Policy Front: In timely policy-related news, a settlement between consumers and Thinx period underwear was recently reached. The class action lawsuit was filed by plaintiff Nicole Dickens against Thinx regarding allegations of toxic forever chemicals, or PFAs, in the period underwear. The organic cotton underwear is marketed as a “sustainable alternative to tampons and pads,” per its website.
Thinx denies all of the allegations made in the lawsuit including any unlawful behavior. A final hearing will be held May 24 to assess the fairness of the proposed settlement.
The settlement would give Thinx customers a refund of $7 in cash for up to three pairs of underwear, as proven by record or receipt. The underwear retails for $35 to $38. The lawsuit’s relevance shows as legislators weigh the severity of PFAs, or perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl, with New York being the latest (following California) to ban PFAs in clothing.
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And while deadlines have come to pass for the previous legislative season, another crucial call to action is fast approaching.
The deadline for public comment on the Federal Trade Commission’s Green Guides is Feb. 21. Since 1992, the Green Guides have served as an initial green guidepost for businesses on proper marketing communications and how to avoid deceptive practices, or greenwashing. However, amid a changing landscape, sustainability stakeholders — including the AAFA and Politically In Fashion advocacy group — have challenged the guides’ efficacy.
In its formal request, the FTC is seeking response on the following: the need and economic impact for the Green Guides, accuracy of environmental claims and whether inclusion or clarity is needed on specific claims such as carbon offsets, climate change and terms such as “recyclable,” “compostable,” “degradable,” “ozone-friendly,” “organic” or “sustainable.”
Resale Moves: Urbn-powered rental and resale platform Nuuly is partnering with singer María Isabel in a collaboration unveiled Wednesday.
The Queens-born R&B artist stars in the “More Life in Your Clothes” campaign helping customers to revamp their clothes. Included in the campaign is an edit of 10 exclusive items from Isabel’s wardrobe. The pieces are ones she’s worn for performances, music videos and other appearances.
Available on Nuuly Thrift, the proceeds from the sales of her pieces will be donated to the Queens Community House, which powers holistic community care in Queens.
Transparency Aims: A new open-source solution from FibreTrace looks to ensure transparency at a whole new scale for fashion.
FibreTrace “Mapped” integrates product information, supplier data, certifications, purchase orders and shipping documents to create a recorded ledger of the product movements from raw fiber to the retail floor. The digital chain-of-custody tool is blockchain-secured and maps products through a fiber-forward, or garment-backward, methodology, providing a window into a garment’s entire journey.
What separates the tool from existing transparency tools on the market is that it’s entirely free to use, customizable and comes with an optional consumer extension (so customers get a glimpse into their product’s footprint), per FibreTrace.
There are 10 brand partners at launch including Reformation and 7 For All Mankind. Already, more than 60 suppliers are on the platform including Sapphire Textiles (supplier to Williams Sonoma), Chaintex (an Urban Outfitters supplier) and Impetus Group (supplier to Helly Hansen and Hugo Boss), among others.