{"id":3931,"date":"2015-12-08T21:56:35","date_gmt":"2015-12-09T02:56:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/digital.hbs.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/green-chic-how-reformation-made-eco-cool\/"},"modified":"2015-12-08T21:56:35","modified_gmt":"2015-12-09T02:56:35","slug":"green-chic-how-reformation-made-eco-cool","status":"publish","type":"hck-submission","link":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/green-chic-how-reformation-made-eco-cool\/","title":{"rendered":"Green Chic: How Reformation Made Eco Cool"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"reformation\"<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Mission \u00a0<\/strong>Founded in 2009, Reformation was created because of founder Yael Aflalo\u2019s desire to make a difference. After a particularly eye opening trip to a factory in China where she started to see the detrimental effects the fashion industry was having on the environment, Aflalo set out to create a company that would change the way fashion companies thought about sustainability. She says, \u201cAll these dresses I was making\u2026they were all made out of fossil fuels\u201d[4]. \u00a0\u201cI started to make the connection: This is me, I’m making clothes and I’m a big part of this\u2026I felt I actually needed to go and create a company that solves this problem, even for purely selfish reasons that I want to buy a dress and I don’t want to feel bad about it\u201d[1].<\/p>\n

The fashion industry is \u201c\u2026the third most polluting industry in the world. Global production of textiles consumes 1 trillion gallons of water, 33 trillion gallons of oil, and 20 billion pounds of chemicals annually” [5]. \u00a0\u201cEvery year, around eighty billion garments are produced worldwide, and they leave an enormous environmental footprint\u201d [7]. \u00a0Reformation aims to start a movement to decrease the industry\u2019s carbon footprint. \u201cWe make killer clothes that don\u2019t kill the environment,\u201d it proclaims on its website. How does it do this?<\/p>\n

\"images\"<\/p>\n

Materials \u00a0<\/strong>Approximately 65% of Reformation\u2019s collection is made from eco-fabrics (developed in-house), 20% from re-purposed vintage clothing, and 15% from dead stock fabrics (extra material other designers would throw away). This procurement strategy has a direct impact on the environment: \u201c\u2026while the average t-shirt sold by a fast fashion competitor might take about 200 gallons of water to product, Reformation\u2019s takes only six\u2026\u201d [2].<\/p>\n

Reformation employs a model of low inventory and fast speed to market. The company only produces in batches of 200 units and launches new product on its website every week. With the goal of selling out of product each week, this strategy minimizes Reformation\u2019s carbon footprint.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Reformation4\"Production \u00a0<\/strong>Approximately 70% of Reformation\u2019s collection is produced in a company-owned factory in L.A. and the rest is produced in another factory a couple miles away. Reformation\u2019s factory takes sustainability seriously: \u201cIt gets all of its energy from renewable resources, so it\u2019s off the grid. We do different things across the board, from not using plastic to using recycled material to using recycled packaging products or not use packaging at all, not using harmful soaps and dyes, all that kind of stuff\u201d [6].<\/p>\n

Owning the supply chain allows Reformation to manage its quality and it gives the company the flexibility to respond to trends in the market.<\/p>\n

\"download\"<\/p>\n

Product \u00a0<\/strong>Sustainability is what makes Reformation unique, the product is what has made it successful. \u201c \u2018There are sustainable fashion brands, but they\u2019re not fashionable. That\u2019s really the issue,\u2019 she (Aflalo) says\u201d [4]. \u00a0\u201cWe always go product first. I think a lot of the problems that sustainable brands have had is that they always go sustainability first and maybe the product is not as important. I don\u2019t think people buy things because they\u2019re sustainable. People buy things because they\u2019re a great product\u2026\u201d [6].<\/p>\n

With a cult following from \u201cit\u201d celebrities like Taylor Swift, Rihanna, Alexa Chung and Karlie Kloss (she is even a part owner!), Reformation has made Eco \u201ccool.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Distribution \u00a0<\/strong>Reformation operates a website and a handful of brick and mortar stores. \u201cOn average, e-commerce uses about 30% less energy than traditional retail\u2026In our NYC and LA stores, we lessen our environmental footprint by installing energy-efficient fixtures, using recycled hangers and reusable tote bags, limiting our inventories and waste, and cleaning with non-toxic, biodegradable products\u201d [7].<\/p>\n

Results<\/strong> \u00a0\u201cThe company’s revenue in 2014 was $25 million, and that number is expected to double or triple by the end of 2015, Aflalo says\u201d [3]. Reformation\u2019s success can be attributed to an effective alignment between its brand mission and its operating model. Reformation\u2019s mission \u201cto make killer clothes that don\u2019t kill the environment,\u201d is supported by every aspect of its supply chain. Each step in the chain is owned and managed by Aflalo, giving Reformation the flexibility and leverage to make responsible and sustainable decisions. This synergy between the operating and business models has allowed Reformation to create something truly special \u2013 it has made being eco-friendly \u201cfashionable.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Sources<\/em><\/p>\n

[1] http:\/\/www.racked.com\/2014\/11\/26\/7567391\/yael-aflalo-reformation<\/em><\/p>\n

[2] http:\/\/www.forbes.com\/sites\/clareoconnor\/2015\/04\/03\/cult-favorite-fashion-label-reformation-raises-12-million-with-supermodel-backer\/<\/em><\/p>\n

[3] http:\/\/www.latimes.com\/fashion\/la-ig-reformation-20150419-story.html<\/em><\/p>\n

[4] http:\/\/www.entrepreneur.com\/article\/245918<\/em><\/p>\n

[5] http:\/\/cbey.yale.edu\/events\/bright-lights-green-sights-yael-aflalo-reformation<\/em><\/p>\n

[6] http:\/\/grist.org\/living\/reformation-eco-fashion\/<\/em><\/p>\n

[7] https:\/\/www.thereformation.com\/<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In a world where \u201cenvironmentally friendly\u201d = \u201cunfashionable,\u201d Reformation founder Yael Aflalo is showing the world that Eco is cool.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":959,"featured_media":3932,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","categories":[],"class_list":["post-3931","hck-submission","type-hck-submission","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"connected_submission_link":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/assignment\/the-tom-challenge-tom-winners-and-losers-assignment\/","yoast_head":"\nGreen Chic: How Reformation Made Eco Cool - Technology and Operations Management<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/green-chic-how-reformation-made-eco-cool\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Green Chic: How Reformation Made Eco Cool - 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