Why Sustainable Fashion Communication Is Failing (and How We Fix It)

The sustainable fashion industry is at an incredibly exciting time, but it’s still at a crossroads.

According to a global survey, 85% of consumers are feeling the effects of climate change in their daily lives, and many say they’re willing to pay almost 10% more for sustainably produced goods. This is prime opportunity for the industry to thrive hard

.

So why does it still feel like no one’s listening? Or at least, taking action?

It’s all in the communication.

The Disconnect, In a Nutshell

The data tells one story, but the statistics tell another. People say they want better from the fashion industry, but the reality is they’re overwhelmed, under-informed, and overstimulated.

We scroll through half-hearted press releases, buzzwords, and beige aesthetics with brands monotonously saying ‘we care’. But still, progress stagnates, trust falls, and fast fashion keeps its greasy grip.

What is being increasingly proven is that sustainable fashion doesn’t have a materials problem or a technology problem, it has a meaning problem.

Five Signals From the Industry

1. Sustainability feels a bit elitist.

   
   

The cost of ethical production still pushes many consumers out, and unclear on just why sustainable production means higher prices. Sustainability isn’t accessible if it feels like a luxury club, and not just in the buying of sustainable products, but in the conversations around it.

With a global cost-of-living crisis and constant social, political, and climate anxiety, sustainability talk can sound detached from everyday realities. For many, fashion feels like the least important thing in a collapsing world.

2. Sustainability fatigue is real.

   
   

People are so tired of being preached to. They don’t trust ‘green’ claims, too many brands have turned sustainability into an aesthetic, one we’ve seen before, and doesn’t engage.

For some, seeing the right buzzwords feels like enough one less thing to worry about.

As with any type of education or hobby, doing your own research can be time-intensive, draining, and frankly too much emotional admin.

3. Visibility is the biggest barrier.

Shoppers simply can’t find sustainable fashion online.

They want to buy better, but 30% say sustainable options are hard to identify. And realistically, who has the time to scroll through endless product pages hoping to strike gold?

Sustainable fashion can’t rely on discovery. It needs to show up where culture already is, visibly, accessibly, and creatively.

4. The trust gap is widening.

69% of consumers don’t believe brands are transparent about their sustainability and ethics claims. How can brands expect to grow long term customers with such little trust?

What needs to change here is brands understanding that transparency isn’t purely about carbon counts or cotton types, it’s also about tone, consistency, and behaviour.

Too many brands talk transparency but act opaque. They post sustainability reports once a year, but go silent the rest of the time, or treat it as a completely separate entity to the business, In a landscape shaped by social media and short attention spans, trust is built in the gaps between campaigns.

5. Scaling up often dilutes values.

Ethics and growth don’t always get along. It's a very harsh historic-truth.

Small, values-led labels can control their supply chains, but when investment and scale enter the picture, the pressure to grow fast often overrides the desire to grow well. It can also be really expensive, and funding isn’t always easy to secure by those with a likeminded value set. 

Scaling sustainably requires creativity: new business models, shared infrastructure, and cross-industry collaboration. The brands doing it best - from resale innovators to biomaterial startups - are treating growth as an ecosystem, not an ego trip. 

So What Went Wrong for Sustainable Fashion Communication?

• The industry talks at people instead of with them.

• We communicate sustainability as a virtue, not a value exchange.

• We’ve made it about our supply chains instead of their lives.

In that gap, meaning got lost.

The Irigai Perspective

The next era of sustainable fashion communication needs to be human, creative, collaborative, and honest.

We need to empty sustainability statements behind, and see a lot more of ‘sustainability is the bare minimum - how does it benefit the person buying?’ Brands must show people what they're about, not tell. This is done through creative visibility, collaboration, and real behaviour. They need to educate and involve customers in a tone and on platforms that actually land with them, whether that’s a pop-up, a playlist, a film, or a product drop. We have to have fun with it. 

This is where Irigai steps in, and in particular, creative strategy.

explore creative strategy

We translate sustainable intent into communication that lands, with the people who will elevate your brand culturally, commercially, and credibly.

Sustainability doesn’t need saving, it just needs better storytelling.

let's talk