THE ICONIC highlights progress towards its People Planet Positive strategy and embarks on BCorp Certification journey
Australia and New Zealand’s leading fashion and lifestyle platform, THE ICONIC, today released its 2023 People Planet Positive Progress Year In Review, highlighting important strides it has made towards its mission to be People Planet Positive by 2030, including beginning its journey to become BCorp certified.
Launched in 2021, the continued implementation of THE ICONIC’s People Planet Positive Strategy saw the fashion and lifestyle platform strengthen its commitment to Sustainability, Diversity Inclusion & Belonging with a Responsible Workplace focus throughout 2023.
Some key progress areas from 2023 include:
-
BCorp Certification: THE ICONIC began its journey to become BCorp certified in 2023 reiterating its ambition to operate at a standard that demonstrates purpose, backed by credible action.
-
Circularity & Conscious Consumption: Further strengthening its commitment to circularity and conscious consumption, THE ICONIC was one of six retailers to sign on as Foundation and Board members of Seamless, Australia’s National Clothing Product Stewardship Scheme. Additionally, its ongoing partnership with Giving Made Easy helped customers donate 19,211 items of clothing to Salvos Stores in 2023, while its relationship with Preloved brand partners enabled customers to continue to give quality products another life.
-
Climate Action: THE ICONIC continued to take steps to reduce its carbon footprint, including increasing the use of onsite solar at its fulfilment centre, with 25% of the electricity used in 2023 generated by on-site solar.
-
Sustainable Assortments: One-quarter (26%) of all cotton sourced for THE ICONIC’s own brands in 2023 was either organic, recycled or Australian cotton, and reviews are underway to enhance how its Considered Edit recognises and categorises products that aim to have a lower social, environmental or animal impact.
-
Fair and Ethical Sourcing: Through ongoing engagement and visits, there are now active worker dialogue and grievance mechanisms in 77% of THE ICONIC’s exclusive brands’ factories.
-
Responsible Workplace: THE ICONIC has implemented a comprehensive wellbeing program and increased its safety leadership through safety engagement walks.
-
Indigenous Engagement: As part of its INNOVATE Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP), THE ICONIC launched THE ICONIC X FNFD Incubator Program, a 12 month industry-first program in partnership and co-design with First Nations Fashion + Design.
-
Reduced Delivery Emissions: THE ICONIC reduced its total product intake weight delivered via air from 14.4% in 2019 to 2.9% in 2023, aiming to keep this at 2% from 2024 onwards.
While the People Planet Positive: 2023 Year in Review celebrates many of the achievements made throughout the year, it also acknowledges there is still much work to be done.
Gayle Burchell, Commercial & Sustainability Officer at THE ICONIC
Gayle Burchell, Commercial & Sustainability Officer at THE ICONIC said: “As Australia’s leading fashion and lifestyle platform, we believe sustainability isn’t optional. We have a responsibility to do better. And having recently launched our refreshed company purpose to ‘Create A Better Way for People to Shop’, how we deliver on this from a sustainability standpoint has never been more pertinent.
“While we’re incredibly proud of the progress we’ve made on our sustainability journey, we’re cognisant that we cannot act alone in our efforts. Having joined forces with six other leading retailers in 2023 as a founding member of Australia’s first National Clothing Product Stewardship Scheme, as well as co-designing THE ICONIC X FNFD Incubator program in partnership with First Nations Fashion Design, we’re excited to unlock the potential of combined skills, knowledge and agendas on our path to be people and planet positive by 2030”.
Rebekka Carey-Smith, Head of Sustainability at THE ICONIC
Rebekka Carey-Smith, Head of Sustainability at THE ICONIC added: “While there will always be more work to do and opportunities to explore, our mantra of ‘Progress, Always’, remains steadfast. We remain laser focused on driving meaningful, positive change to improve our entire social and environmental impact, and are proud to have begun our journey to become BCorp certified as part of this commitment”
THE ICONIC’s People Planet Positive strategy has been co-designed with cross-functional workshops, and aligns with its parent company, Global Fashion Group’s sustainability agenda. Global Fashion Group’s 2023 People & Planet Positive Report can be viewed here.
About THE ICONIC:
THE ICONIC is Australia and New Zealand’s leading fashion and lifestyle platform. Since 2011, it has defined the future of retail by creating a seamless and inspiring shopping experience for its customers. THE ICONIC boasts fast delivery across Australia and New Zealand, with free shipping over $75 and free returns for 30 days. THE ICONIC is Australia and New Zealand’s most downloaded fashion app with over 5 million downloads to date. THE ICONIC has thousands of international and local brands and products across Women, Men, Sport, Beauty, Wellness, Home, Designer, Kids, Toys, and Considered, with hundreds of new products curated on-site daily. A proud member of Global Fashion Group, the world’s leader in online fashion for growth markets, THE ICONIC is focused on bringing on the future of shopping in Australia and New Zealand. For more information, please visit http://www.theiconic.com.au.
About Global Fashion Group:
Global Fashion Group is the leading fashion and lifestyle destination in growth markets across LATAM, SEA and ANZ. From our people to our customers and partners, we exist to empower everyone to express their true selves through fashion. Our three e-commerce platforms: Dafiti, ZALORA and THE ICONIC connect an assortment of international, local and own brands to over 800 million consumers from diverse cultures and lifestyles. GFG’s platforms provide seamless and inspiring customer experiences from discovery to delivery, powered by art & science that is infused with unparalleled local knowledge. Our vision is to be the #1 online destination for fashion & lifestyle in growth markets, and we are committed to doing this responsibly by being people and planet positive across everything we do. (ISIN: LU2010095458.)
Plants, seeds & more delivered to your door!
www.nativeshop.com.au
Advertisement
