Fashion industry pollution is among the worst on Earth, consuming large amounts of water and chemicals during production of cotton apparel – it requires 17 teaspoons worth of toxic substances just to grow, dye and manufacture one t-shirt!
Keep a lookout for brands with clear sourcing practices and social impact reports, which demonstrate their genuine dedication to sustainability.
Behno
As consumers demand more sustainable fashion, several brands have emerged with the goal of meeting this need. One such brand is New York-based behno, which marries chic style with ethical and conscience practices such as transparent supply chains and encouraging dialogue on how fashion industry needs to adapt.
behno began as a research project initiated by founder Shivam Punjya to improve how fashion industry manufacturers approached manufacturing. When he discovered that over 90% of garment factories in India employ women making less than $1 per day as workers, he decided to establish behno and champion both top-tier craftsmanship and worker empowerment with its operating tenets known as The behno Standard.
Behno has partnered with MSA Ethos, a garment factory in rural Gujarat owned by local farmers and women, in order to bring its company ethos into action. Photographer Dan Smith and filmmaker Kent Matthews collaborated with behno in documenting MSA Ethos employees through intimate portraits taken of each employee of this factory.
behno is committed to fair labor practices and works closely with local artisans in India to source materials for its bags and shoes, such as the elegant twill bag designed by Ashley Austin of MUUSE that was produced at a women’s cooperative in Rajasthan, India.
Behno’s designs emphasize long-term pieces rather than seasonal fashion trends to encourage slow fashion and reduce its environmental footprint. Furthermore, Behno utilizes recycled and renewable materials while employing energy-saving machinery in its factory to minimize its ecological footprint. Furthermore, custom capsule RTW collections may be offered upon request to support and promote ethical techniques used by artisan groups.
Behno is actively engaged with social and philanthropic initiatives, such as its partnership with the National Down Syndrome Society to design an entire collection benefitting them, which features pieces like Nini (named after Punjya’s sister who has Down syndrome) handbag.
Sleeper
Sustainable efforts aren’t just good for the planet; they’re also great for the people behind our clothes. Garment workers are some of the lowest paid professionals worldwide (even right here at home), so ensuring that these professionals receive fair wages will go a long way towards eliminating sweatshop conditions, child labor, and unsafe working environments.
Sleeper takes proactive steps to minimize their carbon footprint by producing as few clothes as they can sell, using linen sacks as packaging for maximum sustainability, eliminating additional plastic wrap or boxes from use, while at the same time using fabric scraps for their reusable hair bands and belts; they even donate any excess material back to local children learning how to sew! Additionally, Sleeper operates with zero waste by recycling fabric scraps to create products like these and by giving any extra materials to local schools teaching kids sewing classes.
Feather Party Pajamas made sustainable clothing both stylish and desirable when they introduced feather party pajamas into fashion, yet made entirely by artisans in Kyiv, Ukraine sewing studios on an individual basis for each piece made for each customer – each piece includes an authentic notecard signed by their maker! They prioritize low impact materials like linen, EcoVero rayon viscose and recycled polyester; by producing only what’s ordered they can avoid excess production reducing waste significantly.
Parade, another beloved brand, creates its quirky pieces using sustainably-sourced cotton and recycled textiles sourced from responsible sources; furthermore, Parade is the only apparel company which tracks every product’s environmental, social and circular impact throughout its life cycle – from raw material sourcing through garment production and distribution. This information can be easily viewed through Parade’s streamlined sustainable attribute filter so shoppers can shop responsibly.
Mother of Pearl is another fashion label that prioritizes sustainability: an ethical label offering everything from kimonos and sweaters to dresses in its limited-run collections. Style influencer Chiwaya describes Cynthia Vincent designs as being among the most sustainable in her wardrobe; these pieces tend to get far more wear than anything else!
Christy Dawn
Christy Dawn is an ethical fashion brand dedicated to sustainable practices. They use organic or natural dyes, reuse deadstock fabric from other fashion houses that would otherwise be trashed, partner with farmers using regenerative farming techniques – helping heal the earth at the same time – at fair prices, in exchange for which Christy Dawn pays them fair wages. Christy Dawn offers its first Farm-to-Closet collection consisting of un-dyed cotton maxi dresses as well as block printed minis made up of 50% regenerative cotton and peace silk that produced without harming the silkworm population.
Christy Baskauskas grew up in a small California town, developing her old-school style and an awareness that fashion contributed to environmental degradation. When Christy Dawn launched, its aim was to offer women who sought sustainable fashion vintage-inspired vintage timeless looks similar to her childhood memories while at the same time being more conscious of its environmental footprint than other brands; but Christy Dawn went further by also celebrating diversity via its advertisements with Black models prominently displayed across its products’ marketing efforts.
Christy Dawn stands out as an ethical brand with regards to animal ethics by not using exotic animal skin, hair, fur or angora in its designs – which would both violate ethical considerations and harm the planet. Additionally, this brand prioritizes human rights by paying its makers living wages while offering safe working environments.
Christy Dawn is on a mission to go beyond being just another eco-conscious brand when it comes to sustainability. They’re cultivating organic cotton on their own farm using regenerative farming practices in order to restore soil health and reconnect farmers to the land, as well as producing fruits and vegetables for their employees to eat!
This brand provides transparent pricing information, so consumers can see the full production costs for every item purchased and make more informed decisions when making ethical clothing purchases. Furthermore, they work with various suppliers including ethical factories as well as POC-owned businesses – offering consumers more choices.
Eileen Fisher
Eileen Fisher never anticipated her fashion brand becoming one of the world’s most sustainable. Yet over the past decade, Eileen Fisher has transformed her basics-meets-business casual collection into one of the leading eco-conscious producers – using only natural fabrics and fighting unethical labor practices – providing an example for other companies looking to create environmentally responsible clothing.
Fisher started her journey toward sustainability by cutting back on fabric usage for her collections. Her team discovered that using more fabrics generated more waste; conversely, using less energy in dyeing and washing led to a more durable collection that could be worn multiple times over time. Furthermore, they integrated garment take-back initiatives into their business model; this initiative allows customers to return unwanted garments that can then be reused into future designs while helping reduce waste through reuse of materials.
Since 2009, this brand has successfully recycled more than one million items through their clothing take-back program. Returned garments are washed, sorted and used as fabric in new products from their line; more than half of their fabric actually comes from these recycled garments – helping reduce wasteful use of resources while contributing towards more circular production processes.
As part of its efforts to reduce environmental impact, this company has also worked on increasing worker well-being and improving factory conditions. Their dedication to sustainability led them to be certified B-Corp. Furthermore, in 2015 they announced their VISION 2020 plan with ambitious social and environmental targets for internal operations.
To achieve these goals, the company has reduced their use of chemicals and water during its manufacturing processes, increased use of organic cotton and linen fabric and prioritized non-toxic dyes and azo-free fabrics for fabrics. Furthermore, they partnered with Ellen MacArthur Foundation in reducing textile waste.