Sustainability
The fashion industry plays a huge part in the climate crisis. The best way to truly be sustainable would be to not buy anything at all - everything we buy has an impact on the planet.
The next best thing to not buying anything at all would be buying secondhand or investing in quality items that you know you will use, that will last a long time and from a brand that is responsible ethically and sustainably.
What steps do I take to make Surf Coo sustainable?
Surf Coo fleeces are made to last. We take extra time and care while sewing to make sure our stitches are neat and that the stitches are finished properly. As we sew every fleece from start to finish, we can oversee that every detail is done carefully and correctly. For example, when we finish our overlocking, we knot the threads by hand and neatly trim them back. If you look at the inside of many garments today, you will find the overlocking left unknotted and with long, loose threads hanging out, ready to come undone after one wash.
To increase the longevity of my fleeces, I am happy to help with repairs. When customers have emailed me about puppy-bite holes or campfire spark holes in their fleeces, I am happy to send them pieces of fleece in the same colour so they can apply a patch over the hole. For one customer, I sent a fleece and lining piece, and they made a pouch pocket which beautifully covered their spark hole. It's my goal for every fleece to last as long as possible!
I use quality materials. Our fleece comes from Taiwan and my Mum has been using it for 20 years to make the highest quality kids clothing for her own fleece brand. She can attest to the beautiful feel of the fleece, the quality and the longevity of it as she has been using the fleece for decades.
My packaging is plastic free and minimal to keep it as sustainable as possible. The mailing boxes and thank you slips are made from card and are recyclable. To make the packaging special I wrap wool around the jumper, which I’m afraid can’t be recycled. However it can be reused, I would love it if you would save the wool and reuse it perhaps to decorate a future gift.
I don’t keep any stock and instead only sew an item when I get an order. This is called made to order and it is a great way to reduce waste. Many fast fashion brands intentionally overproduce garments and then throw everything that they don’t sell into landfill.
To minimise waste, I often use fabric scraps to make patchwork blankets. It’s a great way to make something practical out of fabric that was too small for anything else and would have otherwise ended up in landfill.
What steps do I take to make Surf Coo ethical?
Everyone who sews for Surf Coo (myself, my Mum, Sister-in-law and Husband) are paid fair wages and work in pleasant and safe working conditions. This is a direct contrast to most factories in, for example developing countries, where the conditions are not safe for working in, are overcrowded, have poor fire safety regulations, have lots of particles in the air, are dangerous and have unfair wages.
Everyone who sews for Surf Coo (myself, my Mum, Sister-in-law and Husband) are paid fair wages and work in pleasant and safe working conditions. This is a direct contrast to most factories in, for example developing countries, where the conditions are not safe for working in, are overcrowded, have poor fire safety regulations, have lots of particles in the air, are dangerous and have unfair wages.
What fabric do you use?
Where I can, I use recycled fleece. Currently the only colours I can get in recycled are cobalt, black, red, pink and brown. This year I've been weighing up the impact of every type of fabric. The specific polyester I’m using is fantastic quality, lasts a long time and washes and dries incredibly well. However I don’t like that polyester isn’t biodegradable and releases microfibres. I am currently experimenting with other fabrics which have more sustainable properties.
For a while I considered using wool as it is breathable and biodegradable. However, ethically, I don’t like the suffering of the animals involved. Additionally, wool has to be hand washed, takes a long time to dry and is very expensive. I estimate I would have to add £50 to my current fleece prices, which would push the fleeces out of the price range for many of my customers.
Recently I’ve been looking at cotton fleece. Like wool, cotton fleece is breathable and biodegradable. In terms of sustainability, cotton uses a lot of land, water and pesticides which isn’t ideal however it is arguably more sustainable than polyester. I’m currently experimenting with different cotton fleece fabrics and hope to phase-in cotton fleeces and phase-out polyester fleeces soon. Finding a cotton fleece available in small wholesale quantities and at a price that won't push up my fleece prices by more than £30 is taking longer than I originally anticipated, however I'm getting there!
What can customers do after buying a Surf Coo fleece to help reduce it’s carbon footprint?
The largest part of a garments carbon footprint comes from after it is purchased. Tumble drying in particular is terrible for the planet. I recommend air drying your fleeces, especially because fleece dries so quickly. I also recommend washing your fleeces as little as possible. Depending on what you’re up to of course, you can wash your fleece as little as once every few weeks.
What are your resources for education on sustainability?
While sewing your fleeces I often listen to podcasts, particularly sustainability podcasts. My favourites are “Wardrobe Crisis with Clare Press” and “What on Earth: The sustainable podcast”.
I also read the book “Let my people go surfing” by the Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard, which was a great resource on how to build a sustainable business.
