Gucci and its parent company Kering have unveiled the ‘Circular Hub’, a luxury platform based in Italy, designed to transition the region’s fashion industry to circular operations. Based in Tuscany, the platform is set to drive the transformation of the value chain from raw materials to logistics, as well as provide support for the creation of circular luxury products.

The hub aligns with Italy’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan, contributing to the European Union’s 2030 emissions reduction target. Initially, it will focus on Gucci product sites and its Italian-based raw material suppliers, then extend to other brands in the Kering group and, later, the entire sector. It will feature a research and development centre, logistics initiatives, and collaborative industrial partnerships.

The aim of the Circular Hub is to generate positive impacts in the luxury fashion industry by supporting shared research and advancing local industrial facilities. It will strive to reduce the environmental and social impacts of Italian manufacturing and raw material supply chains through economies of scale.

Marie-Claire Daveu, chief sustainability and institutional affairs officer at Kering, said: “The fashion industry needs to accelerate and launch serious actions to catalyse deep change, rethinking the way we produce and use resources as well. The creation of our Circular Hub represents a milestone that goes in this direction. I am extremely pleased that the hub will see the light in Italy, home to some of the Group’s strongest and most renowned production hubs and know-how.”

This announcement for a circularity hub comes at a time when the EU is developing legislation for the fashion industry. Clothes produced must be long-lasting and recyclable. Fashion producers must also include clear labelling for consumers. Furthermore, companies may need to comply with supply chain regulations, which would require firms operating within the EU to assess and mitigate their environmental and human rights impacts.