How to Execute an Upcycle Growth Strategy?

Image: Greg Lauren Cotton Hoodie

​Corporate Challenge:  Upcycling in response to consumer trends focused on climate change.
 
Ironbound Strategy:  Powerful brands are corporate ambassadors of social responsibility.  They appeal to their employees and customers by engaging in strategic activities that reduce waste on society.  Brands that upcycle have an opportunity to expand their product narratives, and thereby increase their appeal, by continuing the original story of upcycled materials.

​Ironbound Action:  Haute couture designer and global ambassador, Greg Lauren, focuses on upcycled high fashion.  Each garment is uniquely designed to preserve the emotional connection of the original vintage fabric, while upcycled into a completely new transformation.   Using entirely upcycled iconic American materials, with a focus on decommissioned military textiles, each collection embodies a vintage and futuristic nihilistic theme.  By unlocking past identity salience, sophisticated consumers are magnetized by unique and fascinating storylines.  Brand power is fueled by expanding stories that create value to build a better world. 

* Extending the life of clothing by three months reduces the carbon and water footprint by 5 -10 percent.  Almost all clothing and textiles are recyclable and yet the average American throws away approximately 80 pounds of used clothing per year.  More than 15 million tons of used textile waste is generated each year in the US. Approximately $400 Billion in merchandise was returned to retailers in 2018, most of which end up in landfills.