Our glossary

The Paris Good Fashion glossary was born following the citizen consultation on responsible fashion carried out in 2020 at the initiative of our association alongside a collective of committed actors*.

It responds to the expectations expressed by more than 107,000 participants, concerning the need for consumer information and the need to use a common language understood by all. Hence, the members of Paris Good Fashion decided to develop this glossary in order to exchange and communicate on the same basis.

Initially published in French, this glossary is now available in English in order to make as many people as possible benefit from this work. It includes about 350 definitions, and is the result of collaborative work with our members**.

  1. We first defined the main categories and terms to be included. First, we defined the main categories and terms to be included: general terms of fashion and sustainable development, labels and certifications, actors and initiatives, and materials. Another category was established, that of "Basic concepts". It includes the most important generic terms of our sector. These are also often the most complex, as their scope is either very broad or unclear.
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  2. Then, we carried out bibliographical research, which allowed us to carry out a state of the art of the existing definitions by basing them on the official and international definitions when they existed.
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  3. When they did not exist, the terms were the subject of consultation and in-depth reflection by Sylvie Benard, Clémence Grisel and Isabelle Lefort in order to be enriched and as precise as possible. For each term, you will find the bibliographic references that helped establish its definition.
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  4. Following this work which took place from March 2021 to February 2022, the definitions were submitted to the members for correction and validation. Special thanks go to Claudia Lee and Guy Morgan (Chanel), François Souchet (BPCM), and Andrée-Anne Lemieux (IFM) for their careful reading of the translation, coordinated by Clémence Grisel.

If you would like to know more, or have any suggestions, please contact us at contact@parisgoodfashion.com

* Eram Group, Etam Group, Galeries Lafayette, Petit Bateau, Vestiaire Collective, WSN

** They participated in the WG: Chantal Cabantous (Balmain), François Souchet (BPCM), Éric Dupont, Guy Morgan, Claudia Lee (Chanel), Christophe Bocquet and Aude Vergne (Chloé), Sylvain Cariou and Hugo Sereys (Crystalchain), Clémence Hulet and Alice Timmerman (Deloitte), Géraldine Vallejo, Yoann Regent and Annabelle Villot Malka (Kering), Frédéric Lecoq (Lacoste), Hélène Valade and Alexandre Capelli (LVMH), Thomas Bucaille and Pauline Mattioli (Petit Bateau) as well as Léonore Garnier (FHCM), Adeline Dargent (Syndicat de Paris de la Mode Féminine) and Andrée-Anne Lemieux (IFM)

International social certification standard that guarantees the respect of fundamental workers' rights. It encourages organisations to develop, maintain and adopt decent working conditions throughout their production chain.

It requires the respect, by the certified company and its suppliers, of nine responsibility requirements (child labour, forced labour, health and safety, freedom of association and right to collective bargaining, discrimination, disciplinary practices, working hours, remuneration and management systems) and the continuous improvement of working conditions through the implementation of a management system.

Reference: SGS
Initiated by the Carbon Disclosure Project, the United Nations Global Compact, World Resources Institute and the World Wide Fund for Nature. It enables organisations to set emissions reduction targets based on climate science.

The initiative takes three approaches:

• A sectoral approach: the global carbon budget is divided by sector and companies are allocated an emissions reduction target for their sector.
• A total approach: a percentage of total emissions reductions is allocated to individual companies.
• An economic approach: the carbon budget is equated to global GDP and a company’s share of emissions is determined by its gross profit, since the sum of all companies’ gross profits worldwide equate to global GDP.

References:
Science Based Target
Novethic
See: Carbon footprint assessment
Production waste that still has value, especially materials which can be reused.

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Of the different stages in textile production - transformation of raw fibres, spinning, weaving, dyeing and printing, manufacturing -, manufacturing is the main source of scraps at an estimated 60 billion square metres of fabric per year. Per garment, between 20% and 30% of fabric is lost during the cutting process.

Reference: Refashion
Describes an item that was previously owned and used by at least one other person.

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The boom in the second-hand clothing market reflects changing consumer expectations with respect to price and demand for more sustainable fashion.

According to fashion resale website ThredUp, the second-hand clothing market in the United States should be worth $82 billion in 2026 compared with $27 billion in 2020.

While the expanding second-hand clothing market brings environmental and social benefits (reduced production of new garments, extended lifespan, etc.), it appears not to have slowed (over)consumption of clothing and could even encourage it. A report by ThredUp predicts that the second-hand clothing market will be twice the size of fast fashion by 2030, boosted by low prices and massive supply of second-hand garments.

