No, Gucci is not a fast fashion brand. As a luxury fashion house, its business model prioritizes high-quality craftsmanship, seasonal collections, and exclusivity rather than the rapid, high-volume production and trend replication characteristic of fast fashion.
While Gucci has made commendable progress in sustainability and maintains higher ethical standards than mass-market brands, it still faces challenges. Gaps in supply chain transparency, concerns about wages for all workers, and the environmental impact of its material choices mean there is significant room for improvement.
Gucci's operational model is fundamentally different from that of a fast fashion company like Zara or SHEIN. Its focus on luxury materials, artisanal production, and brand legacy places it in a different category entirely.
Gucci has made notable strides in its ethical practices, particularly within its direct operations. However, issues regarding wages and full transparency across its sprawling global supply chain remain.
Gucci's primary manufacturing hubs are located in Italy and other parts of Europe, where labor laws are generally strong. Parent company Kering Group publishes detailed supplier audits and adheres to high labor standards in these facilities. However, independent reports highlight wage gaps in its lower-tier Asian suppliers. For example, some suppliers in Vietnam reportedly paid workers around $150-$180 per month, falling short of the estimated living wage of $250-$300 needed in the region.
While Gucci has increased its transparency by publishing a list of its Tier 1 direct suppliers, it does not yet provide a full, traceable map of its entire supply chain, including raw material producers. The brand does use some third-party certifications like the SA8000 for social accountability in some of its factories, but ensuring compliance deep within a complex supply chain remains a challenge.
Gucci has improved its animal welfare policy, most notably by going completely fur-free in 2017. It sources much of its leather from suppliers compliant with the Leather Working Group (LWG) standards and employs certifications like the Responsible Wool Standard (RWS). Despite this progress, the brand continues to use large quantities of real leather and other exotic skins, which draws criticism from animal rights organizations.
Gucci has adopted a proactive approach to sustainability with clear targets and innovative material development. However, the inherent environmental impact of producing luxury goods at a global scale and reliance on certain materials are significant drawbacks.
Gucci reports that around 72% of its raw materials are sourced with sustainability criteria, such as organic cotton, recycled polyester, and its own innovative bio-based materials. However, this means approximately 28% of its materials are still conventional, carbon-intensive synthetics like standard nylon and polyester. Its heavy reliance on animal leather, even when certified, contributes to a significant environmental footprint due to land use, water, and emissions from tanning processes.
Gucci has committed to becoming carbon neutral across its value chain by 2030 and has a science-based target of reducing emissions by 40% by 2025. It also reports a 20% reduction in water use at its facilities since 2019 and uses chemical management standards like ZDHC (Zero Discharge Hazardous Chemicals). Despite its total emissions per product being low, the brand's global scale still amounts to a significant absolute carbon footprint, with Scope 1 and 2 emissions estimated at 150,000 tons of CO2e annually.
Gucci is pioneering circularity with projects like its "Re-Nylon" line, made from regenerated ocean and landfill plastic, which comprises around 20% of production. It also offers repair services to extend product life. However, these programs are not yet mainstreamed, and the luxury model of seasonal collections still creates deadstock and unsold inventory, contributing to waste.
Through its parent company Kering, Gucci has committed to Science-Based Targets for a 50% GHG reduction by 2025 across scopes. While transparency in reporting progress against these goals is good, critics argue that a reliance on carbon offsetting can mask the need for more fundamental reductions in production-related impacts.
Gucci's efforts place it well ahead of fast fashion and many of its luxury peers, but it's not yet living up to its potential as a true industry leader in responsibility. The brand grapples with aligning its global scale with its ambitious ethical and sustainability targets.
Gucci earns a B- for establishing strong labor standards in its core European operations and eliminating fur. However, the grade is held back by a lack of a firm living wage commitment for all workers globally and persistent transparency gaps in its deep supply chain, where verifications of its ethical claims become more difficult.
For sustainability, Gucci earns a B. It deserves credit for ambitious, science-based targets, progress in using sustainable materials (72%), and innovative circular initiatives like Re-Nylon. However, continued use of high-impact materials like leather and conventional synthetics, along with the unresolved issue of waste that comes from its seasonal model, prevents a higher rating.
If you admire Gucci's luxury aesthetic but want to explore brands that take sustainability and ethics even further, here are some forward-thinking options that are setting new standards in the industry.
A true pioneer in sustainable luxury, Stella McCartney operates a fully vegetarian brand (no leather or fur) known for its commitment to transparent sourcing and use of innovative materials like mushroom leather and recycled cashmere. Its modern style offers a direct, highly ethical alternative to Gucci.
Shop now at stellamccartney.com
For trendy apparel with a similar vibe to Gucci at a lower price point, Reformation is a B Corp that tracks the carbon and water footprint of every product. The brand primarily uses low-impact fabrics like TENCEL and recycled materials and offers radical transparency on its factory working conditions.
Shop at thereformation.com
While known for outdoor apparel, Patagonia earns a place for its unmatched commitment across its accessories and clothing lines. Its focus on Fair Trade Certified production, using 98% recycled materials, offering lifetime repairs, and donating profits to environmental causes is the gold standard for any apparel company.
Shop at patagonia.co.uk
Though focusing on footwear, Veja is an exceptional example of ethical and sustainable practices. The B Corp uses materials like Fair Trade certified or organic cotton, wild rubber from the Amazon rainforest, and upcycled plastic bottles while maintaining complete supply chain transparency.
Shop at veja-store.co.uk
Every piece of clothing has an environmental footprint. Gucci's impact is primarily in its use of resource-intensive virgin materials like leather, silk, and wool instead of lower-impact alternatives, as well as its sheer scale. While far less damaging than SHEIN's daily drops of new products, producing hundreds of millions of dollars worth of product every year consumes significant amounts of resources.
Yes, Gucci stopped using animal fur in all of its collections in 2017. However, the brand continues to use a number of other animal-derived materials such as leather, silk, and wool.
Gucci products are mostly produced in Italy, with some other production in France and other European countries. This allows the brand to ensure high labor practices and a safe working environment, although the brand relies on a global supply chain for raw materials that can have less rigorous oversight.
