李維斯CEO笑言:大家平時別洗牛仔褲大綱
Talk about fashion with a long lead time: Today, May 20, marks the 141st birthday of the Levi's 501 jean. As CEO Chip Bergh remarked at Fortune's Brainstorm Green conference in Laguna Niguel, Calif., "We are the ultimate in sustainable apparel. If you buy [our jeans] they will last a lot longer than most people's waistlines will." Levi's are also, Bergh said, the No. 1 brand in secondhand apparel stores.
今天我們來說說一個具有悠久歷史的時裝品牌：5月20日是李維斯(Levi's )501牛仔褲的141歲生日。在《財富》雜誌(Fortune)於加州拉古納尼古爾主辦的綠色頭腦風暴大會(Brainstorm Green)上，李維斯CEO奇普·伯格表示，“我們把可持續服裝做到了極致。如果你購買我們的牛仔褲，它們的使用壽命將比大多數人的腰圍長得多。”伯格說，李維斯也是二手服裝店的頭號品牌。At a time when throwaway, or "fast" fashion remains dominant, Levi Strauss & Co. is something of an anomaly. Not only are its clothes known for their durability and longevity, but the company is far ahead of the sustainability curve, especially for an apparel company.
在這個一次性或“快速”時裝依然占主導地位的時代，李維斯公司(Levi Strauss & Co)多少有點另類。它的服裝不僅以耐用性和長壽著稱，而且這家公司也遠遠領先於可持續發展曲線，尤其是對於一個服裝公司而言。One of the most innovative ideas Bergh discussed was part of the company's Wellthread initiative, a small Dockers collection that is, in his words, "sustainable in every facet of the word," which means both economically and socially sustainable. Not only are the clothes much greener -- made with much less energy and water out of fabrics that are easier to recycle -- but they are manufactured in plants where workers' well-being is measured and meets high standards. For now, it's just an experiment, and a "premium-priced" one at that, available in Europe (and online in the U.S.), but Bergh says he is "encouraged" by early results.
伯格討論的最有創意的想法之一是Dockers品牌旗下的一個小時裝系列，它是該公司Wellthread行動的組成部分。用他的話說，“這個單詞的每一面都是可持續的，”意味着經濟和社會發展的可持續性。這款服裝不僅更加環保（面料更易於回收，耗費的能源和水也比過去少得多），而且它的加工工廠按照高標準來衡量工人們的福利。就目前而言，它只是一個實驗，這款“高價”產品已在歐洲門店上市（美國消費者需要在網上購買），但伯格說，早期的銷售成績“讓他備受鼓舞”。
Bergh also had some surprising things to say about how to reduce water use in his business. Only half of water usage happens in the jean production process, which means that the other half happens at home, when the customer washes his jeans repeatedly in order to end up with the right color and fit. Levi's is producing a line of products called "Waterless," which you can request in stores.
此外，談到該公司如何減少水消耗時，伯格也說了一些令人驚訝的事情。牛仔褲的生產用水只佔用水量的一半，這意味着另一半是在家中消耗的——爲了保證褲子顏色正，更加合身，顧客反覆地洗他的牛仔褲。李維斯正在生產一款名爲“無水”(Waterless)的系列產品，消費者現在可以在門店訂購。And if you want to do your part for sustainability, Bergh has another idea: Stop washing your jeans. "These jeans have yet to see a washing machine," he said of the dark blue pair he wore onstage, which he's owned for an entire year. "I have yet to get a skin disease." Still, one has to hope those jeans will be washed before they celebrate their second birthday -- let alone their 141st.
如果你想爲可持續發展盡一份力，伯格提出了另一個建議：別洗牛仔褲。“這條牛仔褲還沒有見過洗衣機呢，”他說的是自己身上那條已經穿了一年的深藍色牛仔褲。“我並沒有患上皮膚病。”儘管如此，人們還是希望在這條牛仔褲慶祝它的第二個生日（更不用說第141個生日）之前，奇普·伯格最好能把它洗一洗。
