I took a stroll down the King’s Road today, to organise a shopping itinerary for a client. Obviously, I’ll try and mix in as many Slow fashion brands or pieces as possible into a shopping consultation, so I was keeping my eyes open for anything in this area today. I am glad to report I did find a little something to show that sustainable fashion really is (slowly, and no pun intended) infiltrating the high street.
First of all, I popped into Hoss Intropia. Hoss is a Spanish brand with 3 stores in major London areas (Sloane Square, Regent Street, Covent Garden) and does have a sustainable direction. You can read more about their Corporate Social Responsibility here. They have recently launched a limited edition collection, in collaboration with Spanish organisation Fabrics For Freedom, whose aim is to “raise awareness of the importance of responsible textile consumption, promoting ecological and natural textile fibers, supporting and encouraging the making from social projects and / or sustainable as a tool for social transformation”. More info about the World Selection here, and a couple of snaps from the Sloane Square boutique:
Moving further down the road, I found out italian brand Stefanel have finally opened a standalone store in London. I don’t have precise information about the yarns they use (the brand is famous for its beautiful knitwear) or where they produce, but I had recently read about their eco cashmere collection, and I was happy to find it on display in the shop.
I also took a quick snap at the Muji window. The whole theme was addressed to back-to-uni students, so it’s nice to see they are targeting a young and not rich market and introducing the idea that organic cotton can be ‘everyday’ and affordable. (Muji also have a well developed sustainability policy, and have used organic cotton and reclaimed yarn regularly in their collections.)
I didn’t manage to take any more pictures, but there are two more brands with stores on the King’s Road worth mentioning.
The first one is Timberland, which did have their Earthkeepers line advertised in the window – and is a generally very committed and forward company when it comes to sustainability.
The other is Monsoon, full members of the Ethical Trading Initiative. They produce their L.O.V.E. collection, a blend of contemporary design with Indian hand crafts and organic fabrics, evoking memories of Monsoon’s strong ethnic heritage, made from recycled saris, tie&dying, bandini and hand embroidery – and have sponsored Estethica since its start. A few days from London’s Fashion Week, this is worth a mention: looking forward to seeing their new line at Somerset House on Friday!
