La Redoute popularises ethical fashion

By giving its Ethical Fashion Award to the Ethos brand during the 2007 Ethical Fashion Show, La Redoute continues in its role as a brisge between ethical fashion and a large public.

As part of its sustainable development strategy, La Redoute has taken on the mission of promoting ethical fashion and of supporting providers who are working in this direction. The company already sells its own certified organic collections under the brand Max Havelaar. And in 2006, in line with this policy, La Redoute created its Ethical fashion Award (“Tackling ethical fashion with La Redoute”) which rewards and promotes the work of a committed designer. This award, given annually during the Ethical Fashion Show, is intended to offer a springboard for designers and reinforce the brand’s partnerships with ethical suppliers.

 

For the next season, La Redoute has chosen to put forward Ethos, a young brand with a thoroughgoing approach. Ethos took a decision from the outset to work only with materials certified as organic by the Skal  label and with suppliers who are active members of fair trade. The brand is itself a member of the French fair trade body (PFCE), and goes even further with the aid of an NGO in assisting small dress-making communities who wish to commit themselves to organic production and/or respect the principles of fair trade.

 

In addition, Ethos has set itself the goal of popularising ethical fashion among consumers. Although the last four years have seen the brand developing along sustainable lines with a viable business model which meets demanding social and environmental criteria, today it needs a helping hand to spread the word in order to be able to achieve its ambitions. In the words of its founder "the hardest thing is still finding the means to reach the widest public and not just the ecologists who are already aware ".

 

With this award under its belt, Ethos can now benefit from La Redoute's role as consumer guide, as the designer will be able to sell its exclusive collection for La Redoute during the 2008/2009 Fall Winter season on the brand’s various French and international websites. In this way its organic and fair trade collection will be one click away for 13 million customers.

 

In 2006, the prize went to two designers: Tudo Bom? and Judith Condor-Vidal. The first of these developed two collections, one for the 2007/2008 Fall Winter catalogue which customers can peruse on the company's website and the other sold exclusively on line. As for Judith Condor-Vidal, she has been presenting her pieces on laredoute.fr since October 2007.

www.ethosbio.net
www.laredoute.fr
___________________________________________
(1) Skal is an independent Dutch label which guarantees the absence of pesticides or chemical treatment in the making of the cotton and the use of dye which do not contain heavy metals.