Faherty's co-founder and Chief Impact Officer, Kerry Docherty, reveals how the brand integrates genuine accountability into its sustainability strategy, moving beyond mere pronouncements to concrete actions. This episode is a must-listen for DTC operators seeking to build an authentic brand that balances growth with ethical practices and community engagement, offering a blueprint for tangible impact in the fashion industry.
As calls for sustainability within the fashion industry swell, some brands have been quick to vocalize their sustainability strategies, while others have taken a different approach by working to meet sustainability goals in silence. In the case of Faherty, a sustainable clothing brand launched in 2013, “It's less about making political pronouncements, and [more about] putting our energy and words and actions behind the things that we care about,” said Kerry Docherty, co-founder and chief impact officer at Faherty, on the latest Glossy Podcast. As CIO, Docherty’s focus on the brand’s sustainability and cultural initiatives was magnified in the past year-and-a-half. The brand opened 13 of its 30 stores at a time colored by the pandemic and the social justice movements that simultaneously took precedence. “It was a real opportunity for us as a brand to put a stake in the ground and say, ‘What are we standing up for? What do we need to do internally to get to where we want to be?” she said. The Native-American community is one community, in particular, that Faherty has invested in. “[The focus is] how we, as a brand, can differentiate ourselves as someone who's [allying] with the Native community, instead of exploiting it,” said Docherty. Rather than “appropriating” Native designs, Docherty is learning about Native culture and art and “focusing on long-term impact” and relationships with Native designers, she said. In terms of sustainability, maintaining a sustainable brand means “holding ourselves accountable” for the materials and lifecycle of the clothing items, said Docherty. Faherty has done so with its concrete benchmarks of having 85% of fabrics be sustainable and 90% of packaging be “plastic-free,” she said. “[For] our generation and the generation coming up, intentionality and sustainability are important, as are giving back,” she said. “The more brands that feel accountable for that, the better it is for all of us.”