References:
French Ministry of Economy
Thred Up (2022) Resale Report
Feedstocks that do not compete directly with food and feed crops because they are derived from biomass such as waste and agricultural residues of nonfood crops such as wheat straw, fruit waste, or wood waste. These are an improvement over first generation and are becoming available on the market today. However, they do still hold potential negative consequences such as pesticide and GMO use, land use change and reliance on industrial monoculture farming.

See: Bio-feedstock, First-generation bio-feedstock, Third-generation bio-feedstock, Fourth-generation bio-feedstock

Reference: Kering Standards
Social auditing methodology developed by Sedex that enables businesses to assess their sites and suppliers to understand working conditions in their supply chain, based on their organisation’s standards of labour, health and safety, environment and business ethics. SMETA enables a supplier to carry out a single audit which it then shares with multiple customers, rather than conducting separate audits for each customer.

Reference: Sedex
France’s Public Procurement Code defines a short supply chain as a distribution model for agricultural products – the term is not officially recognised for other types of product – which are either:

• sold directly by the producer to the end customer, or
• sold indirectly with no more than one intermediary between the producer and the end customer.

The term is mistakenly thought to include the criterion of distance between producer and consumer. When distance is implied, the term “local supply chain” is preferable, whereby place of production and place of consumption are located within a small geographic radius.

References:
French Public Procurement Code - Decree n° 2011-100 of 25th August 2011
French Ministry of the Economy, Finance and Industry
Paris Good Fashion
Action of cutting textile waste in a shredder to obtain long fibres that can then be woven into new fibre or used as filling or insulating material.

Reference: Refashion
Natural material of animal origin, from the cocoons of Bombyx mori, a domesticated silkworm that feeds on mulberry leaves.

When the silkworms leave their cocoons, they damage the fibre. To prevent this, and harvest long, unbroken filaments, the worms are killed (either steamed or pierced with a needle).

The environmental impact of silk production depends on the farming practices employed: use of fertilisers and pesticides to grow the mulberry trees, energy consumption to control the temperature of the chrysalises, chemicals used to remove the glue from the silk fibres, water consumption for producing the fibres, and waste disposal methods.

Ahimsa silk, or peace silk, positions itself as a natural, cruelty-free alternative to conventional silk. It is only harvested once metamorphosis is complete, meaning the silkworms are not killed.

See: Ahimsa silk

References:
Paris Good Fashion
Mistra (2019) Environmental impact of textile fibers - Part 2
European Directive 2019/904 defines plastic as “a material consisting of a polymer […] to which additives or other substances may have been added, and which can function as a main structural component of final products, with the exception of natural polymers that have not been chemically modified”.

The same directive defines a single-use plastic product as “a product that is made wholly or partly from plastic and that is not conceived, designed or placed on the market to accomplish, within its life span, multiple trips or rotations by being returned to a producer for refill or re-used for the same purpose for which it was conceived”.

By phasing out single-use plastic products, France (through the Loi AGEC anti-waste law) and Europe (through Directive 2019/904) seek to prevent and mitigate the impact of single-use plastic products on the environment, in particular marine life, human health, and move from a linear to a circular economy.

One of the biggest challenges facing the fashion and textile industries is to develop an alternative to single-use plastic polybags and hangers.

Reference: Directive (EU) 2019/904 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the reduction of the impact of certain plastic products on the environment
Concept designating enterprises and organizations, in particular cooperatives, mutual benefit societies, associations, foundations and social enterprises, which have the specific feature of producing goods, services and knowledge while pursuing both economic and social aims and fostering solidarity.

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SSE businesses in France are governed by law n° 2014-856 of July 31, 2014 which prescribes how their profits are to be used: personal gain is prohibited and all profit must be reinvested. They are usually partly State-funded.

References:
French Ministry of Economy
International Labour Organization (ILO)
A formal evaluation of a company’s procedures with regard to corporate social responsibility. The European Commission defines a social audit as “the systematic evaluation of an organisation’s social impact in relation to standards and expectations.” There are four main types of social audit:

• To assess corporate practices against an external standard (labour laws, collective bargaining agreements, company agreements) and to assess practices of contractors and suppliers against corporate social responsibility standards, which are frequently based on principles established by the International Labour Organization;
• To review whether in-house practices conform to objectives, rules and processes, and whether these objectives, rules and processes are relevant;
• To understand a labour situation (strike action, poor labour relations, resignations, etc.), and use findings to take corrective measures and/or prevent similar situations from arising;
• Prior to change, e.g. merger or acquisition, restructuring, social feasibility of an investment, or (re)negotiation of a collective bargaining agreement.

