Y.O.U Underwear is the highest-scoring fashion B Corp in the world. Since its inception, the brand has donated over 50,000 pairs of underwear, improving the lives of more than 15,000 women and girls globally.
In 2024, Y.O.U Underwear commissioned 181st Street to produce their annual impact report, a critical tool to showcase their achievements, engage stakeholders, and meet their B Corp and Fairtrade reporting requirements.
181st Street’s involvement went beyond simple report production. Acting as strategic consultants, we helped the brand set ambitious yet realistic impact targets, benchmark their progress against the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and ensure compliance with Green Claims Code standards.
Behavioural science played a central role in making the report’s impact more relatable. We reframed data into tangible outcomes, helping customers and stakeholders connect with Y.O.U’s achievements. For instance, we crafted post-purchase email sequences which revealed how each order helped improve the lives of three women or girls – fostering loyalty and advocacy and increasing sales.
isual storytelling brought the report to life with bold design, vibrant imagery and data visualisation, making it both engaging and accessible. Year-round communication assets ensured Y.O.U’s impact remained top-of-mind, creating a unified narrative aligned with customer motivations to avoid triggering the attitude/behaviour gap.
The result was a report that celebrated Y.O.U Underwear’s achievements, strengthened connections with stakeholders, and drove measurable business outcomes, setting a benchmark for purpose-driven impact reporting.
Strategic consultancy: setting and communicating goals
We began with a strategic review of Y.O.U Underwear’s sustainability initiatives to ensure their efforts were measurable, impactful, and aligned with global standards.
We helped the brand set ambitious yet realistic goals, benchmarking their impact against the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and B Corp standards, and establishing year-on-year KPI tracking to demonstrate continuous progress.
We conducted a comprehensive audit of their data to ensure compliance with the Green Claims Code.
One standout initiative was the brand’s takeback and recycling program. In 2023, Y.O.U recycled 282kg of materials. With 181st Street’s guidance, Y.O.U set a bold target to recycle or donate 563kg annually by 2027 – doubling their current efforts.
This commitment not only supports their environmental goals but also positions the brand to meet future Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) legislation.
Behavioural science: making impact relatable
Large numbers, while impressive, can feel abstract and impersonal. For instance, Y.O.U’s donation of 47,365 pairs of underwear since 2020 is difficult for audiences to visualise.
181st Street used their behavioural science expertise to reframe this data and make the brand’s impact more tangible. We highlighted that these donations had improved 15,788 lives and further broke it down: in 2023, every 10 customers supported 33 women and girls – a figure that’s relatable, akin to the size of an average school class.
This granular storytelling extended to post-purchase communications. Customers were informed that their individual orders helped improve the lives of three women or girls, a small but meaningful number that was easy to visualise and share. These messages leveraged the Peak-End Rule, ensuring customers were left with a lasting positive impression and a compelling story to pass on.
We also designed an impact calculator to help the brand turn their large impact figures into a ‘per purchase’ amount going forward.
By aligning sustainability messaging with customer values, we avoided the pitfalls of the attitude-behaviour gap, where excessive altruistic messaging can unintentionally hinder purchase intent.
Enhancing visual storytelling
While the 2022 report (which the brand had produced themselves) provided detailed content, its design lacked the engaging elements needed to fully captivate stakeholders.
For the 2023 report, 181st Street completely reimagined the visual storytelling:
- Dynamic visuals: bold typography, vibrant imagery, and real photographs of beneficiaries brought the brand’s mission to life.
- Data visualisation: we transformed raw statistics into clear, memorable infographics, ensuring stakeholders could quickly grasp key insights. Behavioural science suggests that well-designed visual data is more likely to be remembered and shared, increasing engagement.
- Brand alignment: a refined colour palette evoked trust and positivity while aligning with Y.O.U’s brand identity.
- Improved narrative flow: the 2023 report employed a more intuitive layout, guiding readers seamlessly through sections such as milestones, challenges, and future goals. This approach ensured clarity and retained attention throughout.
These design enhancements made the report not only more informative but also more engaging for a diverse audience.
Improving sales through impact messaging
By leveraging behavioural insights, 181st Street transformed the brand’s impact messaging into a compelling story:
- Psychological ownership: Customers felt they were reducing waste by participating in the recycling initiative, and could clearly see the positive impact per purchase on the brand’s mission to empower women and girls – deepening their emotional connection to the brand and allowing them to feel they made a personal contribution. (This leverages the ikea effect – behaviourally people value something more if they help to make it: research shows participants are willing to pay 63% more for something they’ve built themselves).
- Post-purchase engagement: We designed an email sequence highlighting tangible outcomes, such as how each order contributed to recycling efforts and empowering women, which are sent immediately after checkout was completed. This personalised storytelling leaves customers with a strong emotional impression, increasing loyalty and inspiring advocacy.
The results were exceptional:
- Revenue Per Recipient: £2.52
- Placed Order Rate: 2.86%
For a functional product like underwear, we wouldn’t normally expect the immediate post-purchase sequence to generate revenue. These metrics highlight the power of blending sustainability with strategic messaging to drive both engagement and sales at specific points in the customer journey. In this case, leveraging the peak-end rule to leave customers with a positive experience at the most memorable part of the journey.
Communicating impact year-round
Recognising that only a small percentage of stakeholders read full PDF impact reports, 181st Street designed a series of social media graphics and email campaigns to share Y.O.U’s achievements throughout the year.
These assets distilled key accomplishments into concise, visually appealing messages, ensuring the brand’s impact remained top-of-mind.
Previously, Y.O.U Underwear struggled with fragmented messaging around their B Corp and sustainability credentials, which diluted their story and negatively impacted their sales.
We streamlined their communications, focusing on the most relevant aspects of their impact. By aligning their messaging with customer motivations, we strengthened connections with stakeholders and avoided the risks of greenwashing.
The campaign we designed to align their product with their empowerment mission increased sales by 53%.
Communicating impact with stakeholders: a segmented approach
To share Y.O.U Underwear’s 2023 Impact Report with their audience, 181st Street designed a segmented email campaign tailored to subscribers’ purchasing behaviour. This strategy ensured that the messaging was personalised and the impact felt tangible, fostering a stronger connection and driving engagement. Messaging emphasised the number of lives improved, directly tying customer purchases to tangible outcomes.
The average open rate for the campaign (39.56%) was 51% higher than the brand’s usual open rate – and better than industry average (31.82%).
The click rate (2.17%) was 32.3% higher than the usual click rate (industry average is 1.64%), reflecting the effectiveness of personalised content.
We later went on to redesign Y.O.U’s email marketing strategy, which led to a 119.5% increase in annual revenue from email marketing.
Conclusion
The 2023 Impact Report was more than a document – it was a strategic tool that celebrated Y.O.U Underwear’s achievements, strengthened stakeholder relationships, and drove measurable business outcomes.
By combining strategic consultancy, behavioral science, and engaging design, 181st Street helped position Y.O.U Underwear as a leader in ethical fashion and a powerful force for good.
Ready to transform your impact reporting and drive measurable results for your brand?
Book a discovery call with our team today to explore how 181st Street can help you achieve your goals through purpose-driven strategy, behavioural insights, and world-class design.