FatFace is turning its sustainability focus towards the areas of its business where it has the greatest environmental and social impact, with supply-chain emissions, materials and product circularity emerging as key priorities in its latest ESG report.

The retailer’s 2026 Environment, Social and Governance Impact Report covers the financial year to January 2026 and sets out progress against its previous ESG strategy, while outlining how it plans to shape its next phase of sustainability work.

One of the key developments is a deeper focus on Scope 3 emissions – those generated across the value chain rather than directly through FatFace’s own operations.

FatFace reported total gross market-based greenhouse gas emissions of 49,033 tonnes of CO2e in FY26. This was a 4 per cent increase against its FY25 baseline, although emissions fell across every reported category other than purchased goods and services.

The figure was also restated following independent assurance, rising from the previously reported 44,939 tonnes of CO2e. FatFace said the increase was primarily due to a more detailed methodology for calculating purchased goods and services emissions, using supplier invoice and cost-code expenditure data.

In good company

The numbers underline the challenge facing fashion retailers: much of their carbon footprint sits beyond their own stores and offices.

FatFace has responded by stepping up its work with suppliers. Earlier this year, it launched a partnership agreement asking participating suppliers to measure their greenhouse gas emissions, establish net-zero transition plans and report against agreed milestones.

In return, suppliers can receive preferred partner status in selected product categories, alongside potential co-funding for decarbonisation projects, pilots and tooling upgrades. Two of FatFace’s largest suppliers were among the first to sign up.

The approach reflects a wider shift in the retailer’s sustainability strategy from simply measuring its own footprint to working with the businesses responsible for manufacturing its products.

FatFace said its top 20 manufacturing partners have a combined 315 years of working with the retailer, with relationships averaging 16.5 years. It believes these long-term relationships can provide a foundation for closer collaboration on environmental and ethical improvements.

Supply-chain transparency is another area where the retailer has made progress. During the year, it worked to map its supply chain and achieved visibility as far as Tier 5 in some cases, equivalent to the raw-material or farm level, based on supplier declarations.

It also conducted 126 Tier 1 factory audits, with 79 per cent carried out unannounced. Some 94 per cent of factories met its compliance standards, receiving a rating of one to three under its audit system.

The retailer has identified six salient human rights risks across its supply chain: freedom of association and collective bargaining; safe and healthy working conditions; forced labour and modern slavery; fair wages and benefits; lawful working hours; and child labour.

Materials are another major focus. FatFace has introduced a Preferred Materials Guide designed to help its product teams make more consistent decisions around the environmental and social impact of different fibres. The framework considers factors including water use, carbon impact, chemical safety, transparency and social impact.

The retailer has also continued to increase its use of preferred materials, although progress is uneven across fibres.

Cotton sourcing reached 99.5 per cent against a 100 per cent target, while polyester stood at 50 per cent against a 75 per cent target. Viscose reached 82 per cent, leather 81 per cent and linen 65 per cent, compared with a 75 per cent target for the latter three.

FatFace said certification issues had affected its cotton and linen progress, while the complexity of verifying recycled polyester in small components has made polyester particularly challenging.

Circularity

The report also points to a more developed approach to circularity.

FatFace has refreshed its circularity strategy and chosen Reskinned as its key partner for extending the life of products. Depending on their condition, donated or excess items can be repaired and resold, while products that cannot be reused can be taken back to fibre where possible or shredded for use as filler materials.

The retailer continues to direct customers towards Clothes Doctor for repairs and alterations, while planning to report uptake across its different circularity routes once a full year of data has been collected.

This moves circularity beyond simply encouraging customers to donate unwanted clothing, towards creating routes for products to remain in use for longer.

FatFace has also completed the rollout of LED lighting across its stores and reported that just 2 per cent of operational waste across 152 monitored sites was sent to landfill during FY26.

ESG approach

The retailer is preparing a new ESG strategy informed by a double materiality assessment. This will examine both the impact FatFace has on people and the planet and the social and environmental issues that could create financial risks or opportunities for the business.

The exercise is intended to help FatFace identify which sustainability issues are most material and where it should focus its resources.

Among the areas already identified for further work are supply-chain emissions, deeper supply-chain mapping, the use of the new preferred materials guide and exploration of digital product passports.

The latter could give customers greater visibility over where products come from and how they have been made, while also supporting FatFace’s longer-term ambitions around product transparency.

The report suggests the retailer is entering a new stage of its sustainability journey. Having established commitments around materials, ethical sourcing, emissions and circularity, its focus is increasingly on the harder task of embedding those priorities across its extended supply chain.

The next challenge will be turning better data and stronger supplier relationships into measurable reductions – particularly as purchased goods and services remain by far the biggest source of its carbon footprint.

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