We aim to minimise the impact that we have on our beloved Earth. Acknowledging that nobody is perfect and sometimes compromises need to be made, our aim is to continue to look for ways to improve our practices.
The collection
Timeless design and endless fun is our mission. We offer a small collection in which you can choose from a few tops, bottoms and colours. All can be mixed and matched to fit your needs. Additionally, we work with small quantities. We want to grow organically and therefore will not carry a lot of stock for each item. For future collections or new releases we will make sure that these are also compatible with our existing line. We don't do old or new collections. We make them timeless.
Materials used
Our Chapter I collection is made from nylon and polyester that is recycled from plastic waste. Read more about it in this article. We do not use any animal-derived materials in our products.
The metal parts used in the Sassy top (clip, wires and rings) are not yet recycled. We are currently exploring how we can improve this. The metal is made from zinc alloy and all items are electroplated. This causes the atoms on the exterior of the metal to stay sharp & bright & will not pit or rust when in contact with chlorine or salt. Research by Jeffrey Venezuala et. al (2020) concludes that "zinc alloys are promising biodegradable metals due to their desirable corrosion characteristics and good biocompatibility.* The metal colour we use in the top is nontoxic.
Dyeing process
Huntsman Eco Dyes are used for the 3 colours of our Chapter I collection. These dyes are OEKO-TEX® & GOTS Certified.
Packaging
We reuse the packaging used by our manufacturer. The items are packed by our manufacturer into 100% biodegradable bags made from Cassava starch that decomposes in one day in contact with water or when discarded into any landfill. Additionally, when sending an order to a customer, we use our own recycled and reusable packaging. We collect old or broken kites and create bags suitable for shipping and reusable as a bikini bag after shipping.
Read more about our collection project Shake off your stuff.
Shipping
Transportation is inevitable. However, there are ways to minimise it. Below we explain how we've done it and how we aim to do it from now on.
From suppliers to us
As many other startup companies may experience the same challenge, we struggled finding a sustainable and ethical manufacturer for our bikinis. Eventually we found Swimwear Bali and decided to work with them on our first collection. Although they manufacture responsibly, the environmental cost of transportation is relatively high. The same goes for the material and dye used. Unifi - the company behind REPREVE - and Huntsman Dyes are both located in the United States. For future collections we are looking into fabrics and manufacturers within the European Union.
From us to consumers
Research has found that delivery to and from service points - or pick-up points - may reduce up to 33% of CO2 emissions in transportation. That is why we offer this option for free. Furthermore, we always drop off our packages at a service point by foot, longboard or bicycle. More information about delivery can be found in this article. Furthermore, we currently focus on the countries closest-by: inside the European Union.
From consumers to us
By offering services such as booking an appointment to ask for the right size and colour, we aim to minimise the need for consumers to return something. You can find our appointment service here. In case of returns, we want to motivate customers to reuse our packaging. In the future we want to be able to offer a repair service and be able to offer customers the possibility to return their bikini once they've decided to discard it. Read more about our take on returns here.
Measuring CO2 emissions
Up until this stage we are not able to measure the CO2 emissions from our business yet. As we have only started in 2021, this is something we want to work towards. Currently we focus on doing things the best way we can to offer consumers sustainable products at a fair price.