Challenges of Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability in the Clothing Industry

Business Ethics
Responsibility and
Sustainability

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
MAIN BODY..................................................................................................................................1
1. Examining as well as discussing key challenges concerned with corporate responsibility
together with sustainability relating to the sector........................................................................1
2. Analysis addition to explaining what needs to be consider to be “best practice” in the sector
for ethical and moral issues.........................................................................................................4
3. Making recommendations for businesses in the industry for showing they are responsible by
taking into account global considerations....................................................................................5
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................7
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................9

INTRODUCTION
Business ethics is defined to system of moral rules of conduct which are applied to all
business. It is all about knowing what is right along with what is wrong at workplace. Similarly,
Business responsibility is termed as various obligations which an organisation has to fulfil
towards society for the purpose of existing and operating effectively. At same time, business
sustainability is defined to management along with coordination of social, environmental
addition to financial concerns for ensuring ethical, continuous and responsible success
(Akdogana, Selimoglu and Turkcana, 2020). Business ethics, sustainability along with
responsibility are main elements of organisational strategy so to manage daily operations and
developing the industry in which they works or operates. To understand about sustainability,
responsibility together with ethics of business, clothing industry is the chosen sector. Clothing
industry is that sector which summarises trade type, production as well as life chain of garments.
The industry deals with all clothing types that range from fashion to e- textiles, work wear
addition to uniforms. The assignment discusses about key challenges related with corporate
responsibility and sustainability in the sector, further, it explains about what is to be considered
as best practice in the sector in context to ethical along with moral issues. At last, some
recommendations are made for business working in the sector for showing that they are being
responsible through taking account of global considerations.
MAIN BODY
1. Examining as well as discussing key challenges concerned with corporate responsibility
together with sustainability relating to the sector.
Overview of clothing sector
Clothing industry is the industry which reviews types of trade, industrial production
together with life chain concerned with clothing and garments. It is one of garment producing
sector that is build upon huge wealth of clothing technology including cotton gin, loom, sewing
machine and other manufacturing mechanisms. It involves all kinds of clothes, such as e-
textiles, work wear, fashion and uniforms. In UK, clothing industry closely follows all the
fashion trends in order to supply latest in the market. The industry has emerged as major
contributor towards development of national economy. In coming year, clothing industry of
United Kingdom is expected to grow around 16.6% to £ 51.2 Bn. As per the achievements or
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revenues of the industry, it is forecasted that in coming years it will become third fastest growing
industry after food & grocery as well as health & beauty (UK’s Clothing industry. 2020). In UK,
major players in the industry are Marks and Spencer, Biba, Ark Clothing, Burberry, Cricket
Fashion, John Collier, Matalan, Richard Shops, Sainsbury’s, USC and hence forth. Addition to
this, there is some young clothing shoppers who posses higher purchase frequency which is
around 58.1% of teenagers between the age of 16 to 24 years that buys at least once in month
which boosts rapid fashion trends as well as desires for newness. Money value is one of biggest
purchase motivator in context to clothing, particularly within mature shoppers. Other than off
line clothing, it is also forecasted that the online clothing market can attain growth by 55.3% till
2022 and will be accountable to 34.2% market.
Despite of the success, there are various challenges related with corporate sustainability
and responsibility in the clothing sector. Some of them are as examined and discussed:
Cost of materials: Clothing industry has evolved through linear theory when it comes to
materials, that are expresses in terms of “Take, make along with waste”. In contrary, it is
becoming categorically apparent that there are certain resources on which clothing industry relies
on for creating its products finite. It is in the procedures of dyeing and treating clothes, vast
quantity of water is used for making pair of wearable (Aluchna and Idowu, 2017). As per WWF,
around 70 per cent of water usage is in agriculture of cotton that is most used fabrics having
highest environmental impacts after wool, leather and others. To meet the corporate
responsibility together with sustainability, clothing companies are facing challenge of high cost
of materials or fabrics. It is also analysed that the cost allegation of water is becoming
increasingly scarce addition to more regulate. In the industry, business model which operate on
individual utilisation on raw materials is believed to be unsustainable long term. At same time,
commodities used by consumers are huge valuable to lose to incineration together with landfill.
Till the time garments are not properly recycled with technologies and enough materials are
collected, existing clothing corporate are not sustainable.
Consumer sentiments: Consumers are considered as basic economic entity of industry. It
is seen that all consumers buys and consumes products either directly or indirectly to meet utility
and maximising satisfaction. These are king of any industry as all the workings and efforts are
made by particular sector after considering consumer demands and choices (Cantele and Zardini,
2018). In dynamic scenario, consumers are most numerous demographics in international
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