OUR PROMISE

At Anya Hindmarch, we are committed to creating consciously and put sustainability at the heart of what we do. We are proud to have signed the Fashion Industry Charter for Climate Action, which was created in 2018 as a holistic commitment to climate action for the textile, clothing and fashion industry. Its mission is to drive the fashion industry to net-zero Greenhouse Gas emissions no later than 2030 in line with keeping global warming below 1.5 degrees. You can read the full charter and find out more here.

NOVEMBER 2022 ANYA HINDMARCH RENTAL

In our continuing commitment to create consciously, we’ve introduced Anya Hindmarch Rental - a capsule collection of our favorite styles, both new season and archive, available for customers to rent by the day. Supporting a circular economy is integral to long term sustainability and something we’re proud to champion with this service. Plus, we offer the option to purchase after renting, at a lower price than purchasing a new bag.

DECEMBER 2021 THE UNIVERSAL BAG

The Universal Bag is the new generation of reusable bag. It builds on the I Am Not A Plastic Bag and I Am A Plastic Bag initiatives in tackling single-use plastic and rescuing post-consumer waste from landfill. It is a desirable, durable, reusable, recycled and recyclable tote bag for everyone to take everywhere, for everything. It aims to encourage a re-use mindset, and its recycling mechanism – an innovative built-in returns pouch – prevents contamination and ensures 100% recyclability. Created by Anya Hindmarch, it retails in supermarkets globally – discover more here.

DECEMBER 2021 THE UNIVERSAL BAG

The Universal Bag is the new generation of reusable bag. It builds on the I Am Not A Plastic Bag and I Am A Plastic Bag initiatives in tackling single-use plastic and rescuing post-consumer waste from landfill. It is a desirable, durable, reusable, recycled and recyclable tote bag for everyone to take everywhere, for everything. It aims to encourage a re-use mindset, and its recycling mechanism – an innovative built-in returns pouch – prevents contamination and ensures 100% recyclability. Created by Anya Hindmarch, it retails in supermarkets globally – discover more here.

OCTOBER 2021 RETURN TO NATURE

In nature, if an apple drops from a tree, it breaks down and composts, nourishing the soil to support new plant growth. Inspired by the fact that there is no waste in nature, in October 2019 we set out to make a bag that would do the same, and could therefore never end up in landfill. After two years of research and development we launched Return to Nature, a collection of bags that biodegrade (audited ISO 20136), compost (audited ISO 20200) and deliver 20% stronger plant growth. For this project we used pioneering new tanning and finishing methods developed with Nera Tanning and Richard Hoffmans (est. 1899), resulting in a product that is chrome-free, heavy-metal-free and aldehyde-free. The skins are sourced from Scan-Hide Swedish farms that offer full traceability to the field, and have some of the highest standards of animal welfare. The hides are tanned with zeology, an innovation that replaces chrome (which hinders biodegradability) with zeolite. There is no PU coating, so common in leather - it’s finished instead with Activated Silk™ Technology. This project was in part inspired by the words of Arizona Muse on the podcast Wardrobe Crisis and each bag sold donates £5 or £10 to Dirt, Arizona’s foundation for the regeneration of the earth.

2020 I AM A PLASTIC BAG

There are 8 billion tonnes of plastic on the planet but when you throw a piece away, there is no away. In a small step towards reusing what we already have, we created the I Am A Plastic Bag collection. Each bag is made from an innovative new cotton canvas-feel fabric that’s created from 32 half litre recycled plastic bottles. The fabric is then coated with recycled windscreens. Each piece is designed to never be thrown away.

2020 I AM A PLASTIC BAG

There are 8 billion tonnes of plastic on the planet but when you throw a piece away, there is no away. In a small step towards reusing what we already have, we created the I Am A Plastic Bag collection. Each bag is made from an innovative new cotton canvas-feel fabric that’s created from 32 half litre recycled plastic bottles. The fabric is then coated with recycled windscreens. Each piece is designed to never be thrown away.

2007 I AM NOT A PLASTIC BAG

The I’m Not A Plastic Bag tote was a reusable canvas tote designed by Anya as part of a collaborative project with Antidote and global social change movement We Are What We Do (now known as Shift) to highlight the huge problem with single use plastic shopping bags. After thousands of people queued to purchase the tote from Sainsburys (80,000 on launch day), the project garnered huge press coverage globally, ignited the debate around the use of plastic bags and contributed to the eventual decision to charge for plastic bags in the UK. Following the launch of I Am Not A Plastic Bag, the British Retail Consortium estimated that the number of single use plastic bags fell from 10 billion in 2006 to 6.1 billion in 2010.

PACKAGING

We love the power of the written word, but our packaging and communications were using too much paper. From AW20 we removed unnecessary paperwork by switching to online returns. All our boxes, card, paper and tissue are now FSC certified [Forest Stewardship Council] and we have removed non-compostable plastic, foam and silica gel packs from all products and switched to soy based inks. From SS23, every dust bag will be crafted from GRS certified [Global Recycled Standard] recycled cotton.

PACKAGING

We love the power of the written word, but our packaging and communications were using too much paper. From AW20 we removed unnecessary paperwork by switching to online returns. All our boxes, card, paper and tissue are now FSC certified [Forest Stewardship Council] and we have removed non-compostable plastic, foam and silica gel packs from all products and switched to soy based inks. From SS23, every dust bag will be crafted from GRS certified [Global Recycled Standard] recycled cotton.

MATERIALS

As well as the pioneering coated recycled plastic canvas with IAAPB, we have made changes to our supply chain for other materials. Where we have stock of materials, we are using those up first (as that feels like the right thing to do), and we are transitioning to textiles that are certified by Oeko-Tex, Better Cotton Initiative, Global Organic Textile Standard and Global Recycle Standard, including regenerated nylon (ECONYL®), recycled canvas and recycled satin. We have replaced PU with TPU, a recyclable and biodegradable alternative, and all our leathers are certified by the Leather Working Group – a global initiative governing the use of sustainable leather in the supply chain. Our Waste Not Want not collection is released biannually, a limited edition collection using up leather off-cuts that would have otherwise gone to waste.

PEOPLE

Our code of conduct includes corporate policies that support anti-corruption, human rights, labour, equal opportunities, diversity and health and safety. We audit the factories we partner with on a regular basis.

OUR CHARITY PARTNERSHIPS

We believe fashion’s platform can be used for good. For this reason, many of our collections and initiatives are designed or created to benefit charitable foundations or give back to our community. Return to Nature was inspired by the words of environmentalist and sustainability consultant Arizona Muse, and supports her charitable organisation, Dirt, the foundation for the regeneration of the earth. The Be A Bag collection benefits the Royal Marsden Cancer Charity, of which Anya is a Trustee, with a donation from each bag. Anya has also launched the Ever After garden with the charity in 2019, an annual installation in Grosvenor Square to pay tribute to those we have lost. (With thanks to Grosvenor Estate, Pan Communication and Culture Creative.) During the coronavirus pandemic, we raised money to fund and make 3,000 washable reusable PPE hospital gowns for the Royal Marsden, as well as 6,000 gowns for other hospitals.

OUR AWARDS

We’re proud to have been awarded the Butterfly Mark from Positive Luxury. This is a symbol of trust earned by brands that have adopted sustainability as a business strategy. You can find out more about the butterfly mark and what we’ve been awarded it for on our product pages.