What does sustainability in fashion mean?
It refers to the industry’s effect on the environment and its ability to maintain balance and avoid depleting the world’s resources. Since fashion is, by definition, all about the novelty of new design, full sustainability is something of a contradiction in terms, but we can and should seek ways of moving closer towards it. That’s why we’re always working at reducing waste and the use of natural resources such as water, petrol and power. Yan Neo London keeps as much of its process as possible in the UK, so our carbon footprint is minimal. We also use select factories abroad where we have built good relationships them. It is important to us that they share our values, transparency and ethos.
As overproduction is one of fashions biggest environmental problems with landfills full of clothing, one of the main things we focus on is smaller production runs. This not only allows us to test products and is also an effective way to avoid over-producing and wasting materials.
Being a slow fashion brand we believe in pieces that the wearer can wear again and again and incorporate into their wardrobe easily. The aim is creating stylish and chic-wear that are not designed to be trend-driven yet are timeless.
Continuously aiming to introduce sustainable fabrics in our collections each season, we also use eco-friendly tape, recycled tissue paper and recyclable boxes. But more than just textiles and products, sustainability also encompasses social responsibility, so we expect our suppliers to share our ethics about the conditions, treatment, safety and pay of their workers, and are in no way involved with sweat shops, child labour, abuse or slavery. That’s why we know all our suppliers and speak to them regularly.
We even use existing stock fabrics so that our suppliers don’t dye or create new fabrics just for us. It’s also why we specialise in timeless, luxury pieces that can be kept in the wardrobe for years and worn trans-seasonally.
While the business may not yet be perfect, Yan Neo London is as sustainable as we know how to be and, although the goal posts are constantly moving, we’ll keep working on the rest wherever and whenever we can.