Fashioning exchange: neighborhood entrepreneurs converting kids’ style

Claire Severn talks to a few nearby entrepreneurs who’re seeking to make a distinction within the global of kids’ style.

There aren’t many among us who can say they don’t like an amazing good buy. It’s a natural intuition to want to get the exceptional bang for your dollar. So whilst low-cost fashion began to take over the excessive road again inside the 1990s, shoppers were of their detail. Now they may replace their wardrobes on a nearly weekly basis and, without a doubt, discard gadgets once they (quick) went out of style.

But someplace at the back of our minds, we knew it becomes too exact to be true. There had to be a flipside. However, while reviews commenced emerging about poor conditions for manufacturing facility people and environmental issues. Still, we saved on buying, trapped in a throw-away lifestyle – without a doubt, our personal purchases weren’t part of the problem?

Then came the Rana Plaza catastrophe in Bangladesh in 2013, in which over 1 hundred people died, and some other 2,500 were injured when a manufacturing facility was constructing collapsed. The international began to sit up and take notes. The human fee turned into actual; rapid style had a darkish facet.

Jump forward to 2016, and any other stunning facet to the story came to mild with the discharge of the Canadian documentary RiverBlue. This time, for Hong Kong, it became even towards domestic. That reasonably-priced denim we’d all been buying has been polluting rivers, like the Pearl River in China with chemical substances and dyes. What wasn’t pumped into the rivers remained inside the fabric, equipped for us to put on.

All in all, it makes for a pretty miserable read. However, the correct news is that the public has put a strain on the big-call manufacturers to clean up their acts. The Bangladesh Accord, which pursuits to assist prepared-made garment factories in Bangladesh grow to be – and stay – secure for tens of millions of workers, changed into introduced into impact in April 2013 and become signed with the aid of foremost enterprises consisting of H&M, Primark, and Arcadia Group.

Here in DB, we’re pretty aware of the effect people are having on this planet. We see the trash within the sea and the smog in the air, and we need things to exchange. Not best will we need a higher the following day for our kids, we want a higher nowadays.

This drive is at the back of upward thrust in moral childrenswear outlets throughout Hong Kong. In fact, as it turns out, we have got a few first-rate online options right here on our doorstep.

Healthy, sustainable socks

First up is Eureka Bamboo Socks – a DB-based eco-aware business enterprise committed to growing fashionable socks that are not simplest produced ethically and are healthful to put on.

According to co-owner and two-12 months resident, Darren Counsell’s material preference must be one of the key concerns for dad and mom while deciding on clothes for their kids.

“Much like you are aware of the meals that you consume and the water you drink, you need to be aware of apparel material – it can comprise plenty of harmful chemical compounds and pollution,” he explains. “So, try and make certain the goods that spend several time towards your kids’ pores and skin – most importantly socks and undies – are ‘fitness-friendly.’

“Eureka makes use of bamboo as its foremost material because it’s far hypoallergenic. The eco-friendly fibers are a good deal gentler on the skin than guy-made fibers, and they may also be antibacterial, antifungal, and odor resistant. Furthermore, bamboo can be 100% organically grown, so there are not any strains of insecticides. Our production companions all have the OEKO-TEX® Standard a hundred certificate – that is the quality acknowledged, independent, global certification for textiles tested for dangerous materials.”

Darren goes on to explain that bamboo is the quickest developing plant on earth – it’s without problems renewable aid, and it could face up to water shortages, requiring two-thirds less water than cotton to develop. “Importantly too, bamboo releases 30% extra oxygen into the surroundings and absorbs greater carbon dioxide than other plants, so it decreases greenhouse gases even as cleansing the air.”

Another neighborhood label leading the way for sustainable youngsters’ style is ‘Felix & mina,’ owned by Peng Chaubased mum Jun Li-Friese. Catering to girls and boys aged one to 6, the brand is named after Jun’s son, Felix, and his cousin, Mina.

Driven by way of its motto of ‘Live the instant, live with consciousness,’ the brand concept turned into dreamt up in 2002 to make stylish childrenswear. This is also safe for children and the surroundings. The variety consists of fun, functional pieces crafted from stretchy, breathable fabric in designs that attract mother and father and kids alike.

Jun says that the way the garments are produced is a key detail of Felix & mina’s ethos. “We use quite a few Turkish cotton, that is highly tender,” she says. “This guarantees that the clothes are lightweight, fast-drying, and excellent versatile. It’s additionally completely organic, which enables to avoid troubles with pores and skin allergic reactions. Ours is a rigorous production approach. All of our organic cotton series meet the European Union’s Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) rules.”

Jun says that the organic detail doesn’t imply you need to compromise on style either. “Usually materials which might be green are not very colorful, but we use natural dyes, so we are capable of providing vivid merchandise which can be nevertheless secure for the environment. We provide free delivery inside DB too, so it’s extremely good handy for DBers to shop with us.”