Sonzai Studios.
As our readers know, the topic of sustainability is at the forefront of our minds at A+V. This broad and complex subject requires experts to help us understand what it all means and inform us how to make positive changes. To that end, we contacted fashion sustainability expert Celeste Tesoriero and had an in-depth discussion about the state of the industry, what to avoid, and what steps we can take towards more environmentally responsible weddings.
Sonzai Studios has been a sustainability consultancy for the past few years, but you have been in the fashion industry for over 13 years. Could you tell us about your experience and what led you to sustainability?
My career as a designer is what led me down the sustainability path. Directly experiencing the effect the industry has on people and the planet instigated the journey whilst I had my own label. I began researching and started making switches within my production methods - dying with plants, using organic cotton, introducing new fabrications such as bamboo and reducing my use of plastic. I got to the point where I was hindering progress because of an internal battle sparked by my new passion. For ethical, environmental and societal reasons, I was rejecting consumerism, yet my brand was pushing a commercial product. As a palate cleanse after closing my brand, I jumped across to London to see what the top of the fashion-food-chain was doing in the sustainability space, and that’s where things grew for me in this area.
Sustainability is a rising trend however the actual process of producing a sustainable garment is not well known. Could you please walk us through how sustainable production differs from the typical process?
Firstly, there is no agreed meaning of what sustainable production is (here lies the cause for confusion and greenwashing). You will find a product can be labelled as sustainable if the brand just has one initiative - using recycled plastic for example. But I would describe sustainable production as producing in a way that does not take more from the earth than it gives back (and could therefore sustain the natural resources used). Not an easy feat! In general terms, a more sustainable product should take into consideration the three pillars of sustainability: ethics, environment and society. Brands tend to lean more heavily onto one of these, for example, Stella McCartney's main message is veganism- so her brand’s initiatives are driven toward ethical and environmental manufacturing.
To get into the nitty gritty, let’s use an organic cotton tee shirt as an example. First, the brand should be ensuring the item is produced in a way that has minimum impact (short supply chains, made in a factory using green energy etc), and is made in a way that is ethical for the whole supply chain of people involved in making that tee shirt. Then, they should counterbalance the impact of the parts that are out of a brands control; farming the organic cotton, processing and spinning the cotton into yarn, dying the fabric etc.
I describe sustainability as a rabbit hole because once you get started there is always more to learn and more to do. This excites and drives me but can be overwhelming for brands trying to create a sustainable product.
Non-sustainable production is where there is no measurement or reduction of environmental impact, no regulations in place to guarantee ethical and safe work, no end-of-life strategy for the pieces being made and no future goals. Typically, producing this way means the brand gets to skip many steps prioritising the bottom line. It’s easier, more available and quicker to produce.
Given that the minimum sustainability standards for the fashion industry are inadequate the responsibility falls on the buyer to research the brand’s procurement and production process. What advice would you give to our readers for their research?
There is no possible way to know everything, so firstly give yourself a break! You don’t need to be an expert to shop more sustainably. When researching, look beyond those shiny statistics and fancy words on their page …Do they have a Sustainability Roadmap? Do they get expert advice? Are they planning to do better (because everyone can always be doing better)? They should have a section on their website that explains their initiatives. Have a read through and see if it aligns with your own values. This is key, ‘cause no brand can do it all - trust me. So, if societal sustainability is what you’re into, buy from brands that are giving to charity or partnered with companies supporting minorities or people in need. Many retailers now have ‘sustainable’ sections you can shop by, which is great, but again make sure you read on the page what this means before buying. Avoid terms that have empty meanings like eco, natural and conscious.
We recently read Greta Thunberg’s interview in Vogue Scandinavia. Thunberg highlights the damage caused by the fashion industry and discusses the negative impacts to the planet as well as very problematic societal effects. She demands a “system change” and states that "you cannot mass produce fashion or consume "sustainably" as the world is shaped today.”
I agree we need a system change. The industry has needed an overhaul for a really long time. We have been coasting along where nothing was ‘bad enough to make a change’. Rana Plaza changed that. The effects of the pandemic also helped shift things into new terrain, but it’s still not enough. Fashion became a money-maker at the same time we were marketed into believing fashion was a throw-away item. Our grandparents had their ‘Sunday best’ as Clare Press describes in her book “Wardrobe Crisis'', but our closets are overflowing with stuff we don’t even wear. Companies have been mindlessly over producing, pushing billions of products no-one even asked for, without thinking of the future. Future planning in sustainability is a very important one, because we don’t just want brands to focus on today, we want them to take responsibility for the natural resources taken, the people making the items, and the safe disposal of the product when it can no longer be used (and someone mass producing plastic fast fashion needs serious infrastructure to be capable of this). I do not agree you cannot consume sustainably. Instead, the rate you consume, and what you consume matters most. Unless we are all going off-grid for the rest of our days we are going to need to buy things, so empowering people to make better choices is seriously important and should not be dismissed. One of the biggest challenges the industry is facing is greenwashing. Our best hope to overcome this is through policy and education. In my workshops for staff, my ‘Sustainability 101’ for example, I help educate teams to not only understand what greenwashing is, but introduce some really simple rules to avoid it in brand strategy, communication and language.
The bridal industry is known for being wasteful. At A+V we are trying to reimagine bridal from a socially ethical and environmentally sustainable viewpoint. For example, wearing a dress only once is far from sustainable. Could you give us some principles which you apply to the fashion industry that could also apply to bridal?
Take responsibility for the end-of-life strategy for everything you buy for your wedding. Be it the dress, decorations, invitations - ask yourself if there is a more sustainable option? Is it necessary?
Use less. Can the invitations be online to avoid printing and the CO2 emissions of deliveries?
Consolidate. Best practice in sustainability is multi-purpose items. In the wedding, can you have things that tick a few boxes?
Buy a dress from natural, organic materials that can break-down at their end-of-life.
If available, buy a dress made from dead-stock/up-cycled materials.
Avoid polyester, or fabrications that will pollute the planet for hundreds of years.
Avoid embellishments that will make the dress less likely to be able to on-sell and break-down at its end-of-life.
Less is more. The less fabric you use in your dress, the less CO2 and natural resources you are using.
Know the supply chain. Ask where the fabric comes from, and buy locally-made dresses if possible. Note: Australia does not produce fabric, so all fabric is imported.
The most sustainable option is nothing new. Second-hand is best and hire if possible.
