Positively Cleaner
Making an impression, not an impact
Our Positively Cleaner pillar is focused on driving environmental impact reduction, both in our own operations and wider value chain, specifically targeting carbon as our biggest area of direct and indirect impact.At FARFETCH, we’re determined to act positively and be part of the solution – we’re making fashion choices positively cleaner at every step.
Setting Goals based on Climate Science - We recognize there is an urgent need for the fashion industry to address its contribution to climate change. Our carbon targets were approved by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) in January 2022, which gives us a robust framework for building our carbon reduction strategy leading up to our 2030 Goal of becoming Climate Positive.
FARFETCH has committed to: Reducing our absolute scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions by 42% by 2030 from a 2020 base year. And, ensuring 70% of our suppliers (covering purchased goods and services and upstream transportation and distribution) having science-based targets by 2026
A Lighter Footprint
Each year we measure the carbon footprint of our entire business. This helps us to understand and prioritise key opportunities for emissions reductions. You can see our most recent carbon footprint and read about our plan to become climate positive by 2030 on our latest ESG Report.
Positive Carbon Incentives
We have rewards in place for our boutique partners to incentivise them to use the best possible sized packaging for the product in question – helping to reduce the amount of air that’s shipped.
100% Boxed Fresh Our packaging and inserts are 100% recyclable and from certified forest-friendly sources. We are constantly working to improve the efficiency of our packaging to reduce the amount of air shipped. In 2021, we saw an estimated 6.3% reduction in our average shipment weight of orders sent by DHL Express, our primary carrier. This was driven, in part, by using smaller box sizes where possible and switching to lighter, more efficient envelopes helping us to realise a 7.9% reduction in CO2-eq logistics emissions per net unit sold.
Transitioning to Renewable Energy In 2021, we increased the proportion of total energy usage that comes from renewable sources to 31% (up from 25% in 2020 and 6% in 2019), our goal is to reach 100% renewable energy across our Farfetch operated properties by 2030.
Partnering to Drive Emission Reduction
We are committed to supporting innovation to decarbonize the logistics industry, and in 2021, we were the first corporate client to purchase sustainable aviation fuel from DHL Express. This is an important first step that has allowed us to finance enough fuel to reduce over 1,000 tCO2-eq emissions.
Virtual Try-On
We are implementing and exploring new tools and technologies that can help reduce returns and therefore reduce costs and our carbon footprint. Most recently we launched a partnership with Wanna enabling a virtual try-on feature for trainers.
Joining Forces
Achieving our Climate Positive ambition can only happen by working with a wide array of partners. We continue to be an active member of The Fashion Pact, a coalition of companies that harnesses the power of collaboration to drive impact at scale.