Supply Chain & Sustainability
Sourcing, quality, circularity and product passports.
How is AI used in the fashion supply chain?
From demand planning to warehouse robots and supplier monitoring: where AI already works in fashion supply chains, what data it needs and where its limits are.
Can AI make fashion more sustainable?
AI can help fashion make fewer unwanted products and manage new EU rules, but it also uses energy and cannot fix a business model on its own. A sober look at both sides.
How does AI detect defects in fabrics and garments?
Computer vision is moving textile inspection from the human eye to cameras and models. How it works, where it is used, and why data and defect definitions matter most.
How does AI help sort and recycle textiles?
Recycling clothes into new fibres needs precise sorting by material and colour. Sensors and machine learning make that possible at scale, but capacity and economics are still limiting.
How can AI help fashion brands prepare for the Digital Product Passport?
The EU Digital Product Passport turns product data into a regulated deliverable. AI can help collect, check and structure that data, but it cannot invent what suppliers never recorded.
How can AI monitor supplier risk and compliance in fashion?
Forced labour rules and due diligence laws push fashion companies to know their suppliers better. AI can scan documents and signals at scale, but it cannot replace audits and engagement.
How Inditex uses AI and data: RFID and a demand-driven supply chain
Inditex's edge rests on item-level RFID data, integrated stock and production close to home. Where AI now enters, what results are public and what remains undisclosed.
How Uniqlo and Fast Retailing use AI and data in the Ariake Project
Fast Retailing's Ariake Project aims to make and sell exactly what customers want, when they want it. How AI, shared data and automated warehouses fit in, and what the group has disclosed.
AI for sourcing and supply chain managers in fashion
How fashion sourcing and supply chain managers use AI for demand and production planning, cost and tariff scenarios, supplier risk, compliance and quality, with data needs, limits and a 30-day plan.
AI in denim: how finishing, laser technology and water use are changing
Denim's look is made in finishing, traditionally with water, chemicals and manual abrasion. Digital design and laser finishing, increasingly guided by AI, change that, but the evidence base is still thin.
Fundamentals
The business context every AI project in this area depends on.Lead times in fashion: why a season starts a year early
From trend research to delivery in store, a traditional fashion season takes many months to build. Where the time goes, what drives it and how brands compress it.
Nearshoring in fashion: the trade-offs
Moving production closer to end markets promises speed, flexibility and resilience. It also raises unit costs and narrows capability. How to decide what to bring closer and what to leave.
The Digital Product Passport explained for fashion brands
The EU is building a digital identity for products sold in its market. Here is what the passport will mean for apparel, what is still open and how brands can prepare their data now.
ESPR explained: what the EU ecodesign regulation means for textiles
The Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation extends EU product design rules to clothing and footwear. What it requires, what is already in force and what is still being drafted.
Extended producer responsibility for textiles, explained
The revised EU Waste Framework Directive makes producers pay for the collection, sorting and recycling of used clothing and footwear. Who counts as a producer, what it costs and when it starts.
Overproduction in fashion: causes and levers
Making more than can be sold at full price is built into how fashion plans, buys and produces. Why it happens, why regulation now raises the stakes and which levers actually work.
Supply chain traceability in fashion: where to start
Regulators, retailers and consumers increasingly ask where clothes come from. A practical guide to mapping suppliers, collecting data and building traceability step by step.
Green claims in fashion: how to communicate without greenwashing
From 27 September 2026, new EU consumer rules ban vague environmental claims and unreliable labels. What changes for fashion marketing, product pages and wholesale copy.
Resale and recommerce: how second-hand reached the brands
Second-hand fashion has moved from charity shops and peer-to-peer platforms into brand-run programmes. The main models, what they require and where they fit in a brand's strategy.
Textile certifications decoded: what the main labels actually cover
Organic, recycled, tested for harmful substances, responsibly sourced: textile certifications cover very different things. A guide to the main standards and how to use them in claims.
Made-to-order and pre-order as sustainability tools
Producing against confirmed demand rather than forecasts can reduce surplus stock. Where made-to-order and pre-order work, what they demand from operations and where their limits lie.
Sharing sustainability data with retail partners: a practical guide
Retailers increasingly ask brands for material, origin and certification data per product. What they need, how to structure it and how to keep claims consistent across channels.