By Camila Rua - Translated by Laura Osuna

 

The sustainable fashion industry is constantly being built, so, on many occasions, when trying to enter or transition towards sustainability, the problems and challenges that the industry is going through are unknown. To learn more about these difficulties, we asked Valentina Suárez, leader of Universo MOLA, the international Latin American sustainable fashion movement that works to generate alternatives for transformative development.

 

What do you consider are the three biggest challenges facing the sustainable fashion industry in Latin America at the moment?

 

The three biggest challenges facing the sustainable fashion industry in Latin America are the market, public policies and the connections within the sector. By the latter, I mean that all actors in each of the value chain links understand sustainability and can apply it, from production to design. The second challenge is public policies since we need more sustainable and regenerative regulations. The challenge related to the markets is that we need to find a way to educate the final consumer so that they make more conscious purchases and, in this way, we can support projects focused on sustainability.

 

Do you think that brands and the different participants in the chain of production should contribute to consumer education? 

 

Each of the links that are part of the industry is important in every way; therefore, we need producers to have sustainable practices so that traders, designers, and consumers also have and generate those practices, because if we only keep part of the chain, we will not achieve that the entire system to be sustainable and, therefore, the product is not sustainable either. So, it is extremely important that each of the parts that conform the value chain can contribute to that sustainability process since we are all responsible for the system changing and transforming..

 

How do you think they should contribute to consumer education?

 

A review of each of the business models of each company and suppliers in the worldshould be made, to subsequently communicate, certify and work with their immediate customers. Clearly, those who are in the production chain will not address the final consumer, but their customers, their stakeholders. So, from that side, that communication process is super important.

 

Based on your experience, what are the main challenges that Latin American brands face when implementing sustainable processes?

 

Many times the biggest challenge to implementing sustainable practices is education, since many people are uninformed about what things they should take into account to be more sustainable. People think that just getting recycled or natural textiles is enough and it is just a very small tip of a huge iceberg. So, we need projects and all the professionals who enable them to move forward to know what sustainability means, how to measure the impacts we have and enhance the resources they have in hand.

 

With what methodology could brands solve these challenges?

We, through MOLA Educa, have been generating different courses and training spaces since 2019, precisely to educate the professional of the future. Something very important is that we provide updated information and methodological tools, such as impact, communication, or marketing business models, for all initiatives that have a different imprint and purpose from that of a product-based fast fashion company. Normally, these companies are focused on enhancing their value proposition through a holistic product, which consists of: the product, the history, the why, and the purpose.

However, a very important skill is critical analysis, being able to discern and understand if you are really being consistent or if you are only generating greenwashing strategies that are peripheral and reactive, instead of being proactive.

Sustainability is composed of three main areas: environmental, social and economic. With which of these three areas do companies usually have the greatest difficulty? 

 

I believe that the area with which brands "struggle" the most, so to speak, is the economicone. We have brands that are very social and very focused on the good of communities, understanding communities as any collective. We also have brands that are focused on the environment, so all the processes of minimizing impacts of water, energy, etc., are very good. But when it comes to implementing sustainable finance, there are shortcomings, and this comes precisely from the business model and marketing strategies.

 

How to make sustainable finances? And what should sustainable finances include?

 

Although I am not a finance expert, I do specialize a little more in business models. Therefore, innovation is extremely important to find distribution channels and generate differentiating business models, which generate fewer costs, greater impact, and have an economic return. There is no exact formula for how to do this, but it is essential to be very clear about the communication and marketing of our products and to understand that sustainability is not at odds with aesthetics. In this sense, sustainability must also aim to generate products that are worthwhile and attractive to people.

 

What is the best way to deal with these difficulties?

 

I think the best way is to let yourself be guided by mentors and to learn from those who already know the ecosystem in Latin America. I feel that Mola Educa is a wonderful space to learn, make mistakes, ask questions, and resolve doubts. So, I think we have to invest in education, time, knowledge, attending events, generating networkingspaces, making ourselves known, looking for strategies to understand where we are going and how we can be more sustainable from the heart of our businesses and professions.

 

Finally, what role do connection and networking play in sustainability?

 

Sustainability and the processes related to it, in recent years, have been a constant process; there is nothing written, detailed, or affirmed, and many things are constantly evolving. Therefore, it is very important to generate networking and education spaces to be updated and generate critical thinking around it. If we do not connect, do not learn, and do not generate alliances with others, we will not be able to understand the current situation of what is happening and we will remain in a bubble that will not lead us to anything, because we are working in an industry that covers human issues of sociology, philosophy, physics, etc. Therefore, it is very important to be in contact with all sectors and understand other perspectives.