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The social auditor uses established methods and reliable labour management indicators. They refer to standards, norms and/or best practices to identify areas for improvement, and to analyse the cause of any shortfalls and related social and financial risks. In their conclusions, they identify situations that require particular attention and their causes, thus making it easier to identify solutions.

References:
Commission of the European Communities (2001) Green Paper - Promoting a European framework for Corporate Social Responsibility
Institut National de l'Audit Social
The economic, social, cultural and political integration of a person or group of people so that they are no longer excluded from society.

The European Commission uses the term "active inclusion", which it defines as an action “enabling every citizen, notably the most disadvantaged, to fully participate in society, including having a job".

References:
European Commission
Larousse
The United Kingdom’s leading organic certifier offering organic and sustainable certification schemes across food, farming, catering, beauty & wellbeing, fashion & textiles and forestry.

Reference: Soil Association
See: Cause-related product
Separation of collected clothes, linens and footwear for valorisation or disposal.

Reference: Refashion
Operator responsible for waste collection logistics. The French Environmental Code differentiates between the transporter, which transloads and temporarily stores waste for collection and evacuation to a waste management facility, and the baler, which unpacks waste and repacks it into larger bales for forwarding.

Reference: Article R543-200-1 - French Environmental Code
Technical document that defines the characteristics a product, service or combination thereof must display, and the conditions for ensuring conformity with these characteristics. Certification specifications are drafted by the certification body after consultation with stakeholders.

Reference: Article L433-3 - French Consumer Code
One of the processes (with carding and roving) to transform fibres into a continuous thread of yarn.

Reference: Refashion
Waste whose permeability to water and leaching fraction are contained within safe levels.

Reference: Mission commune d'information sur les déchets (2010) Traitement des ordures ménagères : quels choix après le Grenelle ?
Certifies that every component of a textile product has been tested for harmful substances. In many cases the limit values for the STANDARD 100 go beyond national and international requirements.

Reference: Oeko-Tex
Certification system for Sustainable Textile and Leather Production. Its objective is to implement environmentally friendly production processes, improve health and safety, and promote socially responsible working conditions at production sites.

Reference: Oeko-Tex
French law n°75-1334 defines subcontracting as the operation by which an entrepreneur assigns another party, the subcontractor, through a subcontract and under its responsibility, to perform all or part of a contract or a contract for public works which the entrepreneur has entered into with the project owner.

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French law imposes a duty of care on French multinationals to identify and prevent risks to the environment, non-respect of human rights and corruption. This duty of care applies to activities by the multinationals themselves as well as their subsidiaries, subcontractors and suppliers, in France and overseas.

Reference: French Law n°75-1334 on subcontracting
Person or company supplying another company with goods or services.

Suppliers differ from subcontractors whose activities are defined in French law (article 1 of the law of 31 December 1975) as “the operation whereby a contractor delegates to another person, called the subcontractor, through a subcontract, for which they are entirely responsible, the performance of all or part of a company contract or public procurement contract concluded with the primary contractor”. The direct or tier-one subcontractor can in turn engage another subcontractor, called the indirect or tier-two subcontractor, to perform the services for which they are responsible. In such cases, the tier-one subcontractor is seen as the primary contractor with respect to their own subcontractors.

French legislation states that suppliers, unlike subcontractors, are not contractually obliged to perform (only to sell).

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Following the collapse of the Rana Plaza garment factory, France introduced a “duty of vigilance” law to regulate the activities of French multinationals with regard to the environment, human rights and corruption. It applies not only to their own activities but also those of their subsidiaries, subcontractors and suppliers, in France and overseas.

References:
French Law n° 75-1334
Direction des Affaires Juridiques
The flow of products and information across various logistics processes, from the purchase of raw materials to the delivery of end products to the consumer. The supply chain includes all service providers and customers.

Reference: FAQ Logitique
Global not-for-profit alliance representing more than 250 member organisations (apparel, footwear and textile brands, retailers, suppliers, service providers, trade associations, non-profits, NGOs and academic institutions) working to promote a more sustainable and ethical fashion industry. The Coalition has developed the Higg Index, a suite of tools that standardises environmental and social measurements across the value chain.

References:
Sustainable Apparel Coalition
Crystalchain
In 1987 the Brundtland report defined sustainable development as “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” The two concepts that are inherent to this idea are that of “needs” - in particular the essential needs of the most vulnerable which must be given the highest priority - and that of the “limitations” imposed by the present state of technology and social organisation, and by the ability of the environment to meet present and future needs.

The principles of sustainable development and its three pillars of economic effectiveness, social justice and environmental sustainability were enshrined in the 1992 Rio Declaration on Environment and Development.

