Sustainability is no longer a new trend in sportswear, with more and more brands either switching entirely to greener product options or at least developing some styles using recycled plastic bottles or sustainable fibers.

Sportswear looks a lot better in the near future than it did 5 years ago when sustainable options for fabrics and components were few and far between, and often with huge surcharges or huge minimums.

It's all about mindset and offset. When it comes to starting every aspect of your sportswear business, you need to have a clear goal in mind. Every aspect of the business needs to strive to minimize the damage to the planet as much as possible. This mindset will reduce your business's carbon footprint; however, it won't eliminate it entirely, since you're still making products and shipping them around the world.

Here are 5 key steps to becoming a sustainable apparel brand.

Complete commercial thinking needs to be implemented across the brand. Every employee needs to understand the impact they can have on the planet as they perform their daily tasks and look for greener alternatives and methods.

This mindset encompasses everything, whether it's your choice of energy supplier, your choice of the courier company, product design, and material selection, the packaging you use, and the quantities you order and store. Every aspect needs to be scrutinized and possibly adjusted to become more sustainable.

Product materials and components should use sustainable solutions that cause minimal damage to the planet without compromising quality or performance.

Also consider the quantity you buy so you can sell without discounting the value of the product, which shortens the life of the product as consumers won't value it as much as if it were sold at full MSRP.

Consider upgrading the quality of fabrics and components to make clothes more durable.

Use ethical manufacturers who pay their workers well. You should also try to find a plant that manages their waste and recycles it where possible. The ink they use should be environmentally friendly, and the water and electricity they use can be provided by sustainable sources.

When your goods are ready to ship from the factory, consider packing them in recycled cartons and shipping them using the most environmentally friendly means possible, even if they take longer to arrive.

Think about how the goods are packaged and how this affects your shipping volume. Should they be folded or hung? The less space your cargo takes up on your boat, plane, or truck, the more it can carry, reducing the overall carbon footprint of the journey.

Are the clothes individually wrapped in plastic bags, or can they be replaced with biodegradable natural bags? Do you really need a swing ticket?

How friendly is your merchandise once they are thrown away? Will they sit in landfills for decades without decomposing? What happens when they finally break down? Do the fibers and ingredients contaminate the soil?

Consider using natural fibers and ingredients that degrade quickly and return nutrients to the ground.

You may also want to consider offering clothing repair services, perhaps as part of an RRP, or FOC, or you can charge for this service. Brands that repair damaged products and give them a second life are highly regarded by customers and will become brand loyal.

If you are looking for a sustainable clothing manufacturer, please contact us.

YOYOUNG is a professional custom sportswear manufacturer. We cooperate with high-quality fabric suppliers. From the yarn to the last roll of fabric, a series of strict quality control procedures are in place to maintain production standards. Each raw material is carefully selected and inspected by our professional team to ensure its high quality. In addition, inspections during and after production further ensure the quality of the garments.