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Melanie Flintoft had to make a tough decision in 2020 when Covid-19 hit.
Main points:
- ADL Fashion Week is on this week.
- An Adelaide brand is focusing on making the clothes it sells carbon neutral.
- He worked with a fertilizer company to improve their composting capacity.
Led by seven fast fashion brands based on wholesale customers and department stores, a tough choice was made to put the company into management and sales.
But it was the beginning of something new.
“On reflection, we struggled to find our ‘why’ and our purpose in fast fashion, and we realized the dire consequences of the fast fashion industry in the few years before Covid, which proved helpful for what was to come,” Ms Flintoft said.
“We understand that the fashion industry is the second most destructive to people and the planet, and we had time to seriously consider whether we should go back.”
“As we have seen, the world did not need another trend-based contemporary fashion label. So, the question is: “What do we do now, with years of experience, this is all we know?”
They decided to change from “polyester and plastic bags, overproduction, wasteful inventory” to something else.
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Now creative director at Adelaide-based resort Wear Sunset Lover, the brand’s main goal is to have a zero-carbon footprint.
A Fashion Council of Australia report released earlier this year found that Australians buy 14.8kg of clothing each year, or 56 new items, at an average cost of $6.50 each.
Most of it ends up in the landfill, which is about 10 kg per person, per year.
Impact on landfill is a key part of Melanie Flintoft’s brand goals.
“Building a brand from the ground up means we’re looking at every aspect of what we do to make sure the clothes are as sustainable as possible, from the labels to the packaging, and at the end of their life they can easily decompose and return to nature without harm,” she said.
“Right now, I’d say we’re mostly compostable and durable, but we have challenges like some parts of our buttons and zippers.
“Many parts of a garment present more sustainability challenges than the fabric, such as stitching, lining, lining, stretch, printing, dyes, buttons and zippers.
“We are exploring the world and working with scientists and universities to help with this.
“Our goal of 100 percent compostable and sustainable luxury fashion is unique, and it has challenges, but we are determined to see it through and make it a reality.”
The label, which is showing its designs at ADL Fashion Week this week, is working with scientists to test how biodegradable the items are.
“Whatever we take from the land, we want to put back into the land so the system can continue,” Ms Flintoft said.
“We are working with scientists at Neutrog, a natural bio-fertilizer company, who are testing our fabric for compostability.
“For example, one of the fabrics is 97 percent certified organic cotton with 3 percent elastane.
“When buried in compost for six weeks, we have seen that the cotton has completely disappeared and turned into compost, but only the stretched elastane remains, which takes hundreds of years to perfect and break down.
“After seeing this, the goal was set to be clear and zero plastic.”
A spokeswoman for the Adelaide Economic Development Agency said ADL Fashion Week was an opportunity to stimulate economic activity in the city and showcase South Australia’s best talent.
“We are delighted to be able to offer South Australian designers the opportunity to showcase their incredible creativity in an iconic venue steeped in South Australian history and beyond,” the spokesperson said.
ADL Fashion Week It will replace the canceled Adelaide Fashion Festival in 2019.
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