Reference: World Commission on Environment and Development. (1987). Our common future. Oxford: Oxford University Press
The 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are a blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet. They are a call to action to eradicate poverty and take the transformative steps needed to put the world on a path to sustainable development by 2030. The contents of the 17 SDGs are specified in 169 universally applicable targets.

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The Sustainable Development Goals were adopted by the United Nations in September 2015 as part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. They follow on from the eight Millennium Development Goals, adopted in 2000, to combat poverty, hunger, disease, illiteracy and inequality in developing countries with a target year of 2015. The Agenda enabled progress to be made in eradicating poverty and hunger, but proved insufficient when reducing inequality. It also showed its limits in cross-sectoral effectiveness. The 17 Sustainable Development Goals are intended to go further by tackling all of the major challenges that humans face. The objectives of the goals are:

• End poverty in all its forms, everywhere
• End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition, and promote sustainable agriculture
• Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all, at all ages
• Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education
• Achieve gender equality
• Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all
• Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all
• Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth
• Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialisation and foster innovation
• Reduce inequality within and among countries
• Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable
• Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns
• Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts
• Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development
• Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems
• Promote peaceful and inclusive societies, provide access to justice for all and build effective institutions
• Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalise the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development

Reference: United Nations
An approach that promotes environmental sustainability and social responsibility in every aspect of the fashion industry (design, production, frequency of collections, communication, use, end of life, etc.). Circularity, durability, transparency and traceability are the foundations of sustainable fashion, which concerns both manufacturers and consumers.

Sustainable fashion can be defined in various ways, depending on the criteria taken into account.

• Eco-friendly: fashion associated with practices that are less harmful to the environment than conventional practices.

• Slow fashion: considers the processes and resources required in production and values respect for the environment, animals and workers. The opposite of fast fashion, slow fashion advocates the purchase of better quality clothes that will last longer, values diversity and integrity, and demands transparency across the value chain.

• Ethical: fashion that takes into account the social (respect for International Labour Organization conventions) and environmental context of production.

Under the French Consumer Code, any claim that a product, brand or service is “sustainable” or “responsible” must be substantiated by means of precise explanations or quantified data, including an indication of the basis for comparison.

European Directive 2019/2161 states that “a practice is misleading if material information needed by the average consumer to take an informed purchasing decision is omitted or provided in an unclear, unintelligible, ambiguous or untimely manner”.

References:
UN Alliance for Sustainable Fashion
ARPP
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2015) Manuel de formation n°11: La production éthique
Oxfam France
Directive 2005/29/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council concerning unfair business-to-consumer commercial practices
Paris Good Fashion
There is no accepted definition of a sustainable material as no material has zero environmental impact. We can, however, consider a material to be sustainable when it is produced in such a way as to have the least possible impact on the environment, or when it provides an alternative to a material with a high environmental impact. Examples include organic materials and recycled materials.

Textile Exchange refers to “preferred fibre” and “preferred material” which it defines as “one which results in improved environmental and/or social sustainability outcomes and impacts in comparison to conventional production”.

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A life cycle assessment is a standardised methodology for the assessment of the environmental impact of a product across multiple criteria and multiple stages throughout its life cycle, and is therefore an important resource when choosing between various materials. Organic, recycled, regenerated and biobased materials – contingent on the results of impact studies – can be considered sustainable alternatives to virgin or conventional materials.

References:
Textile Exchange
Paris Good Fashion
Procurement that has the most positive environmental, social and economic impacts possible over the entire life cycle.

Reference: ISO 20400:2017 - Sustainable procurement
Made from polymers obtained by polymerisation, polycondensation or polyaddition. Conventional fibres such as nylon, acrylic, polyester and elastane are produced from derivatives of petroleum and/or natural gas.

According to Textile Exchange’s 20212Preferred Fiber & Materials Report, synthetic fibres accounted for 64% of all fibres used in 2021 worldwide. Polyester alone accounted for 54%.

Manufacturing synthetic fibre involves numerous stages: chemical polymerisation, drying to obtain granules, liquefaction of the granules and spinning.

Conventional synthetic fibres raise numerous environmental issues associated with the use of non-renewable fossil resources as feedstock, carbon emissions during production, and chemical, energy and water consumption. Synthetic fibres also release microplastics and, because they are not biodegradable, require solutions for end-of-life disposal.

Like recycled fibres, biosynthetic (or bio-sourced) fibres - which are made entirely or partially from polymers obtained from renewable resources - offer valuable alternatives to conventional synthetic fibres which rely on virgin fossil resources.

References:
Textile Exchange (2022) Preferred Fiber & Materials Report
Kering Standards