Sustainability: Is it Just Another Buzz Word?

As the fashion world strives to be innovative and the concern with traceability increases, the word sustainability has inadvertently become a “buzz word”.

Being a sustainable brand ourselves, it is essential to educate our community about this concept and our sustainable efforts as it is a core value of our company.

As with many concepts and ideas, there are many people that jump on the bandwagon either to seem as if they are in the know or simply to just fit in. I’ve come to realize throughout several conversations, the actual definition of sustainability is unclear to many. People relate it to being eco-friendly or expensive. While in some cases it can be, that is definitely not true overall.

Sustainability: Quality of not being harmful to the environment or deleting natural resources and thereby supporting long term ecological balance.

Being 100% sustainable is very unlikely…and that’s okay. Of course, that would be an amazing feat, but it’s not realistic to create our pieces not using water, electricity or equipment. These are all things we need to create our daph. designs and run our company. (Yes, according to the definition in order to be 100% sustainable the use of resources like water, electricity, etc. is a no no.)

As with much of what I do, sometimes I have to sway away from what some may see as traditional concepts to clear up my own understanding… so I have come up with what sustainability means to daph..

Being a sustainable company means that we strive to make a positive impact on our daph. community, the communities where our pieces are made and sold and strive to reduce our impact on the environment by responsibly collecting and using resources to their fullest capacity.

How do we accomplish this?

Our daph. community: We create quality goods for our community to incorporate into their daily life. Each piece is handcrafted with the goal of versatility and timeless wear. We want you to love our designs and wear them as long as they are able to serve your needs. We use color tones that are basic in any ensemble and source material that meet our strict durability standards. We believe in slow fashion; providing quality, small batch pieces each unique in craftsmanship, but all durable and authentic.

Our communities, both in Peru and St. Louis: We give back a portion of every purchase to the Peruvian community. This has allowed us to positively impact the community where our pieces are made. Working with a family-owned business that supports fair pay practices, creates jobs in the community and encourages the showcasing of Peruvian tannery and craftsmanship. We are also an active member in the St. Louis community, sponsoring female creative entrepreneurial efforts, working with local charities and building the startup ecosystem.

Our environment:Leaving a minimal impact on the environment while using its resources responsibly is one of our main goals. We strive to leave no waste when it comes to animal resources. We design smaller pieces made from the leftover material of our larger designs. Our tannery practices have been meticulously reviewed to be in line with environmental regulations and at times, have been stopped and altered to ensure waste is appropriately disposed of. The collection process for our baby alpaca fur is beneficial to the animal and responsibly designed to ensure minimal discomfort to the animal and ensuring its safety in the summer months.

Although we will never be 100% sustainable, I am proud of what we have been able to accomplish and our dedication to sustainability efforts, a core value of our brand. I hope this post has shed light on some of these efforts. If they haven’t, feel free to shoot us an email and we’d be happy to chat!