From excess water and carbon emissions to dangerous chemicals and staggering amounts of waste, the fashion industry poses a behemoth of a threat to the environment. Rampant consumerism of fast fashion fuels an ever-expanding mountain of discarded clothes in Chile's Atacama desert and other countries while luxury brands are known to incinerate excess inventory at the cost of grave climate impacts.
Pushing for greater accountability, technological innovation, and higher ethical standards throughout the luxury fashion industry, one brand is doing something about these issues. Toward, the Net-a-Porter of sustainable fashion, has opened its first-ever storefront in West Hollywood. Stocked with emerging and established sustainable luxury brands, Toward's new space is the only place on Melrose Avenue to shop coveted brands like House of Sunny, Anna October, Yuzefi, Agolde, and Reike Nen.
Frustrated with greenwashing in the retail industry, Ana Kannan launched Toward one year ago to increase brand transparency about environmental impact. The brand assesses all its partners against nine areas of focus—transparency, emissions, materials, waste and chemicals, workers' rights, water management, animal welfare, biodiversity and forestry, and ethos.
Every label Toward stocks has completed its thorough investigation process, delving into all areas of the supply chain, service, and marketing to determine that the current performance meets its core requirements. In line with its focus on and commitment to actionable transparency, these findings, and details of Toward's key metrics and standards, are all documented and available to read on the brand's site via reports.
Toward's new brick-and-mortar features ethically sourced, second-hand materials from furniture to mannequins. QR codes are interspersed throughout, enabling shoppers to learn how each brand is working to reduce its impact on the planet.
Last year was a turning point for retailers, with the number of major retail store openings exceeding that of closings—5,083 opened versus 5,079 closed. The trend seems to be continuing into 2022. By the end of January, announced store closures were down 65% year-over-year while openings reached 1,910 for a 3% increase, according to Coresight Research.
Peep Toward's address below to discover the best in more responsible fashion and beauty.
Toward, 8443 Melrose Ave., West Hollywood, 90069; Open Monday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m.
