How do you grow a brand sustainably?
As a brand, our intention is to act sustainably and responsibly, to minimise and ultimately eliminate waste from our processes. This is something we live by, it’s very important to us that we implement this thinking into every part of our brand.
How do you grow a brand sustainably? This was the question we asked ourselves repeatedly In 2021, and still ask everyday. Like everyone we love the buzz of getting something new! The challenge is to create a new system for fashion where ‘Newness’ uses as few resources as possible and is kinder to the planet. As Summer was approaching, we wanted to add a pop of colour to the Taylor Yates collection, but how could we achieve this in a sustainable way? We began our research into different routes we could take in order to achieve beautiful bright coloured bags, worthy of the Taylor Yates branding.
When we discovered the treasure trove that is known as the warehouse, we came across ample amounts of wonderful leather, dyed every colour under the sun. Leather that had previously been bought and dyed by other brands but then not used. We were excited and moved to repurpose the leather into our own collection, new re:claimed collection. This gave us the opportunity to bring something a little different, to experiment, to use the existing resources so the time, effort and care put into producing them didn’t go to waste.
We have re:claimed these resources to give them a beautiful purpose.
Using resources that already existed meant that Taylor Yates were avoiding adding to the growing waste problem that currently exists in the fashion industry. Through a carbon literacy training programme we recently participated in, we Learnt that making a re:claimed bag produces only a 10th of the carbon it takes to make a new bag. That only equates to 10kg! This information has really inspired us to grow our re:claimed collections and eventually introduce ‘Re:serve. Re:fresh. Re:deem’ for our core collection handbags, allowing us to take more responsibility and shifting our business model towards a more circular and sustainable one.
Taking re:claimed to the next step, we decided to limit our waste even more by using the leftover leather to produce card holders and notebooks. Leather, like all natural materials, can have subtle flaws making each product unique and person in their own way. Not only this but as they are limited collections, some of the colours will never be repeated again so customers purchasing them have an exclusive piece eg number 3 of 5 etc.
The card holders have 3 card slots, allowing them to be big enough to be used for multiple cards or cash, but also neat and the perfect size for a night out or evenings on holidays. The notebooks are perfect for everyday use, whether you treat it as a weekly diary, write down recipes or use it as a travel journal, its A5 size is the perfect fit for all personal uses.
Bringing new, bright and bold colours to Taylor Yates is something we find so exciting and we love to see your reactions to the different shades we introduce. This is only the beginning for us and we can’t wait to see what new colours we discover in the warehouse in the coming months. Watch this space or join our TY insiders list to be in the know.