Levi Strauss & Co. and Marks & Spencer have launched a joint program to move fashion suppliers onto renewable electricity, announced at New York Climate Week in September 2026. The initiative, called the Fashion Renewable Collaborative (FRC), aims to coordinate brand engagement and hands-on implementation support for suppliers that have so far struggled to adopt clean power.

The program's delivery partner is SE Advisory Services, the consulting practice of Schneider Electric. The French energy management group brings scale: it currently manages more than 20 active supply chain decarbonization initiatives globally, involving over 3,100 supplier companies. The FRC builds on earlier engagement efforts that registered nearly 500 supplier facilities.

For sourcing and supply-chain teams, the commercial logic is straightforward. Textile processing — fabric mills and dye houses in particular — accounts for more than half of the apparel industry's emissions, according to the Apparel Impact Institute. The World Resources Institute and the Apparel Impact Institute jointly estimate that shifting manufacturing to renewable electricity represents roughly two-thirds of the sector's total emissions-reduction potential.

So far, supplier adoption has lagged. Market barriers, limited resources and fragmented engagement by individual brands have slowed uptake, according to the announcement. The FRC's answer is to pool brand demand and provide structured procurement support rather than leaving each factory to negotiate alone.

Suppliers joining the program receive digital education modules powered by Resource Advisor+, an AI-native energy and sustainability intelligence platform from Schneider Electric. The collaborative also offers market guidance and direct support in assessing and procuring renewable electricity. The solution set spans power purchase agreements (PPAs), energy attribute certificates, on-site renewable generation and energy storage — a menu that covers everything from contract structures to capital projects on factory premises.

The cost question — who pays for on-site generation or storage — remains the practical test for supplier participation. The announcement does not specify financial mechanisms, and much will depend on how PPA and certificate procurement is structured in each market.

Jennifer DuBuisson, Senior Director of Sustainability at Levi Strauss & Co., framed the initiative as a shift in approach. "It's become abundantly clear that the most effective way forward on emissions reduction is working in partnership with suppliers," she said in a statement.

Both brands come to the program with existing commitments. M&S has pledged to become a net zero business across its value chain by 2040 under its Plan A sustainability program. Levi Strauss & Co. reported 2025 net revenues of $6.3 billion.

The collaborative is currently an invitation, not a finished structure: it is actively recruiting additional fashion brands as sponsors and members to expand reach among participating suppliers. How many facilities ultimately convert education modules into signed PPAs or installed solar capacity will be the metric to watch, and the program's organizers say broader brand participation is the key variable in scaling supplier uptake.