During my conversation
with Mara Hoffman executives, I became very knowledgeable about the brand and their
sustainability efforts to the fashion industry. In 2015, Mara Hoffman decided
to become sustainable because she could not move forward with her brand knowing
the damage the fashion industry has on the environment. The company made three
drastic changes, number one: becoming sustainable, number two: becoming ecstatic
about the change, and number three: becoming more contracted. Before discussing what efforts the company
makes towards the fashion industry, we discussed what renewable resources they
were using to be sustainable within their office. The Mara Hoffman office is
comprised of scrap metal doors, old grammar school building equipment (chairs,
railings, etc.), old recycled wood as the frame from the mirrors in the
showroom, and live plants covering the door entrances to the conference room.
In addition to these assets the company also assigns weekly sustainable challenges
such as taking the stairs instead of the elevator to save electricity.
Going into how Mara
Hoffman practices sustainability within the production of their merchandise was
a very detailed conversation. We spoke with the creative director as she told
us about the sustainable detail breakdown of the sourcing, production, shipping
and packaging of their merchandise.
Within the sourcing
segment of their cycle, they described how they only use a small group of
approved sustainable materials such as linen, hemp, organic cotton. They use
recycled nylon and polyester to develop their swimsuits due to the durability of
the fabric. Instead of producing plastic, non-sustainable, buttons, Mara
Hoffman uses Corozo buttons. Corozo buttons are made out of the Tagua nut
located in South America. I was very inspired when I heard the company uses
Corozo buttons because that is an extra step Mara Hoffman is doing to be more
sustainable whereas other companies aren’t, and I think that is amazing!
In the production sector
of their merchandising cycle, Mara Hoffman ensures that all manufacturing
materials are coming from the correct locations and state the correct locations
on the labels. The fabrics that are made in India, China and Peru are all
producing the merchandise in the factory as well. This will ensure that the
percentage of travel burning fossil fuels is cut in half. Mara Hoffman believes
that it is easier to produce merchandise in the factory of the country that is
creating the fabric. Factories outside NYC are larger, more organized, and more
robust. Due to the fact that this company is still up incoming, they have grown
with several factories as well. This has grown their relationship with these
factories to a personal bond, so that they trust the factory will contribute to
Mara Hoffman’s sustainable efforts. Some of the issues some companies have with
their factories is due to the lack of that close, trustworthy relationship that
Mara Hoffman has. Mara Hoffman tries to use certified approved dyes. The
merchandise and dyes go through a chemical testing to ensure all of the dyes
used as certified and approved.
The Shipping and
Packaging segment of Mara Hoffman has been one that is still being worked on
thoroughly. The shipping and packaging units are made out of material that when
the consumer can decompose at home of in an industrial compost environment where
it will start to decompose in a sustainable way. The company also was aware
that most people don’t have the ability to decompose the units like this so the
company suggested to send it back and they will reuse of decompose it
themselves. Their swimsuits are shipped in compostable packaging bags, they
requested recycled paper packaging, eliminated hangers to limit the size of shipment
packages and be flat packed.
Labor rules are another
sustainable effort Mara Hoffman addresses with their factories. Due to their
personal bond relationship, the company addresses several guidelines they check
during their visits. Some of the questions the Mara Hoffman team asks are “is
there a working bathroom?” “do the workers work overtime?” “do the workers get
payed if they work overtime?” “how is the fire safety?” All of these questions depend
on the location of the factories due to the countries specific rules and
regulations.
Mara Hoffman measures the
success of their brand by the amount of returns the receive, the energy usage
of their company and production of merchandise, and what new stores are they in
that they’re excited about? The future goals are Mara Hoffman is to increase
their sustainability within climate action plan and sustainability strategy, developing
more sustainable packaging, decreasing inventory, getting factory certification
for fair trade, and more partnerships. I look forward to seeing what new accomplishments
Mara Hoffman develops within creating sustainable fashion.
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