Infinity | Making it easier to understand the environmental impact of clothes.

What is the problem you found?

Many people don't understand the detrimental impact that their clothing has on the environment. We realised that most consumers do not know where their clothes are made and produced and how much of the production process had involved unethical practices that are harmful to the environment.

We found that customers would like a clear indicator of the environmental footprint of their fashion choices but this doesn't exist currently. In a recent survey we conducted, 10 out of 15 people said that knowing an item’s sustainability would influence whether they buy it.

Also, 95% of all textiles have the potential to be recycled but currently they're recycled at only 15%.

What is your opportunity?

How might we ensure responsible consumption and therefore the production of textile products?

Who is your audience?

The everyday shopper who is concerned about the environmental impact of their clothing.

What Is Your Solution?

We have developed an Australia-wide organisation (that we hope can one-day extend to the rest of the world) called Infinity. Infinity is a company that makes it easy for consumers to learn about the environmental and ethical impacts of the textiles they purchase. The rating displayed on our tags and in stores is similar to the health star rating in that it represents an item’s fabric, ethical manufacturing, environmental footprint and whether it is, or can easily be recycled. 

Infinity aims to make clothing consumers more aware of their products’ environmental impact. Our 5-star rating system is based on an item’s fabric, ethical manufacturing, environmental footprint and whether it is, or can easily be recycled. In short, it is a trustworthy representation of its overall environmental impact. This rating will be shown on a clothing item’s tag, within and outside shops and should be a point of pride to stores that their products have a good rating. Stores may also display their rating on our as well as their online platforms.

Our online survey where customers can quickly and easily vote for their favourite store to get an Infinity rating puts pressure stores to spend the mere 1 cent fee per item to receive an Infinity rating. All of the money raised will go towards Infinity and its purpose. We hope that by doing this, stores will change their manufacturing behaviours to become more sustainable and therefore get a higher rating, benefitting the store and community.  

Infinity's aim of improving the consumer-producer cycle circulates around customers valuing sustainable clothing, and to encourage this we will release quick, catchy advertisements to capture viewers attention.

Part of our future strategy is to expand further and set up clothes bins, such as the ones you would see outside op-shops, to ensure that second-hand clothes are responsibly dealt with. Once we have these clothes, Infinity can compost cotton, resell them or take clothes to communities in need.

By hopefully incorporating our idea into the real world, we can make a difference in the way textiles are produced and disposed of, therefore helping the wider community and the environment. Make a sustainable choice. Make an Infinity Choice.