Two Liverpool entrepreneurs are leading the way in sustainable fashion with a new marketplace Make Thread.
Established in late 2019, Make Thread brings together independent designers and a zero-waste motto to create quality, durable clothing that does not add to landfills.
All clothing is produced in Britain using 100% organic cotton and is manufactured on an on-demand policy to ensure zero waste.
The brand has already attracted interest from celebrities such as Fearne Cotton and Vogue Williams.
Katie Roche and Sarah O’Brien, who founded the company, met while they were studying for a Masters in Business (MBA) at Liverpool University.
It was whilst doing a research project for the course that the pair found their drive for sustainable fashion.
Sarah O’Brien said the pair spotted: “A huge issue in the fashion industry from two different sides.
“One from the side of sustainability, fast fashion and the effect of that on landfills and the environment and then on the other side you had 46,000 students enrolling into creative courses in the UK and only one per cent of those getting a job.
“Make Thread was born from trying to provide a better way of producing fashion and giving people opportunities that they do not have at the moment.”
To succeed in its mission the brand aims to follow a three point-approach: empowering design talent; offering sustainable, original, limited-edition designs and enabling the consumer to invest in the designs by pre-ordering before the item is produced.
If the design is not popular and does not reach the minimum support required then the product will simply not be made.
Sarah said: “By making everything made to order, you are guaranteeing that no product is wasted.
“Retailers at the moment will generally over order a collection and everything they don’t sell will go into incineration or landfill. So even though the product may be good quality and may be sustainable, it’s still being wasted.”
The brand launched two successful campaigns in April and June last year under #designsforkindness, inspired by Covid-19 and Black Lives Matter.
The launch received huge support from many celebrities and influencers. However, Sarah says the pair are very selective with whom they work with.
“If their ethos does not match with ours, if they’re not into saving the planet, if they are just doing it for their own satisfaction, they are not really for us.”
Other celebrities who have been seen sporting the brand have included: Ashley James, Sara Luxe, Louise Roe and the Collyer Twins.
All profits from the launches went straight to the National Emergencies Trust and the Show Racism the Red Card, the UK’s leading anti-racism charity.
For more information on the company visit: https://www.makethread.com/
Or head over to their Instagram page, for more handy tips such as information on how to spot unsustainable clothing material and what to avoid, the relationship between fast fashion and landfill and the best tips on how to donate clothes successfully.
