3 Sustainable Fashion Brands who Help Us Save the Rainforest

Krista Greenaway

Krista Greenaway

Sustainability in fashion
photo credit: mstrust.org.uk

With clothing waste at all-time highs and consumers demanding more than ever for the brands they buy from to be sustainable, an era of sustainable fashion brands is forming. Brands are not gaining kudos for dealing with climate change though but are also finding better profitability. No better examples can be found than 3 of our recent tribe members, Blackwhitedenim, Ilk and Ernie, and Walk London who are all working with us to save and protect rainforests whilst improving their online sales. 

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The fashion sector has a duty to deal with sustainability

With clothing waste slowly forming mountains in every refuse area across our nations, sustainability in fashion has never been more prevalent. Binned clothing, CO2 emissions, and forgotten frocks are just a few of the critical aspects which plague the retail industry while sustainable fashion statistics tell us that globally an estimated 92 million tonnes of textiles waste is created each year. That being said, with fast fashion brands mass producing quicker than the eye can see, a conscious effort from consumers to reverse the effects of momentous waste is finally starting to become an achievable mission.

Here are 3 sustainable fashion brands tackling that waste:

Blackwhitedenim

Luxury high-end fashion and sustainability tend to clash like red and pink in the wardrobe however Blackwhitedenim is the boutique company that set out to change this. Encouraging their customers that fashion is a ‘Buy Now, Keep Forever’ kind of notion.  A brand that is showing that it is easy to follow their guidance when contemplating how to make more ethical clothing purchases.

Black White Denim with Joanna Davies at Alderley Rd., Wilmslow 23-02-15
photo credit: Archant

From baby shower brainstorms to making sustainable fashion, well, fashionable, Blackwhitedenim founder Jo Davies is more than aware of the issues the fashion industry is facing. Working not only with One Tribe,  Jo and her team also focus on several sustainable fashion campaigns that are set to make waves in the retail sector over the next few years.

BWD faces compeition but . . . 

Competing with the likes of Kenzo, Adidas, and Asos. Sure, jazzy, in your face campaigns are great but Blackwhitedenim knows that starting small is the real secret to producing the biggest, most successful changes. BWD directly combats the ever-growing mountains of clothing waste through a number of in-store initiatives that include reusable and biodegradable bags, a recycling scheme for customers’ pre-loved clothing as well as recycling bins in and outside shop fronts. There are even fairtrade friendly refreshments for their wholesome shoppers.

So where do we come in? Each product Blackwhitedenim sells generates a micro-donation to the One Tribe Global team which is then transferred to a verified rainforest protection project. What is even more promising is that this small-scale purchase travels further than your initial transaction deal. 

Each purchase contributes to the protection of rainforest terrain and more trees mean more CO2 is dispersed amongst the atmosphere, directly regulating and reducing climate change for the foreseeable future. So far together, One Tribe and BWD have saved up to 45,000 trees and we plan on quadrupling those efforts soon.

Ilk and Ernie

Based in Brighton UK, Ilk and Ernie set out to make sustainability the forefront of their retail empire. The team innovatively uses surplus fabric leftover from other fashion brands’ supply chains turning them into trendy pieces that empower women and make them feel the best versions of themselves. Every season they purchase, recycle and reusable fabrics, ultimately reducing greenhouse emissions and millions of litres of water used to produce fabrics worldwide.

Ilk and Ernie - Sustainable Fashion range
photo credit: ilkandernie.com

But it doesn’t end there…

Being a sustainable and ethical fashion brand has its challenges. Ilk and Ernie are conscious of this feat with founder Jessica McCleave having worked for fast fashion retailers at the start of her career. Aware that around 35% of materials in the supply chain end up as waste before even reaching consumers was just the first hurdle to overcome for the brand. Every season the group travels to India and spends weeks scavenging the markets for cast-off fabrics. They then recycle and reuse these disposed of fabrics transforming them into the clothes you see online. As a result, fabric waste is minimised meaningless pile up in the landfills and less toxic gases entering our atmosphere.

One of the key benefits when we work with a brand as passionate as Ilk and Ernie is that we can track how our two missions align. Having only been working together for a short period of time during the brand’s initial growth stage, we have saved over 4,000 trees, 17,000 square metres of land, and 11.05 tonnes of CO2 stored per year.

Walk London

When we talk about sustainable fashion we don’t just talk about clothing. We stretch as far as shoes and accessories when it comes to implicating the most expansive impact possible. Walk London sprouted its roots back in 2013 starting as a humble family-run business. Spreading the word of sustainability to a global community, and recently creating sustainable footwear pieces out of Nappa leather.

This is just the beginning of Walk London’s accomplishments in diversifying the footwear game and with donations of sales aiding the One Tribe mission, we aim to keep making strides with Walk London in making positive, ecological change. Walk London is one of the first brands to support our mission to combine the world of sustainable fashion with saving our rainforest communities. With each purchase made online with them, 25 trees will be saved, expanding our efforts to protect indigenous land which in the long run will give back rights to the 220 communities living in the area.

Image of a pair of Walk London shoes being tied
photo credit: walklondonshoes.com

Changing the world is only made possible by our One Tribe partners 

At One Tribe we are proud to say that we share the spotlight with such proactive companies and so far together, we have saved up to 50,000 acres of landscape across the Peruvian rainforest. Not to mention that with the amazing support of like-minded customers regularly purchasing through their shops. Such customers are more willing to sign-up to news and campaigns, more likely to return at no cost to the brand, and more likely to purchase and with a greater share of wallet, when the products are linked directly to One Tribe and the conservation logos/branding. 

And with good reason. More than two-thirds of respondents in a survey conducted by CGS found that respondents consider sustainability when making a purchase and are willing to pay more for sustainable products. Having read a number of similar studies and worked with Tribe members, the statistic holds true in the fashion space, fashion brands with ethical credentials, and strong environmental partnerships securing better interest, lower marketing costs and higher profits per transaction.  

Ready to start considering your business’s environmental impact? 

Are you running a fashion brand that needs to start considering its environmental impact? Or perhaps you are some of the ways there and need a bit more support? Any fashion brand can become climate positive, not only connecting their shops and business to conservation but also helping their teams with content and campaign advice to promote those credentials to their audience and communities. Feel free to check in with our blogs regularly for business and conservation news, and sign up your site to help your customers shop sustainably today.

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