Wrangler's Commitment Platform To The Greatest Sustainably Dyed Denim To Date - Forbes

Wrangler Men's Denim

Wrangler

Whenever I am fortunate enough to appear for a fashion sustainability panel, I prefer to give the audience so much more than an environmental awareness lecture. In short, humanity requires interconnectivity to open the dialogue of conversation including all inhabitants on planet earth. The simple yet harsh reality is that without our beloved planet earth, life would not exist. In this day and age, no matter who you are, you have no doubt encountered  environmental obstacles and sustainability challenges in your life. Some of you deal with it and move on, whereas others make a lifelong commitment to advocate and participate for generations to come. The relative influence of nature coupled with the manifestation of human inhabitants has for centuries produced speculation by environmentalists and scholars of all kinds. At present, highly developed statistical techniques have allowed us to dissect sustainability challenges into distinct sources of variance, the intertwined influences of civilization and environment.

Consequently, speculation about nature versus manufacturing is being transformed into theorizing based on facts, and the facts are firmly in place. To be sure, the influence on our biological heritage on physical and psychological data is undeniable, and this includes human abilities, personality, vocational interests and most importantly; the future of our planet. Every year, citizens of the United States and people across the world invest, through their taxes, millions of dollars into basic and applied research. We can only hope that the research will lead to improvements in the overall quality of life in their society. And indeed, much progress has been made as a result of this investment. I suspect that without even charting data, you’ll be able to free a new sense of energy and vitality. This leads to two questions: what do we actually know, and what would happen if our knowledge were applied.

One way is to tune in to and appreciate a direct sensory experience. Truly, connecting with a sustainable fashion company. Each day when you rise, you can appreciate your direct sensory experiences knowing that you are open to habitually practicing positive sustainable routines. Being open means cultivating both curiosity about and acceptance about what you’re are currently experiencing. So far, I’ve sketched only a description of how sustainability opens our minds and transforms our lives into something better. In the rest of the feature I’ll present the scientific evidence that has convinced me that there’s a reason to take the data about sustainability more seriously than ever before. If you wish to start purchasing only sustainable fashion, I can strongly suggest to look deep into what makes the product sustainable.

For the sake of this feature, I will assume that you are already on board and that you wish to broaden your mind and build a better future for yourself and for the planet. At this point, I am sure that you have already guessed that I am going to suggest that you increase your efforts to purchase and wear sustainable fashion.

1. How do consumers go about doing this?
2. How will it effect price at retail?
3. How much sustainable fashion is enough?
4. And how can consumers know for sure that their efforts are helping the planet?

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Wrangler

Here we attempt to grapple with this problem. In an interesting tour de force, Wrangler®, the iconic American brand is leading a revolution in denim manufacturing by being the first fashion  brand to adopt dry Indigo® denim. Wrangler® confirmed an agreement for denim fabric to be produced later this year with a new foam-dyeing process that will eliminate 99 percent of the water typically used in the indigo-dyeing. Wrangler is the first brand to embrace the innovative technology, which is expected to transform the denim industry.

• Wrangler sourced yarn from Hilaturas Ferre that has 28 percent recycled content.
• Wrangler provided Texas Tech University with early-stage  funding for the development of the foam-dying process. 
• Texas Tech University & North Carolina-based Gaston Systems modified foam technology for denim applications. 
• Gaston Systems implements first foam technology with fabric mill Tejidos Royo.
• Wrangler works with Tejidos Royo to bring the first foam-dyed denim to market.

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WRANGLER

Almost everyone would agree that Wrangler has been an icon in authentic American style around the world for more than 70 years. The brand was formerly known as Hudson Overall Company from 1904 until 1919 and soon changed its name to Blue Bell Overall Company. In 1943, Blue Bell acquired Casey Jones Company, a manufacturer of work-clothing, and, with it, the rights to Casey Jones' rarely used brand name – Wrangler. Subsequently, In 1947, Wrangler Authentic Western Jeans was introduced to the American costumer. One theme running through this volume is the of tough resistance to the profound implications of fit and wear for the cowboys. Professional rodeo cowboys Jim Shoulders, Bill Linderman and Freckles Brown wear-tested the denim and endorsed the Wrangler name for durability, quality and authenticity. In 1962, Wranger opens a plant in Belgium and is successfully launched in Europe. But it wasn’t until 1996 when the once Blue Bell Overall Company reaches the 1^stspot as a market share leader in the United States. The statistic says that one out of every four males in the U.S. is rocking the Wrangler jeans. Nowadays, Wrangler is known as one of the most innovative denim brands out there. Trying to reach new horizons, without looking at the past and always looking forward for the quality and transparence of the brand’s sustainable-minded ethic.

Although I occasionally find flaws in the research of my studies reported in publications or lectures, I almost always accept as accurate the information provided on demographics and results, especially when they are quantified.  It would be unseemly for me to cite expert studies pertaining to sustainability without referring to long-range predictive validity of the advanced foam technology tests, which are constructed around the assessment of divergent thinking. based on my follow-up data, the measures were even better in forecasting ratings of quality of highest creative and sustainable achievement.

With a rich legacy founded in the American west, Wrangler commits to offering unmatched quality and timeless design. Its collections for men, women and children are a powerful and persuasive display to look and feel great, inspiring those who wear them to be strong and ready for life, every day.

“While we have been able to reduce 3 billion liters of water in product finishing during the past 10 years, we know that more needs to be done across the entire supply chain,” said Wrangler President, Tom Waldron. “Foam technology reduces water consumption and pollution further upstream, helping our fabric suppliers to dramatically minimize the impacts of making denim fabric blue.” Recognizing the potential of this breakthrough, Wrangler and the Walmart Foundation provided Texas Tech University with early-stage funding for development of the foam- dying process. The iconic denim brand helped introduce fabric mills to the latest technology and now will incorporate the first foam-dyed denim into a line of jeans launching in 2019.

