Seasalt Cornwall embeds sustainability in every business

At Cornish fashion brand Seasalt, sustainability is not a separate project. According to the company's ESG director Christian Jermyn, it is woven into the fabric of every commercial decision. He told reporters that when he joined the retailer, he found the business did not need to have sustainability 'bolted on'.

Jermyn says his biggest initial challenge was identifying how deeply integrated responsible practices already were. Areas like ethical fabric sourcing, circularity, and energy procurement were part of the company's standard operational rhythm. "It took me a long time to identify that the reason why it wasn’t spoken about was because it wasn’t something else," Jermyn notes. "It was already integrated."

A culture of embedded responsibility

This level of assimilation means environmental and social governance (ESG) factors are considered by teams across the business from the very beginning of any process. Jermyn explains that his role is less about persuading colleagues and more about helping the business assess future risks and strategic opportunities. He points to long-standing renewable energy contracts and operational waste work as examples of decisions made company-wide.

"I have people coming to me often saying, ‘By the way, we’ve done this,’" he says. Their conversations are already happening. Jermyn claims this integrated approach is unique. "I’ve never seen it in another brand," he states.

Realistic action on materials and supply chains

While acknowledging Seasalt is "not perfect," Jermyn says the brand's strategy is rooted in trialing new ideas and learning from them. He highlights the company's fabric sourcing as a key example. The brand uses a high proportion of responsibly sourced materials.

Seasalt certified its organic cotton in 2005. Jermyn admits that move likely made little commercial sense at the time. However, it built a closer, more resilient supply chain that has since "paid dividends." He is proudest that the company are "realists, but we’re showing the way."

The UK fashion sector's circularity challenge

Looking beyond his own company, Jermyn believes the wider UK fashion industry has the appetite to improve. He identifies Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) for Textiles as a potential big change. Seasalt already works with the Salvation Army Trading Company on donating terminal stock and is exploring other circularity schemes.

Jermyn stresses that individual brand initiatives will not be enough. "If we’re really serious about circularity in the UK, we need to see proper investment in tech," he argues. He warns that without the right infrastructure and support, the industry risks falling back into linear models, despite having the talent and emerging technologies to lead.

The case for standardized reporting

Jermyn also calls for a more consistent approach to sustainability reporting across fashion and textiles, particularly for complex Scope 3 emissions. He says suppliers are burdened by brands asking for similar data in different formats. "I wouldn’t want to be a supplier right now," he reveals, citing hundreds or thousands of reporting requests.

The solution, he suggests, is a sector-wide standard template. This would reduce administrative duplication and allow retailers and suppliers to focus on practical improvements. For Seasalt, the core message is that sustainability supports commercial growth, leading to better products and stronger supplier relationships.