Yesterday, the 22nd of April, was Earth Day, which inspired people all around the world to not only post about their thoughts on the planet and their appreciation for the beautiful nature that surrounds us, but also to reflect on the importance of fighting climate change and making a difference each day. Even with the focus of the fashion industry changing to finding more sustainable ways to create the beautiful garments we wear and make better choices with our shopping habits there’s always room for more improvement. Even though Earth Day should really be every day, today we want to honour the message of this week by highlighting the brands that we carry that are taking steps to change their processes and materials and making conscious choices with their manufacturing to ensure their products are in line with their sustainable values. 

Ecoalf

Ecoalf’s founder was awarded the Schwab Foundation’s Social Innovator of the Year 2020 for revolutionizing the fashion industry and leading the shift towards a sustainable future. For over 10 years the company has been designing their products with innovation and sustainability at the heart of each design. Ecoalf is a part of the Net Zero 2030 commitment aiming to reach zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. The company has reduced their water and energy consumption and uses materials like recycled polyester, nylon and organic cotton made from plastic from the sea, recycled garments and even recycled tires. Many of their designs have the slogan “Because there is no planet B” to spread awareness of their sustainable practices and commitment to fighting climate change. Their products are available at our Burnham Market shop or you can call us to buy.

Veja

If you’re looking for new sneakers that not only look great but are also sustainable, Veja should be your go to brand for guilt free trainer shopping. The brand was created to reconstruct the sneaker world and make one of the most common fashion items more sustainable and conscious. Veja uses materials like organic cotton, recycled plastic bottles, Amazonian wild rubber and Chromefree leather to ensure that each component of the shoe is made with high quality materials that are kind to the environment. As a company Veja takes steps to make sure their budgets are allocated in their production process, making it a more high quality and sustainable shoe, but with the same price tag as some of their competitors. The Veja trainers are also incredibly comfortable and have a wide range of different styles and colours to switch up your trainer looks. 

Pink City Prints

Pink City Prints was founded by Molly Russell, who was inspired by the craft communities of Jaipur and wanted to create a brand that would support the artisans and preserve their craft processes. Each of the brand’s styles are worked on by hand from being hand spun, printed or embroidered using traditional techniques. Each factory where the garments are made are ensured to be ethical and of the highest quality possible. As a brand, Pink City Prints is focused on supporting the traditional crafts methods while using organic materials and sustainable practices in their ethical production process.

DL1961 Premium Denim

The denim industry uses up a lot of water and harmful dyes in their processes, but DL1961 is a family-owned company that has been in the business for decades and is dedicated to making styles that are created responsibly and in the best way possible for people and the planet. The company uses recycled materials to create eco-friendly yarn for their fabrics, and construct the garments in the most optimised facility possible for water, energy and dye use to minimize harmful by-products; as well as creating a vertical supply chain, which allows the control and audit of the entire process. The average jeans take about 1500 gallons of water to produce, while DL1961 jeans only take 10; after which 98% of the water is recycled. With DL1961 you can make sure that you are not only looking great in your new jeans, but you can also feel great in your sustainably made pair. 

Flotte

Flotte is not only our go-to brand for raincoats for their cute pastel colours and prints, but also for their 100% recycled and certified fabrics. Their design and manufacturing process is surrounded by their desire to only use what already exists. Their recycled polyester fabric is made from used plastic bottles, food packaging and used clothing that is returned to the fibre state for reuse. They also ship their products by boat rather than plane to reduce their CO2 emissions. As well as using recycled materials in their garments, they also used recycled, reusable packaging that can be reused as a plant pot after you unwrap your new Flotte jacket.

Selected Femme

Selected Femme has been taking steps towards becoming more sustainable under their umbrella company, Bestseller. By creating processes with more sustainable chemical management, social labour and the use of sustainable materials, the company emphasizes the need for inclusive and holistic action on sustainability. Their goal is to use more sustainable materials each year until all their products are circular by design, as well as creating a supply chain that is ethical and works in ways that contribute to positive change through transparency. The company has also reduced the amount of water, energy and chemicals used in manufacturing their styles.

Devotion

Devotion is a Greek brand dedicated to creating contemporary styles for the modern woman with a commitment to sustainability throughout their collections. A big part of the brand’s ethos is being responsible and honest with their styles and processes. All of the brand’s collections are designed and handmade in Greece and are inspired by nature, the Greek heritage and architecture. Made from natural fabrics and hand-made details, Devotion’s vivid summer styles are a great option for your sustainable summer wardrobe.

GANNI

Even though GANNI does not yet identify as a sustainable brand, they have been taking steps to becoming more conscious with their social and environmental impact. Just in the last year, they have introduced over 30 responsible initiatives ranging from creating a rental platform and a take-back scheme to using more organic and recycled materials in their styles. GANNI has been focused on designing their products for circularity and have been very transparent about their use of materials with certified fabrics and minimizing harmful chemicals. As a company GANNI has also put in initiatives to recycle not only fabrics and materials but also the garbage in their global offices to reduce plastic waste and changed all lighting in their stores to LED lighting. GANNI has plans for multiple green projects for the next year that you can read more about on their website.