The North Face Joins Archive Resale, Among Circular Advancements
A revamp is in motion for The North Face, as the VF-owned brand further prioritizes circularity.
For one, The North Face is switching up factory partners for its reverse logistics and launching a revamped Renewed (or resale) shopping experience as of Monday. The newest tech-inclined factory partner is Tersus Solutions, a Denver-based partner that has been working to close the loop on textile circularity since 2009. The North Face Renewed will utilize Tersus’ proprietary waterless cleaning technology to optimize product quality and performance, with Tersus housing all of the brand’s repair, refurbishment and reuse services. Other brands tapping the partner include Patagonia, REI, Arc’teryx, Allbirds and Eileen Fisher.
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The North Face is joining the Archive bandwagon for its resale endeavor, which has already supported brands like M.M.LaFleur, Filippa K, Dagne Dover and Oscar de la Renta in their pre-loved purveying.
Archive is a resale technology company that drastically cuts overhead by operating peer-to-peer, customized resale marketplace solutions for brands. Under Archive, the Renewed customer experience is said to be “upleveled” on ease of transaction. While the Renewed marketplace is not yet available, consumers will be able to choose from two forms of payback, either store credit for 100 percent of the purchase price or cash back for 70 percent of the purchase price. Only The North Face products will be available to be sold on The North Face Renewed resale marketplace.
Previously, The North Face worked with The Renewal Workshop for its upcycling endeavors.
“We’re grateful to The Renewal Workshop for their partnership over the past four years, but we’re excited about new opportunities and potential for impact as we transition partners and evolve the program,” Nick Thomas, senior manager of new business models for The North Face, told WWD. “Tersus’ expertise coupled with their location, only eight miles from The North Face headquarters in Denver, Colorado, allows the brand to closely collaborate and innovate to find new ways to keep gear in circulation. Adding Archive as a digital partner will also allow us to set up our own digital resale marketplace. Eventually, consumers will be able to buy and sell secondhand items both from The North Face, and directly from other consumers through the website.”
Thomas expressed excitement over the future of Renewed, as the brand continues to deepen its circular programs and sustainable product initiatives. The fall 2022 collection is one example of that, with the pieces in the collection made with 75 percent or more recycled or organic fabrics, in addition to being designed for disassembly.
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