Fair Threads: Fashion Students Drive Awareness for the Ethical Production of Designer Clothes

DUBAI, November 19, 2014 /PRNewswire/ --

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Two female philanthropists have set up a fashion company that seeks to promote the ethical production of clothes by being transparent about who it sources them from. Shahd AlShehail and Natalie Grillon's social enterprise, JUST (projectjust.com), aims to connect designers with ethical suppliers and ethically-minded customers.

The collapse of Rana Plaza, a commercial building in Bangladesh's Savar district that housed thousands of garment factory workers, in April 2013, served as the impetus behind the project. "Is this the price of fashion?" asks AlShehail. "Over 1,000 lives lost? Over 2,500 people injured, some permanently disfigured or disabled? And for what… cheap clothes? I couldn't stomach the fact that some of these lives had perhaps contributed to making the clothes that you, me, our friends and our families have worn."

"We realised that the both of us, in fact practically all of us, as consumers know nothing about the people and the processes involved in getting our clothing from weaver to factory to retailer. Is the material produced in an environmentally friendly manner? Are the workers responsible for our favourite T-shirt treated fairly?

"Customers can discover the stories behind their clothes by scanning the QR code on the item tag. Each item will have a brief synopsis of the materials used, the supplier it was sourced from and even the weaver. It is a wonderful way to humanise our clothing and evoke the story of the people who will benefit from your purchase.

"When a major high street designer, such as H&M, which is the world's largest buyer of organic cotton, makes a commitment to switch all their cotton to better-quality, more regulated cotton, it's a clear sign that things are changing.

"We have 50 folks on board, a mix of designers and brands, mostly in the US, but we also have brands from Spain, New Zealand, Australia and the UK. In terms of suppliers, we have 20, with more steadily coming on board.

"We believe real change happens as an accumulation of small changes made day in, day out. Regardless of who we are, every one of us engages with fashion either passively or proactively. We are working towards the day where ethical fashion choices are the norm."

Read the full article on http://vision.ae/en/articles/fair_threads