The Circular Economy, More Practically Speaking In my last two updates, we’ve talked about the circular economy, a “green revolution” that’s beginning to take hold among retailers, brands, manufacturers and consumers. So far, we’ve defined what the circular economy is, and we’ve discovered why it’s time to take it seriously. But now, we’re going to turn our attention to more pragmatic matters. First, we’ll look at what retailers, brands and manufacturers are currently doing to […]

The Circular Economy: Why Now? In our last discussion, we talked about a comprehensive approach to sustainability called the circular economy. The circular economy takes the idea of “reduce, reuse and recycle” to a whole new level, one in which manufacturers, suppliers, retailers and customers aim to create a zero-waste supply chain. This nifty diagram from the Carlsberg Foundation illustrates the differences between the linear economy (“take, make, use and waste”) and the restorative, multi-faceted […]

The Circular Economy: What’s Old is New Again and Again The evolution of retail is a study in contrasts. Wal-Mart has been making upscale moves, Whole Foods is looking to leave behind the “Whole Paycheck” moniker and democratize organic foods for the masses, and the fast fashion industry, called out for its damaging impact to the environment, is tackling new green initiatives. But fashion isn’t the only industry looking to make genuine improvements in its […]