On the occasion of its 40th anniversary, Alpine Group has signed up to the Future-Fit Business Benchmark, a science-based strategic management tool aligning with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals

The company is a longstanding manufacturing partner to fashion brands including The North Face, American Eagle Outfitters, Under Armour and Sweaty Betty, and includes Alex Apparels, the largest global exporter of apparel in Egypt, which operates 3,500 machines and has  5,600 employees. Alex Apparels currently produces 27 million garments each year

Another group member is United Creations, the largest manufacturer of polo shirts in Jordan with 5,400 team members and operating 2,900 machines. United Creations also produces 27 million garments each year.

Paradise Textiles, in Taipai, South Korea, is the founding company and now the dedicated innovation hub of the Alpine Group, driving research and innovation on sustainable materials, performance, and advanced manufacturing.

Areas of impact

In line with the Future-Fit Business Benchmark, Alpine Group will now pursue a comprehensive sustainability strategy addressing three areas of impact – Materials and Innovation, People Development and Empowerment, and Environmental Impact and Community Action. 

The aim is that by 2023, more than 60% of all the group’s polyester will come from recycled bottles or textile waste and 100% of all man-made cellulose fibre from wood pulp will be sourced from fibre manufacturers signed up to Canopy Green Shirt, the leading sustainable global standard.

In addition, by 2025, 100% of all cotton will come from sustainable sources according to guidelines defined by the Textile Exchange’s Sustainable Cotton Challenge and 25% of all garments will be produced with solution dyed materials to reduce overall water consumption. By 2030, 75% of all man-made cellulosic fibre will be from tree-free sources such as agricultural waste and bacterial cellulose.

In terms of environmental impact and community action, the plan is that all manufacturing facilities across the group will use 100% renewable energy by 2030 and a science-based target will set a clearly defined path in reducing the group’s scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions in line with the Paris Agreement goals

The group will also support a minimum of 250,000 women through its Dignity Kits programme which uses textile waste to create kits that alleviate period poverty in the next five years, on top of the 50,000 already helped each year.

In Egypt, Alpine is additionally partnering with the HERproject for digitalizing wages within the apparel workforce and empowering production floor team members.

“At Alpine, we have spent the past 40 years researching and pioneering sustainable breakthroughs in materials science and manufacturing technology,” said the group’s global director of impact and marketing Clare Woodford. “This is not an easy journey, but we know it is essential for the future of fashion. Adopting the Future-Fit Business Benchmark now is our way of accelerating change by bringing the rest of the industry – brands and partners alike – on this journey with us. We do it so that our innovation and manufacturing can positively impact the entire value chain.”

www.alpinecreations.com