Prada signs $50m sustainability deal
Prada has become the first luxury brand to sign a sustainability deal.
The Italian fashion house has signed a deal worth $50m (£43m) with financial services company Crédit Agricole Group in an effort to champion sustainability.
Approvingly, Prada's chief financial officer Assesandra Cozzani said: "This transaction demonstrates that sustainability is a key element for the development of the Prada Group.
The five-year sustainability loan, which is reportedly the first of its kind in the luxury industry, allows for Prada to alter its interest rates on an annual basis if it achieves key green objectives.
Crédit Agricole set Prada three eco-friendly objectives including: Prada employees must train or work for a certain amount of time; the fashion house must use an adequate quantity of sustainable nylon substitute 'Re-nylon'; and that a certain number of Prada stores must receive LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) gold or platinum certifications.
Although Prada's sustainability loan is the first within the luxury industry, according to news and analysis firm Environmental Finance, sustainability-liked loans have been gaining traction in recent years.
The firm has stated that the sustainability-linked market increased in value from $5bn (£3.88bn) in 2017 to $40bn (£31.05bn) the following year.
The way in which the objectives being met by Prada are to be measured have not yet been conclusively confirmed due to difficulties in measuring the fashion houses's efforts to be more sustainable in a tangible way.
In an effort to do just that, the luxury label launched a collection of nylon bags made of recycled plastic in early 2019.
The six bags devised for the range were made from synthetic fabric created by recycling ocean plastic, fishing nets and textile fibre waste.
Prada also announced in September 2019 that for its spring/summer 2020 women’s collection, the use of fur would be banned.