Fashion Broadcaster | Circularity Is the New Black ♻️🖤

Plus: Burberry, Hermès, and Coach Bet Big on the Future of Sustainable Luxury

Author

Sophie Bruxner-Randall
May 07, 2025 • Estimated Reading Time: 9 minutes

Welcome to Fashion Broadcaster, your essential newsletter for luxury fashion eCommerce professionals.

Editor’s Pick 🌟

ClickZ was on the ground at POSSIBLE Miami, and here were our top takeaways:

  1. More than ever, consumer discovery is shifting to "interest media" platforms (like TikTok, Snap & Pinterest). Gary Vaynerchuk highlighted this evolution from a "social media era" to interest media, emphasizing that brands must now prioritize creating relevant content aligned with user interests to capture attention at the crucial initial stages of the customer journey.

  2. Measuring the ROI of top-of-funnel engagement on "interest media" channels is becoming a crucial differentiator. Despite recognizing the importance of reaching consumers earlier, many brands struggle to effectively track how content on interest media channels translated to bottom-line results. Those adopting full-funnel measurement solutions increasingly hold a competitive advantage.

  3. Commerce is increasingly integrated into content (e.g., TikTok Shop) demanding strategies that blend engagement and direct purchase. The growing impact of viral content driving sales, particularly through platforms like TikTok Shop, highlights the need for brands to embrace shoppable content experiences to capitalize on this evolution.

Turning these insights into actionable strategies is essential. For a free resource on strategically investing in and measuring the performance of upper-funnel 'interest media' channels, check out Fospha's Growth Accelerator Guide here.

Sector Spotlight 🎥

SUSTAINABLE DESIGN COLLABORATION

Burberry’s partnership with the London College of Fashion’s Centre for Sustainable Fashion exemplifies how heritage brands can infuse sustainability and circularity into product development through hands-on collaboration with design students. By tasking students to reimagine surplus Burberry materials—including iconic trench gabardine and check lining—this initiative generates fresh talent pipelines and highlights actionable models for circular fashion, resonating with marketers prioritizing sustainability messaging and youth engagement. Clara Gröning’s winning design, internship, and exhibition exemplify concrete incentives driving student participation and creative engagement with brand ethos.

CIRCULAR FASHION INNOVATION

Coach parent Tapestry, eBay, and others have joined The Fashion ReModel Initiative, signaling a shift toward circular business models in the fashion industry. Driven by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, the program urges brands to prioritize recycling, repair, and resale over producing new inventory, aligning with projections that circularity could capture 23 percent of the global fashion market by 2030. Marketers should note the substantial $73 billion rental and resale opportunity and the growing consumer expectations for sustainable practices.

LUXURY BRAND LEADERSHIP

Donatella Versace’s transition from creative director to chief brand ambassador at Versace, following its $1.38bn acquisition by Prada Group, signals a strategic shift in luxury brand positioning. Her proven skill in celebrity-driven campaigns, product placement, and legacy storytelling provides actionable insights for marketers navigating luxury branding amidst market slowdowns. Versace’s evolving leadership role highlights best practices for brand continuity, influence leveraging, and stakeholder engagement.

LEADERSHIP TRANSITION

END., a leading British luxury retailer centered on streetwear and lifestyle, has named seasoned fashion executive Sebastian Suhl as its new CEO after a comprehensive search, with outgoing CEO Parker Gundersen stepping down May 1. Suhl’s expertise in building global Direct to Consumer businesses at Prada, Givenchy, Marc Jacobs, and Valentino positions END. for focused growth and adaptability amid evolving retail demands. Marketers should note this marks a significant leadership shift designed to strengthen brand relevance, operational agility, and sustained consumer engagement in the competitive eCommerce-driven luxury landscape.

SUSTAINABLE LUXURY PRACTICES

Hermès offers marketers a compelling ESG model by integrating circularity, supply chain ethics, and emerging AI governance into its core business, highlighting durability, repairability, and responsible sourcing as pillars supporting both sustainability and brand differentiation. Despite limited product-level data, Hermès emphasizes aligning sufficiency principles with luxury positioning and regulatory compliance. Marketing professionals should note the emphasis on extending product lifecycles and transparent ESG governance as tools for value communication.

Influencer Corner 📢

Visual Rules to make you stop scrolling. | Juan Campdera

Capture your audience's attention? Visual composition isn't just about making things look good, it's about guiding your audience through your message with purpose. These visual principles act as the foundation for powerful communication, helping you arrange elements in a way that’s eye-catching, aesthetic, and legible.

Video ads aren’t just about audience. They’re about context and timing | ClickZ.com

At POSSIBLE 2025, Gary Mittman, CEO of KERV.ai, joined Anna Peggram to explain why shoppable video is finally getting real traction and what needs to change in how we measure engagement. Key takeaways:

1. Stop guessing attention. Track action: Clicks, scans, and interactions matter more than inferred “attention.” Measure what people do, not what you think they saw.

2. Context is the new creative: If someone just watched a cooking show, don’t serve them a generic ad. Use real-time content recognition to deliver something relevant and shoppable.

3. AI doesn’t need taxonomies: Most ad systems still use categories built for humans. KERV leverages AI to match creative to content without rigid labels and that’s what makes the experience seamless.

Optimization Hub ⚙️

BRAND COMMUNITY MONETIZATION

Brand communities can drive up to 2.7x higher customer lifetime value, with tactics like member-exclusive launches, community-led content, structured memberships, collaborative product development, and monetized events collectively generating $2M+ in revenue. These approaches deliver measurable gains in retention, authenticity, and recurring income. For marketers, actionable adoption can yield substantial and sustainable competitive advantages.

MARKETING STRATEGY INSIGHTS

A meticulously structured Google Ads approach, combining Performance Max, Standard Shopping, and segmented search campaigns, enabled an eCommerce account to achieve a 700+ ROAS with over $100,000 monthly spend. Non-branded search, rigorous product/category division, and continuous creative testing proved essential. Marketers can directly apply granular segmentation and campaign iteration to drive scalable profitability.

SEARCH INNOVATION

Zero-click searches now account for over 65% of global Google queries, with projections exceeding 70% by 2025, pushing marketers to adapt beyond traditional SEO. Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) centers on structured data, curated question-based content, and technical schema implementation, enabling brands to achieve visibility and measurable brand impact in zero-click environments. For marketers, refining AEO tactics is essential to maintain digital relevance, drive brand recognition, and reach audiences as AI-driven search evolves.

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ClickZ is a Contentive publication in the DTC eCommerce division