Rapha has published its 2025 impact report, with headlines including the brand's increased use of recycled polyester in its garments, for the first time using more recycled than virgin fibres in 2024. It aims to increase that figure to 80% by 2030.
Rapha already offers crash repairs and has launched a trade-in programme, Rapha ReRoute, for its clothing in the US, which it plans to extend to the UK, then more countries in Europe.
Other notable advances include the use of renewable energy to power its offices and 59% of its 22 clubhouses worldwide.
Lower impact supply chain
It’s been pointed out previously that, although cycling produces few emissions, the whole supply chain, and end-of-life disposal of bikes and cycling paraphernalia, is far from green.
The annual Climate Action Pulse Check published by Shift Cycling Culture, a pan-industry body, reports that 85% of its members consider reduction of climate impact as part of their product design and development.
But according to Rapha CEO, Fran Millar: “We have become the first cycling apparel brand to set a Science Based Target, committing to reduce greenhouse gas emissions across our operations and supply chain. This means working closely with our suppliers to cut emissions, extending the life of our products through circularity initiatives, and increasing our use of sustainable materials.”
At the top level, Rapha’s climate actions are targeting an 88% reduction in its own greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, with a further 45% reduction from its supply chain, which is its main source of emissions. It says it has already achieved a 35.6% reduction in the former and a 24% reduction in the latter since 2022, although with more products produced in 2024, its emissions have increased slightly from 2023.
Rapha says it’s also aiming to reduce waste from excess fabrics to 0.5% of its total and reduce the environmental impact of its packaging, both for transport and at individual item level. It says this is minimal, though, relative to its product production, which it calculates produced 11,035 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2024, 98% of its total.
Alongside the above headlines, Rapha has set itself a range of targets for its impact, covering everything from supplier social and environmental performance to the removal of PFC forever chemicals from its clothes’ DWR coatings and the reduction in water consumption in production.
“We see sustainability as more than reducing our carbon footprint. It’s about protecting the rights of the people who make our products, and safeguarding the landscapes we ride through. It’s about changing the way we live, and opening cycling up to more people from every walk of life. It’s about leaving no one behind,” says Millar.
Among its other initiatives, Rapha has taken steps to eliminate its gender pay gap. In 2018, this stood at 18%, while by 2024, women on average earned 2.3% more than men at Rapha.
A further initiative aims to ensure all workers at the (non-Rapha owned) factories where its products are put together, principally in Vietnam, China, Portugal and Indonesia, receive a living wage and have representation mechanisms.
You can read the full Environmental Impact Report on Rapha’s site. It’s part of Rapha’s new focus under Millar, which has also seen the brand move away from its seven years of kitting out the EF Education pro team to new partnerships with USA Cycling and the East African Team Amani.