“We invested in the development of this innovation, because we believe it can drastically change the denim industry for the better,” Waldron said. “We’re grateful to have an industry-leading partner in Royo, with whom we are taking this revolutionary step towards more sustainable denim.”

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Wrangler

Tejidos Royo, a Spanish fabric mill with a reputation for prioritizing environmental performance, will be the first to integrate the foam-dye process, which it calls Dry Indigo®. Royo is scheduled to receive the foam-dye equipment in October and expects to begin supplying Wrangler with denim before the end of the year.

“We’re excited Wrangler is dedicating an entire line of jeans to this innovation,” said Tejidos Royo Sales Director, Jose Royo. “Our Dry Indigo process nearly erases the environmental impact of denim dyeing and represents the next generation of denim production.”

The first line of foam-dyed jeans will be Wrangler’s most recent action to minimize environmental impact and save precious resources. Among the brand’s demonstrated sustainability activities are the ongoing work in U.S. sustainable cotton and a commitment to reduce water usage by five billion liters by 2020. According to Royo, applying indigo dye to raw denim with foam instead of water will eliminate the need for the tens of millions of gallons of water typically consumed by conventional wet-dye systems.

Tejidos Royo is a Spanish Company founded in 1903, Valencia, Spain. Leader in the textile industry in Europe and with international vocation (present in more than 30 countries). As part of its brand DNA, Tejidos Royo is guiding the textile industry to the new era of sustainability and protection of human rights throughout the whole value chain. Takes the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals as its own (Tejidos Royo your eco-innovation partner "Fabrics with Values") TEJIDOS ROYO is committed and continuously reinvesting in talent, business innovation, technology, processes and machinery. Being innovative allows Tejidos Royo to improve and make the world a better place for all, be more competitive and offer the market products with differential value in textile world.

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Wrangler

The criteria of methods and rationale implemented to produce Wrangler denim with this new technology, results in a degree of superiority that will hopefully set a new standard in apparel manufacturing for the rest to follow. The denim is made when indigo-dyed yarn is weaved between naturally white yarn, creating its signature blue color. Conventional dyeing processes use a lot of energy and water and includes blue wastewater as an output.

IndigoodTM Commitment

A response to climate change and a global focus on water and energy conservation, Indigood is Wrangler’s promise to discover and implement into our supply chain, the most sustainable ways for dyeing denim. We weave together long-standing practices with new, cutting-edge innovations to make sure our products are made with less water and energy.

Foam-Dyed Denim

The latest IndigoodTM innovation is foam-dyed denim. Recognizing its potential to revolutionize the industry, Wrangler provided Texas Tech University with early-stage funding and technical guidance for the innovation. Additionally, Wrangler used our place as a global leader in jeanswear to commercialize the technology and this summer, we’ll be the first brand to sell foam-dyed denim. Foam dyeing fundamentally changes the way indigo is applied to yarn during denim manufacturing. The process uses foam to transfer dye onto yarns, entirely replacing the traditional water vats and chemical baths of conventional indigo dyeing. The foam dye process is the most sustainable way to dye denim.

• A new innovative foam-dyeing process that uses no water, a 100% percent reduction
• Wastewater is virtually eliminated
• More than 60% less energy than conventional denim dyeing
• More than 60% waste reduction

 *What is even more important to highlight is that  small amounts of water are used to clean machinery and mix solutions.

During summer 2019, Wrangler will launch the first-ever foam-dyed denim as a part of their  ICONS F/W ’19 collection. This small collection is only the beginning as the brand will be  working with denim mills in Asia and North America to bring this technology to a larger scale. In my expert estimation, foam-dyed denim won’t just impact Wrangler’s supply chain, but rather surely change our entire industry. 

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Wrangler

Water use and wastewater are some of the biggest sustainability challenges in denim manufacturing. From cotton production through finishing, one pair of jeans can use hundreds of gallons of water. Despite incremental changes toward comfort and sustainability, over the past 150 years, the denim industry has had just a handful of groundbreaking innovations. Among these was the invention of synthetic dyes, which allowed for indigo-dyed fabrics like denim to become mainstream fashion and workwear. But since the introduction of synthetic indigo in 1897, no innovation has truly revolutionized the industry, until now.

Wrangler continues to explore new ways to care for the land. The brand is setting goals to be powered by 100% renewable energy by 2025, conserve 5.5 billion liters of water at our owned and operated facilities by 2020, remove 100% of unwanted chemistry from our supply chain by 2020 and source 100% sustainable cotton by 2025. In addition, Wrangler is committed to doing right by the land, considering its impact from every angle, and supporting farmers who do the same. In 2017, the brand  launched the Wrangler Science and Conservation program to encourage U.S. cotton growers to use best practices for soil health and land stewardship. What I find especially intriguing is that the Wrangler® Rooted CollectionTM celebrates our commitment to sustainably-grown cotton and currently features five state-specific pairs of jeans made of sustainable cotton directly traceable to a family farm in that state. Partnerships with the Soil Health Institute, NC Foundation for Soil and Water Conservation,Texas Alliance for Water Conservation, CottonConnect, and the FFA which assist and encourage farmers and aspiring farmers to adopt best practices for soil health. 

Between 2007 and 2017, Wrangler saved three billion liters of water at our owned and operated facilities. As you may be well aware, many solutions have been proposed by professional educators and scientists. Nevertheless, in my opinion, on most curriculum-reform points, this brand is a challenge for sustainability education. All suppliers are required to meet the brands  strict global compliance principles and the code of business conduct to operate together. 

Wrangler Men's Denim

Wrangler

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