Lexus is the luxury hybrid leader in the automotive industry and a partner to the  CFDA in the  CFDA + Lexus Fashion* Initiative. This program offers a virtual residency to ten selected brands in order to inspire innovative business practices and positive change in the American fashion industry.

Lexus came into the sustainable design space more than a decade ago when it began selling luxury hybrid models of their cars. “Our ethos at Lexus is to advance the concept of sustainability without sacrifice,” explained Rachel Espersen of Lexus, who handles creative programming and partnerships at Intersect by Lexus.

Seeing the need for that concept in other industries, Lexus got involved in fashion related projects in 2006. Four years later, the brand partnered with the CFDA for the Fashion* Initiative, then-known as the CFDA/Lexus Eco-Fashion Challenge (2010-2014).

“We decided to partner with them because they are the true leaders in the fashion space,” Espersen said. “Everybody brings in their own resources and expertise and contacts that we feel are the best help to the designers in the program.”

What matters most to Lexus is awareness and education, and then following through that with action. The company’s goal in partnering with the CFDA on the CFDA + Lexus Fashion* Initiative is to encourage designers to be thought-leaders and influencers in order to make sustainability a priority throughout industries, including fashion and automotive.

“We’re absolutely proud to support [the designers] on their journeys to enhance sustainability in their businesses,” Espersen said. “Ultimately the greatest change is going to happen when both small designers and entrepreneurs and larger companies come together and both start asking for and demanding changes.”

See more of the CFDA/Lexus Fashion* Initiative sustainability story by following #ReDesignFashion.