include the impact on biodiversity, the product's physical durability, plastic pollution, production methods, etc.

For companies, this environmental approach includes management, teams and the entire production ecosystem. Companies must contact their suppliers, wholesalers and distributors in order to gather as much information as possible on each stage of product manufacture. 

Once the environmental impact score has been calculated, the company can add value to this information and provide it to consumers. To do this, however, you need to be well organized, with the right tools to distribute the environmental display effectively.

Manage and disseminate your environmental display using the PIM

Even if a company has a favorable environmental impact score, this will only be of use if the information is disseminated uniformly to all its sales channels.

Indeed, environmental labelling involves the creation, management and dissemination of new product information, which raises a number of issues: 

• Product data is managed using several tools within the company(ERP, CRM, Excel, etc.) and by several teams (product, e-commerce, logistics, etc.);
• Multiple shared files increase the risk of error, loss and deletion, impacting data quality;
• Data formatting differs according to the sales channels used.

Given these constraints, a PIM (Product Information Management) tool is an excellent way of organizing all product-related data. PIM is a tool that enables product data to be centralized, enriched and distributed in just a few clicks from a single platform. Other features of PIM include 

• Collect data already present in your information system thanks to ERP ;
• Connects to other data sources via API, like a PLM tool that manages the product lifecycle; 
• Allows you to add images such as score pictograms to promote the environmental display of your products on the platforms of your choice; 
• Allows you to collaborate efficiently on editorial content, product descriptions and all notes relating to your environmental scoring; 
• Automatically distribute aggregated data to PIM on distribution channels (Magento, Shopify, etc.).

What are the benefits of environmental labelling?

Environmental labelling is more than just a response to consumer demand for transparency. It also plays a key role in promoting sustainable practices within the textile industry.

Brands that adopt this approach benefit from several advantages, such as : 

• Building consumer confidence: consumers are increasingly wary of companies that fail to provide clear information on the impact of their products and activities. In this context, environmental labelling enables brands to demonstrate their commitment to eco-responsibility and win the trust of consumers;
• Differentiation from the competition: with more and more players taking the digital turn, brands adopting environmental labelling stand out in the commercial landscape and are perceived positively by consumers, also influencing their reputation;
• Regulatory compliance: by anticipating regulatory requirements, companies can avoid potential penalties and be ready for the implementation of new laws.