Responding to heightened concerns raised in recent years about the wasteful nightmare that has been the childrenswear industry, brands have started to adapt to more sustainable and ethical models. Looking towards the resale market, rental and subscription platforms, extendable and customisable features, brands and businesses are exploring key trends from the sustainable fashion space and are successfully integrating them into kidswear.
Behind the helm of many of these brands, we often find a responsible parent steering the way, contributing their own experience of child-rearing to the melting pot of discussions. The result? An entrepreneurial space that is based around community, knowledge sharing, genuine concern for the world around us fuelled by a desire to improve it for the next generation.
For this Masterclass, we've tapped into these networks and asked leading kidswear brands to join us for insightful conversations around their ethical and sustainable approaches, the challenges posed by the children's market and what's next for the industry as a whole.
In this Masterclass, you will learn:
- About the ethical and sustainable childrenswear landscape today, and the focus areas and challenges of leading brands
- About the core concerns around sustainability specific to the childrenswear industry
- How rental models are disrupting the industry
- About the challenges of children's sizing, extendable features and body shapes
- How to create sustainable everyday essentials for babies at home to reduce waste
- Different methods for engaging young people with issues around climate change and sustainable fashion
- About designing and marketing gender-neutral clothing
- How to address customer feedback and create a community with your brand
- Alternative body-friendly fabrics you can use, including colour-grown cotton
- Safety requirements, legislation, labelling and design considerations for childrenswear
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Implementing an end-to-end service to improve wellbeing and reduce consumption
with Ali El IdrissiSummary
From the outside, UpChoose looks like a simple baby clothing rental platform, but delve a little deeper and you'll soon see that its Founder set out to do more than offer a convenient and cost-effective way of accessing premium sustainable brands.
We spoke to UpChoose Founder and CEO, Ali El Idrissi, about his vision of an end-to-end-service which stretches far beyond organic babygrows and booties and challenges traditional consumer habits, improving well-being and making more space for key life moments.
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Creating Newborn and Baby Everyday Essentials with Offset Warehouse
with Charlie Bradley RossSummary
A side hustle or creative business usually comes from a place of experience; noticing that there is a gap in the market, or something you use doesn't quite function as well as it could, or there are more suitable material options available. For this reason we have brought you essential baby and maternity items you can make yourself. It may just be the inspiration required to take your idea to the next level.
In this video, Charlie Bradley Ross takes you through the items she made for herself and soon-to-come baby. Struggling to find certain items in the shop due to the Covid-19 pandemic, or finding the queues made it unrealistic (even online), Charlie raided her fabric offcut box. The beauty of these items is that they can be made from leftovers, and yet also due to their simplicity can pave the way to exploring ethical and sustainable fabrics without much pattern cutting or sewing experience.
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Safety Requirements and Design Considerations for Children's Clothing
with Angela DonatiSummary
Children's clothing designers have a duty of care, to ensure that garments are safe for children to wear as they play, sleep and explore their environment. The EU General Product Safety Directive ensures high standards in children's clothing are being met - but what exactly do designers and manufacturers need to be aware of when creating their collections?
With more than 25 years experience, in this Lesson Angela Donati, Softlines Technical Lead at UL, a global safety science company, shares her in-depth knowledge of safety standards for the children's clothing industry.
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Designing Fairtrade and Organic Cotton Childrenswear That Lasts
with Josie BraggSummary
Long-lasting childrenswear was swiftly becoming something of an oxymoron, but thanks to brands like Little Green Radicals, it's now possible to find quality, practical and fun clothing for kids and babies. In this video, with Little Green Radicals' designer of ten years, Josie Bragg, we find out how exactly they create 'forever' clothes for fast-growing and active kids.
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Regulations And Directives For Toys, Childrenswear And UV Accessories
with Sarah BlackhamSummary
Product technologist Sarah Blackham follows up her part one Introduction to Regulations and Directives with this more in-depth look at regulations and directives you should be aware of when producing toys, childrenswear or UV accessories and swimwear, along with your manufacturing obligations.
Thumbnail image: www.ispo.com
Interviews
How Children's Clothing Can Increase Engagement In Conscious Behaviour
Monday Jun 1st, 2020
Little Hands Design: Engaging Young People in Sustainable Fashion
Monday Jun 1st, 2020
Infantium Victoria: Changing The Mindset Around Sustainable And Ethical Fashion
Monday Jun 1st, 2020
The Little Loop: Kids Clothing Rental
Monday Jun 1st, 2020
Beeboobuzz: Gender-Neutral Children's Clothing
Monday Jun 1st, 2020
Jake + Maya [Kids]: Clothes that Grow with Kids
Monday Jun 1st, 2020
Infantium Victoria: Avant-Garde Organic And Vegan Certified Childrenswear
Monday Feb 1st, 2021
Follow on Masterclasses:
Ethical Fabrics And Why We Need To Use Them
Additional Reading
Top Sustainability Textile Trade Shows All Designers Should Visit
Monday Feb 14th, 2022
Future Fabrics Expo 2021: Biodiversity, Natural Fibres and Regenerative Textiles
Sunday Jul 11th, 2021
How to create positive impact with natural materials
Monday Apr 12th, 2021
Spring Summer 2022 Colour And Material Trends: Premiére Vision
Monday Feb 22nd, 2021
What Wellbeing Strategies Can You Implement To Be An Agile Business?
Thursday Dec 17th, 2020
How Fashion Retail Has Survived The Covid-19 Pandemic
Thursday Dec 3rd, 2020
The Little Hands Design Summer Camp
Tuesday Oct 20th, 2020
What is Regenerative Agriculture?
Thursday Jul 2nd, 2020
Childrenswear Brands With Successful Sustainable Business Models
Monday Jun 15th, 2020
Building A Healthy And Happy Work Culture After Coronavirus
Thursday Jun 11th, 2020