Picture by Emily for raquette SS22 lookbook
Sustainability is more than just the use of eco-friendly materials and packaging. It is an on-going process that requires our continuous thought on how to improve and the commitment to take actions
I have always been a bit at personal war with sustainability and the word sustainability. Much too often it is used for the sake of marketing, for the sake of giving consumers tranquility to make the right choice when buying. I mean … come on … how sustainable possibly are we as a fashion/ lifestyle brand? In the end we all need to sell and want to sell as much as possible to be profitable and to live a comfortable life
When setting up raquette it was a dual conflict that I needed to solve. One, to find professionally a way to do things better than of most of what I have experienced prior. Second, to live a more sustainable personal life with my family
My starting point always was and still is CONSUMPTION. We all consume too much of what we really need, and we all buy too much emotionally instead of rationally. One has a weakness for clothes, one for furniture, another for books, … being honest we all know that we can live with much less, driving smaller cars, living in smaller houses, wearing fewer clothes, and getting by with probably a max of 3 pairs of shoes
However, we are human and as humans we have our goods and bads. I doubt, there will ever come the time when we do not consume. So, my hope is eventually to consumer better and more consciously, which as a brand, challenges me to reconsider my offer. To offer product I think make sense, to question the amount of newness really needed, to make recommendations on longer and maximized use
As a mini brand, there is only so much I can do one step at a time. Sometimes I wish to be quicker. Often when I wish to be quicker, I make mistakes. Sometimes I get off my line and must correct after. Sometimes I have exactly clear what is needed, but then have my hands bound from restrictions concerning production capacities, minimum order quantities and the list goes on. Long story short, we are by no means perfect with raquette, but we are committed to improve as we grow
Likewise, sustainability, I would like to share my thoughts on the topic as well as where we are at with raquette on a continuous basis
To finish the first part of this discourse I would like to remind though that sustainability should not only be referred to in terms of product and process. I strongly believe more than anything else, it is about the personal mindset, the relationship we maintain with others, the way we run our business as a whole … whether we honestly mean to do things or just pretend
Your feedback please: jenn@raquette.eu