Sustainability and luxury seem to be two words that don’t fit together. However, more and more luxury fashion brands are growing to be more environmentally conscious, taking efforts to produce sustainable and ethically-made collections.
Today, a good number of luxury brands are gearing towards production and distribution processes that include a more worldly perspective on reducing their carbon footprint.
When taking sustainability into consideration, these 5 global luxury brands are at the helm of the revolution:
1. Stella McCartney
It’s impossible to talk about global luxury fashion brands without talking about Stella McCartney. The designer, who has consistently become a staple in the world’s runways defined by her cool and chic vibe, pioneered environmental consciousness by being the very first high fashion label to use sustainable materials and methods in her runway collections.
Image: Stella McCartney Facebook Page
The very first vegetarian luxury label in the world, Stella McCartney is known for using re-engineered cashmere, organic cotton, ethically-sourced wool, and recycled fabrics in her pieces. The label is also a member of the Ethical Trading Initiative, which means they are also careful in terms of their choices of suppliers, which consist of small business artisans from many parts of Europe.
Website: stellamccartney.com
Facebook: facebook.com/stellamccartney
Instagram:instagram.com/stellamccartney
Twitter: twitter.com/stellamccartney
2. Mara Hoffman
Mara Hoffman’s swimwear and womenswear line is beloved by many women all over the world. Since graduating from the Parsons School of Design in 2000, the luxury designer has always promoted mindful consumption. Today, the brand is committed to using alternative approaches to her swimwear production, utilizing only sustainable fabrics such as ECONYL and REPREVE, which are regenerated nylon fiber made from waste, as well as polyester fiber made from recycled plastic.
Image: Mara Hoffman Facebook Page
And it doesn’t end with her choice of materials, too. All her shipping, packaging, and branding use sustainable means, meeting international standards when it comes to environmental and human rights requirements.
Website: marahoffman.com
Facebook: facebook.com/officialmarahoffman
Instagram: instagram.com/marahoffman
Twitter: twitter.com/marahoffman
3. Misha Nonoo
Misha Nonoo relaunched her brand when she created her direct-to-consumer business strategy. With sustainability at the core of her luxury label, she partnered with an on-demand manufacturing company that produces each piece of her collection in 2 days from the date of order and ships the pieces directly to the consumer.
Image: Misha Nonoo Facebook Page
With this practice, the middle man and deadstock fabric is eliminated, cutting back on their carbon footprint. When everything is made to order, not only are the pieces tailor-made to suit every customer, it also removes the risk of overproduction.
Website: mishanonoo.com
Facebook: facebook.com/mishanonoo
Instagram: instagram.com/mishanonoo
Twitter: twitter.com/mishanonoo
4. G-Star Raw
G-Star Raw was established in 1989 in the Netherlands, specializing in raw denim – which is unwashed and untreated. This type of denim doesn’t use as much water, utilizes fewer chemicals, and is ultimately healthier on the environment. One of the brand’s goals is to use 100% sustainable cotton by the year 2020.
Image: G-Star RAW Facebook Page
In 2014, the brand collaborated with Bionic Yarn, a company owned by Grammy-award winning artist Pharrell Williams. They produced a collection called RAW for the Oceans, which uses denim made from recycled plastic found from the ocean. The collection was presented at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City.
Website: g-star.com
Facebook: facebook.com/gstarraw
Instagram: instagram.com/gstarraw
Twitter: twitter.com/gstarraw
5. Eileen Fisher
Known for her elegant, minimalistic, and effortless styles, Eileen Fisher is a global luxury brand that makes use of organic, recycled, and sustainable fabrics colored in natural dyes. She also utilizes old textiles and discarded garments, giving them new life by incorporating them into her collections.
Image: Eileen Fisher Facebook Page
With a social consciousness department having sustainability as one of their core values, Eileen Fisher is known to support clean air, clean water, and a healthy environment for all their workers and wildlife.
Website: eileenfisher.com
Facebook: facebook.com/eileenfisherny
Instagram: instagram.com/eileenfisherny
Twitter: twitter.com/eileenfisherny
While luxury fashion brands have always been synonymous with overconsumption, more and more of them are becoming more aware of their environmental and social impacts. With this, it is safe to say that sustainability in garment production will soon be the norm, and that’s a great, great thing for the future of fashion.
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