As an eco-friendly brand, we want to bring awareness and appreciation to those trademarks who are as concerned with leaving the right kind of planet to our children as we are, guided by ethical values and a strong will to make a change.
A rising amount of brands, both the hidden gems as well as the high street veterans, are moving towards ever more stringent, self-set sustainability and transparency objectives within their supply chains. This trend emerged as a response to customers’ increasing interest in becoming more conscious of their consumerism, but also because of the extensive questioning of the fashion industry’s moral compass.
In recent years, an increasing number of brands have understood and addressed the environmental impact of fast fashion practices, and the range of sustainable clothing has grown accordingly - no more oat-coloured jumpers and sweatpants, ladies and gentlemen, we are now getting spoiled with an entire ethical rainbow! And although we are aware of the very long journey that lies ahead, the fashion industry is on the verge of diving into a greener era. This global eco-transformation calls for an ear to the ground as our excitement is on a safe scale up!
At BLANC we simply love the art and creativity behind fashion and believe that it is one of the most powerful forms of personal expression. However, as the perception of clothing has changed through the filter of fast fashion, the items we buy generally only last a season. Due to poor manufacturing, it is easy to end up with clothes that tatter and tear after just a few wears. As a result of this, 300 000 tonnes of clothing are disposed of in the UK alone each year - something we cannot overlook.
As an eco-friendly brand, we want to bring awareness and appreciation to those trademarks who are as concerned with leaving the right kind of planet to our children as we are - guided by ethical values and a strong will to make a change.
Without scrimping on style and comfort, and with this list as your guide, BLANC wants to inspire your future shopping rounds to go from fast to slow:
1. Thought
As the brand’s name suggests, the Thought team are thoughtful in every aspect of their business, bringing conscious supply chains and naturally sourced fabrics. Their eco-friendly and organic clothing is made from fabrics such as cotton, bamboo, and hemp. Offering more than just basics, they provide apparel ranging from nightwear to dresses to knitwear.
2. People Tree
It would be quite inconsiderate of us to exclude Fair Trade pioneers, People Tree. Since award-winning Safia Minney founded the company over three decades ago, their core mission has remained unchanged. Social justice and sustainability are strictly intertwined throughout the manufacturing process to provide high quality, long-lasting pieces, with contemporary, playful designs. With several certifications hanging on their wall, they have a strong commitment to using sustainable and recently innovated fabrics such as Lyocell, GOTS certified dyed and washed denim, as well as organic cotton, brushed velvet. People Tree is certainly not afraid of bringing modernisation into the sustainable fashion range.
3. Starseeds
Get ready to start running, because this brand is worth moving for! Starseeds provides ethically made and sustainable activewear and call themselves a ‘slow fashion brand’. With creators inspired by a shared love of yoga and sustainability, it was no wonder that this brand would promote well-being and produce nothing but eco-friendly designs. Fabrics they use include organic cotton, ramie and recycled blends and even their clothing tags are woven from silky-touch bamboo tape - now that’s dedication!
4. Eileen Fisher
Luxury designer Eileen Fisher declares that she is using her business as a movement for positive change. Cherished for using recycled fabrics, organic fibres, and natural dyes in the production, Eileen Fisher has also created her very own signature fabric: Silk Georgette Crepe. This refined textile is dyed without hazardous chemicals in the world’s only dyehouse to produce bluesign® certified silks. They have also implemented a take-back program called ‘Renew’, where customers can bring or send their worn clothes back to the stores in order for someone else to enjoy it. Pieces can be overdyed, mended and when clothes can no longer be worn, they are turned into a one of a kind garment - nothing shall go to waste!
5. MUD Jeans
MUD Jeans is a denim brand on a mission, to say the least. They have created a circular consumer model to lower jeans' impact on the environment. One pair of regular blue jeans takes approximately 6,800 litres of water to produce. Luckily, MUD Jeans has found a solution to reuse the already existing ones. Besides buying a new pair of jeans in an old-fashioned way, customers can choose to lease MUD Jeans monthly. After one year, customers have three options: you can swap your jeans for a new pair and continue leasing for another year, keep the jeans and wear them as long as you like or end the relationship by returning the jeans to MUD and receiving a voucher for a new purchase. This is a hugely innovative and exciting concept! It goes without saying that it’s a deal you wouldn’t want to miss out on!
6. Mara Hoffman
The aim of Mara Hoffman is to design and manufacture their apparel more sustainably to reduce their impact and to generate awareness among their customers. From their collections, you can expect hemp, organic cotton, linen, ethical alpaca wool, and fibrous plant-based materials sourced through Lenzing Group. Their vision relies on transparency as they share both setbacks and prosperities keeping an open and honest conversation with their customers at all times.
7. Beyond Retro
On the hunt for vintage treasures? Here is your one-stop-shop, with a sustainable use-what-you-have approach. Reduce, reuse and reclaim is the holy grail of Beyond Retro as their objective is to rejuvenate 10 billion items - great achievements call for ambitious goals! With their cycle of vintage, upcycled LABEL collection and an increasing collection of sustainably sourced new products, Beyond Retro constantly innovates new concepts and revitalises their methods, contributing to a much-needed circular economy.
Who said sustainable fashion couldn’t be stylish? We hope that you are inspired to reroute your shopping and pay these stores a visit - we guarantee that it will be worth it. An important note to add is that although these brands help transform the perception the world holds on fashion, remember that taking good care of what your wardrobe already consists of is your most sustainable option.
