2024 Award Finalist: STANDARD ISSUE
Care For Life
Finalist: Circular Business Innovation Award presented by Trade Me.
The Care for Life initiative by Standard Issue is a comprehensive programme dedicated to extending the life of garments and promoting a circular fashion economy. This initiative focuses on repairing, redistributing, and recycling garments to minimize waste and maximize product lifecycle. This commitment focuses on three fundamental principles:
Repair Services: Customers can return their Standard Issue garments for repair, with minor repairs (under 30 minutes) done free of charge. Complex repairs, which require more skill and time, are priced between $30 and $60. Each repair is carried out with exceptional care by their skilled craftspeople to ensure garments continue to serve customers for years.
Redistribution: For garments that are no longer needed or cherished by their customers, they encourage customers to gift them to those in need. Standard Issue collaborates with local organisations like Middlemore Foundation, Dress for Success, and Women's Refuge to redistribute clothing effectively.
Recycling and Fair Deal Commitment: Garments that are beyond repair are recycled through our partnership with Textile Products, a New Zealand-based company that repurposes raw textile waste into new products. Trims like buttons or zips are removed and repurposed within our workroom. Standard Issue offers a goodwill discount for customers to purchase a replacement item under their Fair Deal Commitment.
Alongside the dedication to using 100% renewable or recycled natural fibers, and innovative zero-waste production techniques, Standard Issue aims to minimise waste and extend the lifecycle of its products. Now in its fifth year, the Care for Life initiative highlights Standard Issue’s commitment to sustainability, quality craftsmanship, circular fashion, innovation, transparency and community collaboration
Positive Impact
The Care for Life initiative at Standard Issue fundamentally transforms the traditional take>make>waste model by integrating circular economy principles across all operations.
Material Sourcing and Production:
Standard Issue uses 100% renewable or recycled natural fibers, ensuring that the raw materials are sustainable from the start. Their innovative zero-waste whole garment knitting technology significantly minimizes production waste, exemplifying their commitment to efficient and sustainable manufacturing processes.
Lifecycle Extension and Waste Reduction:
Through the Care for Life programme, Standard Issue extends the lifespan of its garments, reducing waste by offering repair services for all products. Customers can return garments for repair, thus keeping them in use for longer periods. For garments that are beyond repair, Standard Issue has established partnerships with local community organisations to redistribute these items, ensuring they still serve a purpose.
Recycling and End-of-Life Management:
Garments that cannot be repaired or redistributed are recycled through a collaboration with a local textile recycling company. This ensures that even at the end of their lifecycle, the materials are kept in circulation and diverted from landfill.
Embedding Circular Economy Principles:
Standard Issue continuously refines its processes to enhance circular fashion design and zero-waste practices. The company’s dedication to sustainability is reflected in its core business operations and value propositions, driving them to innovate and improve continually. Their commitment is not only to sustainable production but also to educating consumers and embedding these principles into the broader community.
Impact:
Since the inception of the Care for Life initiative, Standard Issue has significantly reduced waste and maximized the lifecycle of its products, setting a benchmark for sustainable practices in the local fashion industry.
Positive Benefits
The Standard Issue Care for Life commitment has resulted in substantial positive benefits:
5 years of commitment to renew, reuse and repurposing of Standard Issue garments
- 396 garments repaired
2020: 18 repairs
2021: 62 repairs
2022: 52 repairs
2023: 76 repairs
2024: 188 repairs (to date)
396 customers working together with Standard Issue to extend the longevity of their garments and avoid sending them to landfill
1 partnership with local recycling organisation Textile Products
3 partnerships with local charitable organisations for redirection of preloved garments still in good condition