Analyzing the Challenges to Circular Economy in Indian Fashion Industry

Abstract

The fashion industry, during production and post-consumption, has major adverse environmental impacts. With the recent circular economy (CE) practices initiative, discarded fashion materials are reused to recover value from the waste. However, the CE practices initiative have not been well-received by society. The role of CE practices is very crucial in fashion industry as it helps in lowering the environmental burden caused by the discarded fashion materials, which in turn help to achieve the sustainable development goals (SDG). This study aims to collect and evaluate the challenges restricting the preference for CE practices initiative in Indian fashion industry. Based on literature review and inputs from the fashion industry experts, the study identified twenty-one challenges, in seven categories (Industrial management, Labour, Material, Regulations, Knowledge, Collaboration, and Infrastructure). An integrated multi-criteria decisionmaking (MCDM) approach comprising fuzzy Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory Model (DEMATEL), Analytical Network Process (ANP), and Technique for Order Performance by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) is used to evaluate the challenges. The outcome of the study identifies costly raw materials, absence of certifications, problem in collection and separation, weak technical know-how, and absence of shared vision as the top five challenges to CE practices in Indian fashion industry. Further, the revelation of the causal interrelationship among the challenges helps the industrial management in taking appropriate steps to avert the challenges.INDEX TERMS Circular economy (CE), fashion industry, fuzzy decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory model (FDEMATEL), India.

The Influence of Sustainability Marketing, Corporate Social Responsibility, Ethical Branding, and Green Consumerism on Brand Equity and Market Position in the Fashion Industry

“…Nevertheless, the effectiveness and comparability of the existing Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) reporting in representing the real objectives and actions of clothing businesses are lacking (Kozlowski, 2012). As part of its shift to a purposedriven approach, the sector is highlighting the circular economy (CE) as a crucial sustainability paradigm (Harsono et al, 2024;Thinakaran et al, 2022). In an effort to meet consumer demand and lessen the industry's substantial environmental effectssuch as carbon emissions, textile waste, and resource depletion-businesses are putting a greater emphasis on sustainability.…”

Analysing the Barriers Involved in Recycling the Textile Waste in India Using Fuzzy DEMATEL

“…Step 3: NIRDM of factors was calculated by Equation (2). Fuzzy NIRDM of key barriers to recycling in the textile industry is obtained.…”

“…Thus, the manufacturing community is in a situation to adopt CE practices to ensure sustainable industrial practice [1]. The need to adopt CE practices has been more compelling for the textile industry as it is the second most polluting industrial sector in the world [2]. The toxic substances released during the processing activities of the textile industry pollute the air, water, and soil heavily.…”

Circular Economy Research Ttrends in the Textile and Apparel Industry: A Bibliometric Analysis

“…Annually, almost $400 billion of clothing is wasted, with an anticipated increase of 60% between 2015 and 2024. In contrast, the recycling or reuse of textile material waste is limited to 25%, with the remaining 75% deposited in landfills (Thinakaran et al, 2023). Consequently, concerns regarding sustainable development stem from unsustainable textile production and consumption patterns.…”

“…For example, Saha et al (2022) uncovered the current state of the circular economy (CE) in the textile and apparel sector based on a sample dataset of 114 textile firms from Bangladesh, Vietnam, and India. Thinakaran et al (2023) identified the challenges of implementing CE in Indian fashion industry. Camacho-Otero et al (2019) studied consumer perspectives on accepting and adopting circular offerings.…”