Climate Change

Reducing our impact on climate change

At G-Star, we recognize the critical role we play in mitigating climate change and the importance of reducing our carbon footprint. As a result, we focus our climate impact work on our supply chain and consumer engagement, while also taking steps in our own offices and stores.

Science Based Targets

In July 2019, G-Star RAW signed the UN Fashion Charter, pledging to meet emission reduction targets to align with the latest climate science – limiting global warming to below 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. In November 2022, G-Star submitted its carbon reduction targets to the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), and the targets were validated in July 2023. Our partner, RESET Carbon Ltd. supported us throughout the process, creating an in-depth analysis of our carbon emissions, with 2021 set as our baseline year.

2024 Carbon Footprint Calculations:

Carbon accounting is broken down into three categories, defined by the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Protocol standard: Scope 1, Scope 2, and Scope 3.

• Scope 1 includes GHG emissions directly emitted from G-Star owned and controlled operations (e.g., burning of fossil fuels when driving company cars, purchased electricity for stores)
• Scope 2 includes indirect GHG emissions from the generation of electricity, heat and steam purchased by G-Star
• Scope 3 includes indirect GHG emissions resulting from G-Star's activities that occur outside the company’s immediate control – (e.g., purchased goods and services, transport and distribution, business travel, employee commuting, use of sold products)

The guidelines for conducting this analysis were provided by international standards, along with accurate data and robust estimation methods.

Furthermore, to ensure the validity of our results, the 2024 carbon inventory was verified by a 3rd party – Carbon Footprint Ltd. 

Carbon Footprint Ltd. provided limited assurance for the 2024 carbon inventory, according to the ISO 14064-3:2019 Standard, meaning that G-Star's GHG emissions statement is:

• Materially correct, and is a fair representation of the GHG emissions data
• Prepared in accordance with the GHG Protocol

It is of Carbon Footprint Ltd.’s opinion that G-Star RAW has established appropriate systems for the collection, aggregation, and analysis of quantitative data for determination of GHG emissions for the 2024 period and boundaries.

Scope 1 & 2 Emissions:

Over 112 owned and operated G-Star locations were included in the 2024 reporting period. The table below has a breakdown of the locations, and countries.

In 2024, Scope 1 and 2 emissions amounted to 2,801 tCO2e for location-based emissions and 3,980 tCO2e for market-based emissions. Compared to 2023, this represents a +11% increase in location-based emissions. Relative to the baseline year of 2021, there is a -13% reduction in location-based emissions. This is mainly due to the increase in physical stores and an increase in data points due to automation of systems compared to last year.

Scope 3 Emissions:

As in previous years, G-STAR’s carbon footprint in 2024 was largely driven by Scope 3 emissions, which accounted for 97% of the company’s total location-based emissions. Compared to 2023, Scope 3 emissions declined by 1%, marking a total reduction of 13% relative to our 2021 baseline year.’ and replace 2023 by 2024.

There are 15 categories included in Scope 3 GHG Protocol standard. However, not all are relevant to G-Star's business model (e.g., investments and processing of sold products). The categories deemed relevant to G-Star's business model can be seen below:

Total Scope 3 emissions and comparison vs 2023 and baseline year (2021).

* Category 2 – Capital Goods was added to G-STAR’s carbon inventory during SBTi target validation, covering assets such as office/store furniture and office/store hardware.

** Category 4 – Upstream transportation covers both upstream and downstream emissions from 3rd party transportation and distribution paid by G-STAR.

*** - Category 5 – Waste covers a broader set of facilities including stores, warehouse and offices, hence the increase.

**** At SBTi’s request, Category 13 – Downstream leased assets were removed from G-STAR’s carbon inventory because they related to the emissions of tenants at G-STAR’s HQ in Amsterdam. Since energy and heating suppliers are defined by G-STAR and tenants cannot switch suppliers, these emissions are now accounted for within G-STAR’s Scope 1 and 2 inventory.

Among Scope 3 categories, Category 1 (Purchased goods and services) had the highest contribution, accounting for 58% of total emissions, followed by Category 11 (Use of sold products) at 27%, Category 2 (Capital goods) at 4%, and Category 4 (Upstream transportation) at 4%. Together, these categories accounted for 93% of our total Scope 3 emissions in 2024.

In terms of material emissions, cotton had the highest contribution, amounting to 52% of the total material emissions. Better Cotton emerges as the leading contributor to material emissions, accounting for 26% of the total, followed by regenerative cotton at 19% and organic cotton at 16%. The significant emissions associated with cotton can largely be attributed to the substantial volumes purchased. Meanwhile, wool, Responsible Wool, and Responsible Merino Wool show a high emission intensity due to their inherently higher impact per unit.

For further and detailed information regarding G-Star's carbon emissions, including data quality, calculation methodologies, and methodology updates, please refer to the G-STAR 2024 Sustainability Report.