Gucci, with support of Kering, has announced the launch of the first hub for circular luxury in Italy.
The “Circular Hub” will aim to accelerate the circular transformation of the Italian fashion industry’s production model, through the redefinition of the entire value chain. Starting from raw materials and design, through to production optimisation and logistics, the Circular Hub will be an open innovation platform for the design and manufacturing of circular products and the scouting of new solutions.
The Circular Hub will support the creation of circular luxury products of the future – products that maximise the use of recycled materials, durability, repairability, and recyclability. The hub is fully aligned with Italy’s PNNR (National Recovery and Resilience Plan)[i], and the circular economy strategy underpinned by the EU’s proposal to achieve the 2030 emissions reduction targets.
Located in Tuscany, the hub will see the involvement of Kering’s facilities, starting with Gucci’s production sites, its Italian-based raw material suppliers, and finished products manufacturers (comprising more than 700 direct suppliers and 3,500 sub-suppliers). The hub’s activities will then be extended to Kering’s other brands and eventually become open to the entire sector.
“The fashion industry needs to accelerate and launch serious actions to catalyze deep change, rethinking the way we produce and use resources as well. The creation of our Circular Hub represents a milestone that goes in this direction. I am extremely pleased that the hub will see the light in Italy, home of some the Group’s strongest and most renowned production hubs and know-how,” commented Marie-Claire Daveu, Chief Sustainability and Institutional Affairs Officer at Kering. “Joining forces with Gucci for the Circular Hub not only is a testament of collective conviction within the Group, but also an ambitious example to pave the way for other players who will be happy to join in the future, in an open-source perspective”.
“Circularity promotes a vision that involves the entire production cycle starting from raw materials: it presents a great challenge and an opportunity to make Made in Italy even stronger and more competitive,” commented Antonella Centra, Executive Vice President, General Counsel, Corporate Affairs & Sustainability at Gucci. “With the launch of the Circular Hub we will have the responsibility and above all the framework in place to create a pathway for the luxury industry of the future. By sharing the same objectives and pooling resources, know-how and synergies, the hub will enable the entire luxury supply chain and especially the small and medium-sized enterprises – the beating heart of our country’s industry – to play an active role, with the innovative spirit that makes Italian know-how unique in the world.”
Beginning in the first half of 2023, the initiative will draw on the expertise of the Kering Material Innovation Lab (MIL) in Milan, with the support of technicians and product researchers for apparel, leather goods, footwear, and accessories from Gucci’s centres of industrial craftsmanship and experimentation in Scandicci and Novara. The Circular Hub will also draw on support from industrial partners and a science-led collaboration with the Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna di Pisa, which will focus on industrial research and the scouting of circular solutions, including operational and logistics models.
