Everyone is now talking about eco-sustainability, circular economy, green philosophy. But how do these factors constitute the "brand value" of an item of clothing or a luxury fabric?
By Roberta Redaelli
Brand value is a key concept underlying the dynamics of the global market, which comes into play with increasing relevance in the definition of company objectives and consumer expectations, especially those more aware. As an axiological content, brand value refers to a grid of impalpable components, to a complex set of values within which the sustainability factor is one of the most relevant.
Luxury sells dreams and the brand that identifies the product configurable as luxury activates and embodies the intangible element of the dream, as it allows access to a unique universe of privilege.
The term refers to the process of interaction between human activities (social, economic, productive, thought and development) and the natural environment or ecosphere, which allows a type of sustainable development both in the exploitation of resources, and in the redistribution of produced goods. In the current historical phase, sustainability is the factor that gives meaning to all levels of social life, but in particular to luxury companies: companies that, beyond the quality product above the average standard, must be able to offer a non-monetizable value plus.
The intangible element of the dream
That is the impalpable trait that continuously feeds the dream capital aroused by the simple evocation of a brand name. Luxury sells dreams and the brand that identifies the product configurable as luxury activates and embodies the intangible element of the dream, as it allows access to a unique universe of privilege. Talking about brand value means referring to a systemic reality, that is to processes in continuous interaction, the outcome of which is the result of emerging properties that depend on systems and at the same time transcend them.
Despite the complexity that characterizes it, the brand value presents to a phenomenological look some essential traits, attributable to three fundamental cores:
Value constellation (prestige, beauty, integrity, environmental protection), that is the ethical dimension of brand value;
Production methodology, that is the set of practices pertaining to the production area, whose presence is decisive to characterize the final product (control of the entire value chain then production chain, raw materials used, virtuous practices in energy consumption, search for new products);
Circular economy: this very popular and widespread notion of sustainability expresses, in particular, the impact of value beyond the product or on consumers. It is a set of production practices that respect the intrinsic values of sustainability with influences on the economy and society as a whole.
In the current historical phase, sustainability is the factor that gives meaning to all levels of social life, but in particular to luxury companies.
The circular economy presents itself as the sustainable alternative to the so-called linear development. The latter expresses the prevailing economic model, characterized by the "production-consumption-disposal" scheme, where each product is inexorably destined to reach "end of life". This economic/consumer approach has led to two major consequences: the production of waste and the intensive exploitation of the resources available to the Planet. Global, planetary outcomes such as desertification, deforestation, the misery of large parts of the population, the increase in the degree of pollution, have produced the great environmental and social crisis with which we find ourselves. The association between the economic and social aspects, on the other hand, has been reiterated in several places, but few have been able to grasp it with the acumen and sensitivity of Pope Francis who wrote in the encyclical Laudato si’ that: «There can be no ecology without an adequate anthropology», underlining the interconnection between care for the environment and respect for people, since sustainable development is concerned with ecology but also with social equity and gentle growth. The European Union, in reiterating the now essential need to change the development model from linear to circular economy, has indicated the transition guidelines that focus on reuse, adjust, renew and recycle existing materials and products, so that what was normally considered as "waste" can be transformed into a resource. To understand what impact the circular economy can have on the European system, just consider a figure: every year almost 15 tons of materials are used per person, while every EU citizen generates an average of over 4.5 tons of waste per year, of which almost half is disposed of in landfills. Thus, not only can the linear economy based on the exploitation of resources no longer be seen in terms of a viable option, but the circular economy announces itself as extraordinarily appealing to the resources it repositions. These few context references to sustainability as a value and as a leading socio-economic strategy in the contemporary world introduce the theme of the next insights that will explore the impact of sustainability as a distinctive brand value of luxury products. Eco-sustainability is a very strong driver for the formation of this "emerging property", understandable only in a systemic context. But, precisely because of this characteristic, it risks not being understood or recognized without an adequate mode of communication.
© Rekh Magazine
Roberta Redaelli, Italian Sustainability Consultant, Content Creator, Translator and Web Content Editor. Educated at the Catholic University, she graduated in Foreign Languages and Literature with a specialization in Economics and Technique of business Communication (2020), then took the Master “Fashion and Sustainability: Understanding Luxury Fashion in a Changing World” by London Collage of Fashion and Kering (2021) and the Master “Fashion Values: Economy” by London College of Fashion (2021). As a continuation of her academic research started with the Master’s thesis entitled "Sustainability and communication as values in the luxury market", on 24 January 2021 she founded Made In Como, couture showcase of sustainability Made in Como. Not only a novelty in the social world, but also an important part of a wider editorial project, which aims to tell the excellence of Como in a sustainable way.