As sustainability fades from fashion’s agenda, misleading claims fill the void
The normalisation of greenwashing is becoming increasingly visible across fashion — not as a failure of the system, but as a feature of it.
While sustainability appears to be fading from fashion agendas, greenwashing is becoming acceptable.
We came across a Business of Fashion Instagram post that stopped us in our tracks:
“H&M says sustainability is good for business. Can it get shoppers to care?”
The accompanying feature—a sit-down with H&M Group Chief Executive Daniel Ervér and Chief Sustainability Officer Leyla Ertur—explores why the fast fashion giant is “sticking to its long-set sustainability plans” and working on “connecting with customers.”
This piece of news is depressing. Not surprising, perhaps. But depressing.
H&M’s business model is built on overproduction, rapid deliveries, and overconsumption. These are not conditions that can be retrofitted with sustainability plans. Yet there — in the pages of one of fashion’s most respected industry publications — the premise is presented as earnest: Can a fast fashion giant make sustainability matter to shoppers?
Then comes this quote:
“The reality is, it’s hard. To help customers change their behaviour, we have to create real value for them. Otherwise, why should they change?”
Let’s sit with that for a moment.
Shifting the responsibility: the normalisation of greenwashing
In a single statement, H&M absolves itself of responsibility and shifts the burden onto consumers. Not a word about the structural realities of overproduction. Not a question about whether a business model built on volume can ever align with sustainability. Instead: If customers don’t change, that’s on them.
This is the manoeuvre we’ve seen before. Exploit people and the planet through a system engineered to encourage overconsumption, then frame the lack of consumer “will” as the obstacle to progress.
Which raises a more uncomfortable question: Why is The Business of Fashion—a publication that positions itself as the authoritative voice of the industry—willing to take part in this game?
We have our suspicions. Whether or not this was sponsored content, the real question is: what does it say about the state of fashion media when a fast fashion giant’s sustainability messaging is platformed without scrutiny?
Ultimately, the question remains: can a fast fashion brand ever be truly sustainable?
As we explored in our previous post, the answer here is the same. This is greenwashing.
Not because H&M lacks sustainability initiatives, but because sustainability cannot be grafted onto a business model fundamentally at odds with it.
Promoting oneself as sustainable while maintaining that model is not progress—it’s a manipulation of eco-discourse. With the approval of the press.
A final reflection
So here we are, facing the normalisation of greenwashing. Sustainability quietly fades from the scene. Greenwashing becomes acceptable. Safe. Sound. Normal. And perhaps not just acceptable, but the dominant language through which fashion now speaks about responsibility.
P.S.: We wrote an eBook to help you cut through the noise. If you want to understand whether a brand is genuinely sustainable or simply dressing itself in green, it’s here:
