The question
Repair is one of the highest-impact sustainability levers in fashion, yet most customers never use it. We researched consumer behaviour around clothing repair to understand where the intention breaks down.
Care & Repair Consulting
HUMANOID
Dutch fashion label HUMANOID wanted to extend the life of the clothes it sells. We looked at whether a care and repair service could work — and what would actually make customers use it.
Consumer researchSustainabilityBusiness modelling
Client
HUMANOID — Netherlands
Period
Apr – Jun 2026
Role
Consumer research & service concept
The presentation
Open full screen →
Care & repair
The case study
Approach
- Consumer research into repair habits, willingness to pay and perceived effort.
- Consultation with local tailors to map capacity, turnaround and cost.
- Consumer experiments to validate the concept before recommending it.
Recommendation
Rather than building an in-house atelier, we proposed a partner-based model connecting HUMANOID customers with vetted external tailors — lower fixed cost for the brand, faster local turnaround for the customer, and a credible circular story attached to each garment.
“The project sharpened how I test an idea: a sustainability service only earns its place once real customers show they will use it.”
Bianca Balica — takeaway