Eco Fashion World

SEBOLA

Inspired by the Winter Olympics, we would like to highlight some great eco sportswear! Sportswear these days may be a triumph in biodynamic engendering and baffling terminology but where eco credentials are concerned the industry has a long way to go. Thankfully however there’s no need to contemplate a life of jogging barefoot as strong brands do exist that combine high quality functional design with environmentalism, affordability and style. So as the trim silhouettes of the Olympic athletes inspire us to resurrect our near abandoned exercise regimes, the time has come to green up our kit.

PATAGONIA

One of the first brands to lead on commitments to environmental issues was outdoor lifestyle company Patagonia. Starting by using solely organic cotton in their clothing range, they now offer the Common Thread Garment Recycling scheme which takes back worn out cotton, polyester and nylon clothing to be reworked into new garments, thus reducing the demand for new raw materials.

ICEBREAKER

New Zealand based Icebreaker , which provides an alternative to petroleum-based sportswear by using ethically sourced merino wool in their extensive collection, also has a scheme which enables you to trace the origin of your garments. Simply enter the BarCode on your purchase into their website and chart its journey from farm, to factory, to shop.

While most sportswear often is quite plain, French brand Sebola, laureated with the Ethical Fashion Award 2008, offers funky prints on high tech running shirts.

TRETORN

While there’s no shortage of thoroughly green and fairly traded yoga wear and the like from a wide selection of brands at www.acensiononline.com, sourcing an all round ethical trainer remains something of a challenge. The best thing to do is pick the issue that matters to you most. New Balance offers all the high tech jargon but over 70% of its shoes are manufactured in British factories.

Brooks has launched a trainer with the first ever bio-degradable midsole and laces made from recycled water bottles while Paris based Veja, which sources fairly out of Brazil, utilises organic cotton and natural rubber in their range as well as chrome-free leather versions that are tanned with organic compounds only. Newcomer on the market is Canadian based Oliberte   that produces its sneakers in Ethiopia. If your problem is with animal products, Swedish based company Tretorn specialises in extremely comfortable rubber trainers that are popping up all over the place in New York.

By far my favourite sporting gear however comes from surf/skater brand howies® . Like all the companies mentioned their commitment is undoubtedly to the environment and quality over hype and fast fashions, but their Hand-Me-Down range goes one step further. Guaranteed to last for ten years, it flies in the face of the conventional buy-more-and-faster business model (jackets that last a decade don’t exactly lead to high turnovers and large profit margins). But in doing so howies® really brings home what eco sportswear should mean to the consumer.

Comments (2)

Subscribe to this comment's feed

Show/Hide comments

Show/Hide comment form