At Vegan Fashion Repository, we keep our ears firmly to the ground for every essential development in the vegan and sustainable fashion industry, and celebrate when another milestone is reached.
Vegan Fashion Repository Open Release Announcement
With every article we publish, it becomes increasingly clear just how much the vegan and sustainable fashion sector needs support to grow—particularly in light of current global challenges. That’s why, to mark six full months at the forefront of news and insights in this space, we are making all previously limited content freely accessible.
We hope that with this open-access policy, news and insights on vegan and sustainable fashion will reach as many people as possible, helping to bring these movements further into the mainstream.
You’re all welcome.
Now, back to business—here’s a summary of the highlights from April 2025:
Since 2 April, the global fashion industry has been forced to reassess reshoring and nearshoring strategies, pricing and cost structures, and accelerate digital transformation. The disruption to global supply chains will have cumulative consequences for years to come. While executive and analysis boards are trying to identify the ‘lesser evil’ solutions, consumers—not only in the US but globally—are already feeling the pinch as their purchasing power shrinks significantly.
For ordinary people, supply chain disruption doesn’t just translate to higher prices, but also fewer jobs—and for those that remain, there’s growing pressure on factories to cut costs further in order to stay competitive. As the tariffs remain officially in force—yet subject to frequent updates—the BBC continues to track developments.
EU Developments: Sustainability Standards and Regulatory Shifts
The European Union is in the final stages of drafting the Product Environmental Footprint (PEF) rules for the fashion and footwear industries. This unified methodology will allow companies to measure and communicate the environmental footprint of their products, using life cycle assessment (LCA). Based on global standards such as ISO 14040/44, PEF aims to reduce impacts throughout product supply chains—from raw material extraction to waste management—by standardising the modelling of material flows, emissions, and waste streams. Official adoption is expected later in 2025. European Commission’s Green Forum
In related news, the European Commission has released the 2025–2030 Ecodesign Work Plan, identifying textiles as a priority category. The plan will focus on requirements for durability, reparability, recyclability, and recycled content. Consultations are scheduled to begin in Q2 2025. Discussions on the Digital Product Passport are already underway and will continue until 1 July. Ecodesign Work Plan; European Commission
The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) has been delayed by two years. Large companies with over 150 employees will now be required to report on social and environmental measures in 2028 (for the previous financial year). Small and medium-sized enterprises will have until 2029. European Parliament
Sustainability and Innovation
In what may be a positive outcome of Transparentem’s disturbing January 2025 report, fashion brands are beginning to restructure their cotton supply chains. Zara (Inditex) has switched from Better Cotton—the industry’s largest sustainable cotton programme—to organic cotton. COS (H&M Group) has launched its first collection using hydroponic cotton in partnership with Materra, while URBN (Urban Outfitters, Anthropologie, Free People & Nuuly) has joined the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol to advance its responsible sourcing commitments. Whether these changes will result in tangible improvements remains to be seen. Business of Fashion; COS; Apparel Insider
Amsterdam Fashion Week will adopt the Copenhagen Fashion Week Sustainability Requirements. Starting with a one-year pilot, all brands on AFW’s official schedule will be evaluated against these rigorous standards. Full implementation is expected by September 2026. Prior to Amsterdam, London Fashion Week was the last to adopt Copenhagen’s sustainability framework. Copenhagen Fashion Week
In textile-to-textile recycling news, Brightfiber Textiles has launched in Amsterdam as the world’s first automated facility to recycle used garments into new yarns. Refiberd won eBay‘s Circular Fashion Innovator of the Year, receiving $300,000 to scale its AI technology for sorting textile waste into usable fibres, and UK-based Matoha raised $1.5 million to develop AI scanners that identify textile composition in under a second, streamlining recycling. Just Style 1 2 3
Creative agency VML (a WPP PLC company), genomic engineering leader The Organoid Company, and biotech pioneer Lab-Grown Leather Ltd. (a BSF Enterprise PLC company – LSE:BSFA) have announced the launch of the T-Rex Leather project. The initiative aims to develop cell-based, cruelty-free, eco-friendly leather using synthetic DNA inspired by fossilised T-Rex collagen. Cells engineered by The Organoid Company will be integrated into Lab-Grown Leather’s Elemental-X™ product stream. Their scaffold-free process allows cells to form natural structures, creating material that is structurally identical to conventional leather. VML
3D Fashion and AI
Xsolla, a global leader in video game commerce, has partnered with ALTAVA GROUP, a digital fashion and virtual entertainment firm born out of LVMH’s La Maison des Startups. The collaboration will connect game developers and publishers with ALTAVA’s high-quality, branded digital fashion assets. Through Xsolla’s platform, developers can integrate premium 3D fashion experiences, avatar customisation, and exclusive branded content into their games. This strategic move comes as LVMH (share value down 7.8%) and Kering (down 5%, largely due to a 25% sales drop at Gucci) confront a shifting luxury market. Today’s digital-native consumers value entirely different experiences and no longer follow in the footsteps of traditional luxury buyers. Xsolla; WSJ; Reuters
Personalised shopping is now enabled on ChatGPT (OpenAI) for ChatGPT users to access curated shopping results, including images, reviews, and product links. Personalisation of shopping experiences will be introduced in future updates for Pro and Plus users. OpenAI states that the shopping results are based on structured metadata from third parties (including pricing, product descriptions, and reviews), and that advertisements are not part of the experience. The company also stated that it does not receive a commission from purchases made through ChatGPT search.Tech Crunch