The Business of Fashion
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
To subscribe to the BoF Podcast, please follow this link.
PARIS, France — The story behind sustainable sneaker brand Veja begins in 2004, with two French 20-somethings who had "nothing to do with fashion."
Sébastien Kopp and François-Ghislain Morillion, who had known each other since high school, were both working in US cities before leaving their jobs in banking to pursue projects they found more fulfilling. "We didn't like to be a small piece of a big thing that was heading nowhere," says Kopp.
The duo went on to found an NGO that audited French companies' supply chains for their attention to environmental and socioeconomic justice, but quickly became frustrated with the lack of genuine, sustained action being taken by the big corporations they worked with.
Recognising the power companies have to effect the material change, but also keen to not make sustainability an afterthought, at just 25 years old they decided create a line of responsibly sourced and produced sneakers.
But why sneakers? "It was a product we grew up with, a product of our generation," says Kopp, but most of all "it was a product we loved." As well as being a cultural signifier, he notes, the humble sneaker also symbolises the injustice and exploitation of an increasingly globalised garment industry.
Launched in March 2005, Veja's sell-out first collection of 4,500 pairs of sneakers were the result of months-long trips to Brazil, where everything from cotton and rubber to the manufacturing itself was sourced. In 2018, Veja counted 1 million shoe sales, but the last 15 years of growth are the result of careful expansion contingent on fair-trade principles maintained with its suppliers.
"This rhythm [of growth] was human, that way you can avoid a lot of obstacles," says Kopp, citing his youth when Veja was in its nascent stages. "Now I'm 40 years old and I'm still not sure I'm ready."
Subscribe to BoF Professional for unlimited access to BoF articles, plus exclusive benefits for members. For a limited time, enjoy a 25 percent discount on the first year of an annual membership, exclusively for podcast listeners. Simply, click here: http://bit.ly/2KoRRBH, select the Annual Package and use code PODCAST2019 at the checkout.
To contact The Business of Fashion with comments, questions, or speaker ideas please e-mail podcast@businessoffashion.com.
Big brands like H&M Group, Inditex and Nike are turning to biomass like wood pellets and agricultural waste in a bid to get the world’s dirtiest fossil fuel out of energy-intensive manufacturing processes. Climate groups say it’s not any better.
With global temperatures reaching new highs and time running out for brands to deliver on their environmental commitments, here’s what fashion leaders need to know ahead of the start of the UN’s annual climate summit in Dubai Thursday.
A growing body of consumer surveys suggests interest in sustainable consumption is reaching a tipping point. Those surveys are deeply flawed, writes Kenneth P. Pucker.
Vestiaire Collective will now block 30 brands including Gap, H&M and Zara from its platform, adding to an earlier ban on Boohoo and other low-priced online retailers. It’s an eco-conscious spin on a broader push upmarket by secondhand companies.