Introduction: Can Luxury Be Truly Sustainable?
In an era of fast fashion, greenwashing scandals, and a growing cultural reckoning with overconsumption, “sustainable luxury” can sound like a contradiction in terms. But for Kay Carmichael, a fashion marketing consultant with a résumé spanning Mulberry, Chanel, Net-A-Porter and Harrods, it’s not only possible—it’s non-negotiable.
Now specialising in sustainability communications for luxury brands, Carmichael sits at the cultural and commercial crossroads of an industry grappling with its future. “Luxury has enjoyed phenomenal growth,” she says. “But that growth has come at the cost of overproduction, overexposure—and sometimes a compromise in quality. That doesn’t build a sustainable business in the long term.”
The question she’s been quietly and powerfully reframing across the fashion ecosystem is: What if sustainable business isn’t just good ethics—but good luxury?
From Campaigns to Consciousness
Carmichael’s career started like many others in high fashion—with runway shows, global media campaigns, and a fixation on ‘newness.’ But over time, the cycle of trend-chasing began to lose its lustre. “I was questioning how we could constantly be pushing the next must-have bag—only to replace it a few months later with the next one,” she recalls. “It started to feel disingenuous.”
That discomfort prompted a deeper investigation. Research led her to confront the fashion industry’s uncomfortable reality: responsible for up to 10% of global carbon emissions, fashion is the world’s third most polluting industry after agriculture and energy. “And that’s not even factoring in the human cost—exploitation in supply chains, lack of transparency, and questionable labor practices.”
So she pivoted—not away from fashion, but deeper into it, taking a Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership course during lockdown to reframe her thinking. “What I realised was that most consumers don’t have access to this kind of information,” Carmichael says. “If I was working inside the industry and didn’t know, how on earth could the average person?”
The Power of Language, the Power of Legacy
Today, Carmichael’s consultancy work blends her sharp marketing instincts with a deep commitment to sustainability. That means rethinking not just what we buy, but how we talk about it.
“Language matters,” she says. “The difference between ‘second-hand’ and ‘pre-loved’ is enormous. One implies a cast-off, the other carries emotional value.”
She’s a fierce advocate for circular fashion—not just resale, but rental, repair, and emotional durability. “The most sustainable thing you can do is wear what you already own,” she says. “And that goes against everything the fashion marketing machine has taught us for decades.”
But far from seeing this as an obstacle, Carmichael views it as an opportunity. “Luxury should be leading this change. After all, it was built on craftsmanship, rarity, and longevity. If we return to those roots—fewer, better things—it strengthens the brand and the business.”
Systems Over Statements: Walking the Talk
Carmichael isn’t interested in fluffy mission statements. Her work at Net-A-Porter and Mr. Porter is grounded in building rigorous sustainability systems from the inside out. One key project she leads is their “Net Sustain” and “Consciously Crafted” edits—product-level sustainability vetting across their luxury catalogue.
“These edits are based on three pillars: lower-impact materials, responsible craftsmanship, and design for circularity,” she explains. “Each product must meet at least one. And the brands themselves go through a vetting process before we even consider their products for inclusion.”
It’s meticulous, time-consuming—and necessary. “Yes, it’s admin-heavy. But that’s what rigour looks like. There’s been too much wool pulled over people’s eyes for too long.”
She also sees sustainability as inseparable from diversity, equity and inclusion. “It’s about people as much as it is about the planet,” she says. “If you’re not inclusive in who you hire, how you represent your audience, or what stories you tell—you’re not truly sustainable.”
What the Luxury Slowdown Is Really Telling Us
With headlines warning of a global luxury slowdown, Carmichael is quick to point out that this might be the industry’s wake-up call—not a threat, but a correction.
“The answer isn’t to panic and produce more,” she insists. “It’s to produce better. Michael Kors, for example, cut 30% of its SKUs after Covid and saw revenues increase. This isn’t just a climate imperative—it’s smart business.”
Less can, in fact, be more. Especially in luxury, where rarity is a feature, not a bug. “Built-to-last needs to be more than a tagline. It should be the entire business model.”
The Circular Economy Is the New Status Symbol
One of the most compelling shifts Carmichael is seeing is in the perception of ownership itself—particularly among younger audiences. “Gen Z is far more comfortable with renting, sharing, and rotating their wardrobes,” she says. “They’ve embraced the sharing economy mindset—just like Uber and Airbnb. Now, fashion is catching up.”
Platforms like By Rotation and Revlon are leading the charge, offering peer-to-peer luxury fashion rentals and resale. And major retailers are following suit. Net-A-Porter now partners with Revlon for a branded resale microsite that gives customers credit towards future purchases—an elegant loop that encourages loyalty and sustainability in one stroke.
“These services don’t just reduce waste—they extend the brand lifecycle and deepen customer engagement,” Carmichael notes. “It’s customer retention dressed as a circular economy.”
Tech and Tradition: A Delicate Balance
While technology promises to streamline many of fashion’s operational inefficiencies—especially in verifying supply chains and forecasting stock—Carmichael remains cautious.
“Yes, AI can help. But it’s not going to replace the human instinct for storytelling, creativity, or desirability,” she says. “Luxury doesn’t always make sense on a spreadsheet. Sometimes it’s the outlandish idea—the unexpected collaboration—that captures hearts and headlines.”
She cites the crisp-packet clutch or Balenciaga’s Simpsons premiere as examples of irrational genius. “AI might suggest more black bags, but it won’t dream up a couture chicken handbag.”
Still, she believes tech has a crucial role to play—particularly in reducing waste, optimising forecasting, and standardising sustainability credentials across the industry. “Imagine a world where brands only need to submit their sustainability data once, into a universal database. That’s where tech can really serve us.”
The Call for Consideration
So where does this all lead?
“To a slower, smarter, more thoughtful kind of luxury,” says Carmichael. “Where brands earn their price tags through transparency, creativity, and care—for the planet, for people, and for the customer.”
Her advice to marketers is simple but powerful: know what your company is doing on sustainability. Don’t wait for a campaign brief—bring those stories forward yourself. “Celebrate the progress. Challenge the gaps. Use your platform to educate. And never underestimate your influence as a storyteller.”
And to consumers? “Start with your wardrobe. The most sustainable thing you own is already there.”
Conclusion: The Future Is Circular, Beautifully So
Kaye Carmichael is not asking fashion to abandon its allure. She’s asking it to re-align with its origins—craftsmanship, care, and conscious consumption. In doing so, she’s proving that luxury doesn’t have to be wasteful to be desirable. In fact, the most desirable luxury of all might be the kind with nothing to hide—and everything to keep.
To learn more about building meaningful, data-driven sustainability strategies for luxury audiences, visit giantleapdigital.co.uk or follow us on Instagram at @giantleapdigital.
