Sustainable Brands We're Loving

We’ve talked about brands that are greenwashing and brands we don’t love so much because of their unsustainable practices, so now it’s time to talk about sustainable retail brands that we are loving! Sustainable and stylish, what more could you ask for!

With greenwashing being a prevalent issue in the fashion industry and companies misleading consumers into believing their practices are more environmentally sound that they actually, it can be hard to differentiate between brands that are being honest and brands that are greenwashing. We talked about ways to pick out brands that are greenwashing in a previous post so be sure to check that out! Now we are going to switch to looking at some of our favourite sustainable brands to get you started in your journey of becoming sustainably styled!

1. Patagonia

The first brand we are going that we are going to look at is Patagonia. On top of the fact that Patagonia uses sustainable materials in their products, one of the main reasons we love them is their commitment to help customers repair their clothing instead of having to buy new items, which cuts down on waste! Another great service that Patagonia offers is their WornWear site that resells old and repurposed Patagonia clothing and gear at a fraction of the price, in an attempt to get people to buy second hand.

The three pillars that Patagonia prides themselves on and how they have committed to make a change is through their materials and environmental programs (where they have constructed environmental and animal welfare responsibility programs to guide how they make their products/material), social responsibility programs (that outline what they’re doing to guarantee their products are manufactured under safe, fair, legal and humane working conditions) and where they do business (through sharing information pertaining to their facilitates and suppliers throughout the supply chain, so consumers know exactly where and how they clothes they are purchasing were made).

Below are a few quotes that show Patagonia’s progress:

“100% of out electricity needs in the US were met with renewable electricity.”

“87% of our line uses recycled materials.”

“We repaired 101,706 garments in 2020.”

“100% of the virgin cotton in our clothes is grown organically.”

Patagonia's iconic Synchilla Snap-T Pullover is a staple item and one that keeps you both warm and stylish. You can purchase this item directly from their website or you can buy earlier versions second hand from their WornWear site instead! Whichever option you choose, you can feel good about your choice to care about the planet.

2. Levi's

With jeans requiring 1,800 gallons of water to produce the cotton required to make one pair of jeans, it can be hard to be sustainable when buying jeans. Besides the fact that Levi jeans are great quality and super comfy, one of the main reasons we love Levi is because of their commitment to sustainability. Since Levi introduced Water<Less in 2011, they have saved 4.2 billion liters of water. Further, 75% of the cotton Levi uses to produce their jeans comes from sustainable sources and 65% of their products are manufactured in factories that utilize their Worker Well-being programs.

If you are looking for a timeless jacket addition to your wardrobe, look no further then the Shacket Trucker Jacket. This is a great alternative to fast fashion jackets and the closest alternative to a thrifted jean jacket.

3. Tentree

Another one of our favourite sustainable brands is Tentree. Not only does tentree use the most sustainable materials in the world for the production of the products, they also plant 10 trees for every purchase. To date, tentree has planted 66,342,864 trees and is becoming the most environmentally sustainable apparel brand on the planet! Tentrees mission stems from how to better our planet. They plant trees because “it is one of the best ways to create a more sustainable future.”

Tentree prides themselves on making apparel with the smaller footprint possible and creating more circular supply chains. For example, a sweatshirt from tentree uses approximately 75% less water to produce than the other sweatshirts laying around in your closet.

With the rise of lounge wear and the newest trend being comfortable clothing, grab yourself a pair of the bestselling Bamone Sweatpants. These cute and comfortable joggers are ethically and sustainably made and sourced so you can feel good about relaxing in this sweat fleece.

4. Veja

Looking at shoes, one of our favourite footwear brands is Veja. Veja is reinventing the sneaker game by, “standing up with one foot is design and the other in social responsibility.” Veja buys certified organic cotton from farmers associations in brazil and Peru and Amazonia rubber that is purchased directly from cooperatives formed by families of rubber tappers. Both the cotton and rubber are bought with the goal of restoring balance in global trade. Veja signs 1-year contracts with producers and they set a market-decorrelated price to facilitate more equitable and dignified commercial transactions. These are just a few of the things Veja is doing to ensure ethical, environmentally sound, sustainable practices. I would highly recommend checking out their site if you are interested in learning more about the backstory to their sustainable shoes.

The Campo Chromefree White Emeraude Black Sneakers are the perfect staple to add to your closet. These shoes can be dressed up or down and can easily be styled with any outfit in any season as a chic and classic sustainable accessory.

References

Levi's. (n.d.). We're on a Mission to Change the Clothing Industry. For Good. Retrieved November 20, 2021, from https://www.levi.com/CA/en_CA/features/sustainability.

Patagonia. (n.d.). Environmental & Social Footprint. Retrieved November 20, 2021, from https://www.patagonia.com/our-footprint/.

tentree CA. (n.d.). About. Retrieved November 20, 2021, from https://www.tentree.ca/pages/about.

VEJA. (n.d.). Project. Retrieved November 20, 2021, from https://project.veja-store.com/en/intro/.