TrusTrace, a Sweden-based software platform focused on supply chain traceability and compliance data management, has partnered with New Look to boost transparency in the apparel company’s sourcing and business practices, the company announced Tuesday.
New Look, a fashion retailer with stores in the U.K. and Ireland, recently set new science-based targets for its carbon emission reduction and said it wants to reduce its emissions 46% by 2031, per a release shared with Fashion Dive. The long-term target is to reach net-zero emissions by 2040, New Look said.
The partnership helps New Look gain more visibility into its supply chain through its suppliers, and enables the company to identify responsible sourcing opportunities and business continuity risks, it said. The collaboration marks TrusTrace’s first with a major U.K. retailer, Shameek Ghosh, TrusTrace co-founder and CEO, said in the release.
TrusTrace handles data collection for Tier 1 through Tier 4 suppliers, Ghosh said, allowing New Look to gain “access [to] granular, validated product data to support its sustainability goals.” The open architecture platform integrates with retailer, manufacturer and supplier systems, including other third parties, per the release.
New Look also recently held a Supplier Conference where it encouraged its suppliers to calculate their carbon emissions as part of its decarbonization roadmap initiative.
Since the launch of New Look’s “Kind to Our Core” initiative, the company said it has reduced its scope 1 and 2 emissions by 18%, per the release. It similarly reduced its scope 3 purchased goods and services fiber products emissions by 22%.
“We’re thrilled to partner with TrusTrace to gain deeper visibility through to our Tier 4 suppliers, helping us to further mitigate any supply chain risks,” Sue Fairley, head of sustainability at New Look, said in the release. “We’ve already made incredible progress through our ‘Kind to Our Core’ sustainability program — as evidenced in our recently released 2023 Sustainability Report — and it’s just the beginning.”
Earlier this year, TrusTrace announced a new pilot project, a Digital Product Passport, which would add a digital tag to products and is designed to connect and exchange product lifecycle information.
