The biggest carbon footprint for clothing companies is made by the production supply chains and the products themselves. We prioritize working on improvements in the manufacturing and use of sustainable materials that have the biggest positive impact. This does not mean, however, that we do not look into our own operations and behaviour to reduce our direct impact on the environment.

From packing, shipping and storing our products, to running our offices, showrooms and stores, there are many things we do that have an effect on our environment. Consequently, we also look into all steps that can reduce the footprint of the operational processes that delivers the finished product from our warehouses to our customers.

Over the years G‑Star has conducted several analyses with external parties to determine the footprint, as well as identify the biggest areas of impact.

• Our carbon footprint analyses over the year 2007 showed the biggest impact was made during inbound logistics.
• In 2013 we analyzed the carbon footprint of G‑Star RAW retail stores. The largest impact on Co2 output was observed to be coming from the lighting, cooling, and heating of our stores as well as from construction and furnishing materials. LED light and more efficient cooling & heating solutions were implemented and included in our footprint reduction strategy. Furthermore, stores are able to replace their polyester mannequins with new ones made of paper pulp or bio resins. Most of these solutions are not only more energy efficient but also more cost efficient than alternatives.
• In 2014, after moving into a new headquarters in Amsterdam and warehouse, a new footprint over the year 2014 was made. The scope of the footprint included Electricity and heating (in headquarter and warehouses), Business travel and cargo (both air and sea). The results of the footprint showed a too high % of emissions caused by air-cargo.

• In 2017 students analysed G-Star’s efforts and opportunities with regards to the reduction of energy use, waste and greenhouse gases for the Amsterdam based headquarter and warehouses. They concluded that our relatively new buildings were built according to modern energy efficient norms. An example is the excessive use of glass at our headquarters, which results in less use of lighting as daylight is the primary source of light. This and other efforts have resulted in the building receiving an A-label for energy. Further the students proposed ways in which waste and Co2 can be reduced in G-Star’s own operations, including the use of polybags and efficient use of lighting in our warehouses.
  
  

• In July 2019, G-Star RAW signed the UN Charter and publicly committed to addressing the topic of climate change. Our work in selecting more sustainable materials (recycled polyester, organic cotton) addresses one of the most energy intensive stages of our value chain. Beyond this, a growing share of manufacturing partners already uses renewable energy and has energy efficiency programs in place. An important step after signing the Charter was mapping our Carbon Footprint for Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Scope 1 emissions are directly emitted from our owned and controlled operations. Scope 2 emissions are our indirect emissions coming from the generation of electricity, heat and steam purchased by us. We learned that more than 80% of our total scope 1 and 2 emissions comes from electricity consumption, so we know where to focus our action. See for more details in this link.
  
  

• In 2021 we will map our scope 3 emissions, where the majority of our emissions come from. Scope 3 reflects all the indirect emissions from our value chain activities, for instance the production of goods and transportation. Once we have our footprint baseline for scope 3 defined, we can set specific targets leading towards a 30% reduction of our GHG emissions by 2030.