Let me ask you something: “What story does your clothing carry?” The truth is most of us have no idea the real story behind the articles that we wear every single day. I have always been passionate about fashion. Unfortunately, these days that term can represent little to no substance. Rather than becoming one of a million other clothing companies out there already, I was compelled to create something with more meaning – inspired clothing with a soul, a heartbeat. And thus, Elroy Apparel was born. The philosophy seems simple enough - design, sourcing, materials and manufacturing as environmentally conscious and socially responsible as possible. The statistics don’t lie. We are relying far too much on fossil fuels and our daily consumption is wreaking havoc on the earth. By now, these phrases have been embedded in our brains: organic, sustainable, green, recycled, ethical. Elroy has proven (since being established in 2007) that these statements do not ensure that style nor expense need be sacrificed. By educating consumers to become more aware of their ecological footprint and empowering their influential buying power, I hope to encourage more conscious decision making. Of course, solutions are not only found in the materials being used. There is just as much importance in where and how clothing is produced. In the beginning, Elroy was produced domestically. Logistically and sustainably, this method made sense. However, something was telling me to look in another direction. This business could be successful almost anywhere - and help support people at the same time. By employing labour, I saw that I could transform and foster real change. On a whim, and with only one contact scribbled on a scrap piece of paper, I set off for Indonesia. In those two months, I discovered more than I ever thought possible. I began a sustainable employment project focused around a small, family-run ‘cottage industry.’ The project is based around the framework of a small, self-run sewing cooperative. I have had the privilege to work beside an incredible group of artisans, who had been struggling to find any type of permanent work. They all have the skills necessary to be very successful, however, where they are lack are the areas of design, development and marketing. This was a meeting of the minds, and as one would expect, things progressed and moved forward quite quickly. I have made the commitment to be in Indonesia twice a year during the sampling and production times, and offer my assistance in anyway that is needed. I am still the designer, I create all patterns, and I am involved in every detail of the clothing being produced. This is the way it will remain – on location and hands on. Making this shift in production locations has not come easily. New challenges occur daily: logistical nightmares; language barriers; corruption and fraud; running a business entirely on my own, while ‘living’ in two countries. But even with all the challenges, the good always far surpasses any struggle. Domestically, I found material sourcing to be very drab and difficult. With the rise of more companies looking to greener fabrics, it seemed that fabrics were getting more and more similar in each designers collection. Not enough variation. In Indonesia, I have established relationships with suppliers and fabric mills, enabling us to create custom fabrics for whatever our needs. We have certificates for all organic materials used. We have been able to create our own custom digital prints. Most recently, due to the large garment industry found in the area, we have discovered ‘upcycled’ fabrics to supplement our collections. These are fabrics that are scraps or end-of-rolls from large factories that are no longer being used, and therefore are just gathering dust. By saving them we are able to create unique and limited edition pieces, and keep the fabrics from heading to the landfill unused and unloved. In the future, I would like to think that seeing the success that we have incurred in the last year of implementing this strategy, we can expand and upgrade our project and invite more companies to join. I would love to keep the work more consistent year round, so that all those involved are making a great living on a more constant basis. At this point, because I am designing just two seasons a year, the cooperative is extremely busy during those times, and much slower during the other. I truly believe it is more than possible to live in abundance without polluting, consuming natural resources excessively or abusing labour practices. As the sole owner and operator of this company, my commitment is to remain dedicated and respectful to our environment, to our supply and production teams, and to our customer. There can be hope in the fashion world after all. Artist and Central Saint Martins graduate Nick Gentry creates recycled art with obsolete media storage as his medium. After assembling canvases by puzzling together floppy disks with all kinds of different data, he paints portraits of over them. “The floppy disk stands firm and lives on as a metaphor for the increasing pace of the modern life cycle, mass production and the throwaway culture of today.” I am loving his take on recycled art, to know you can take something so unusable, and bring it back to life, with more life than the object ever had in the first place. This is a direction that Elroy is taking for the new Fall 2011 collection now being designed and sampled. Upcycling old fabrics, end of rolls and factory leftovers that are sitting...unused. Unloved. This allows us to remain on key with our sustainablity goal, putting use to material that otherwise is seen as garbage by big industry. I can't wait to give you guys a sneak peak at what is coming next! :)     This video may be focused around India, but in listening to what these folks had to say, they very well could have been talking about where I am working - Indonesia. In any case, the message is the same. Social responsibility is important no matter where you embark in it. I have been honoured to work with amazingly skilled craftsmen and local small scale fabric mills. It really is all about offering something different, something fresh, something beautiful, and something with a story behind it. We have had such good a good reaction, it looks like we are expanding the sweater assortment for next fall. The other day I went to our local production house, and I got to watch them start a few of our new samples. So exciting! Check out the hand knitting that takes place - what an arm workout! So I heard this morning about the opportunity to write an article for the National Post - on being an entrepreneur. They are looking for about 500 words. Now I must say, that is a pretty broad subject, for me at least. So I am not really too sure on which direction to take this writing. Shall I hit 'em hard with all the difficulties, drawbacks, hardships, struggles and overall anxiety that running your own business can create? Or should I tug on the heartstrings by mentioning how grateful I am, how amazingly lucky I feel to be able to follow my dreams, to create and share those creations with the world. To be able to do this for myself, not for a paycheck, not to make someone else rich. That following my gut instincts, my passion has given me pure and utter freedom. I've been at this (Elroy) for about 4 years now...and each day brings a multitude of challenges. No day is the same. Some good, some bad. But through even the roughest patches I am always aware of how I have made my life what it is today. No one else. I am surrounded by an amazing support system, and I would not be where I am today without them, but all in all, I've pushed myself to my limits and that is why I am sitting here today (in Indonesia of all places -- who would have ever guessed that??!!) What direction do you think I should take this article? This morning I was up at an appalling hour. The nearby mosque started its call to prayer earlier than usual...I was woken up at 3:48am. Needless to say, I knew today was gonna be a tough one to pull off! Energy levels were needed, and this song literally had me dancing out of bed. Love'n the Temper Trap today. This was the first I'd seen the live version of it, thought I'd share. What a voice. What songs do you play in the morning to get the juices flowing? PREVIOUS 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 NEXT | About Us
Elroy Apparel is a women's designer clothing line made of sustainable, socially responsible fabrics. Choosing to buy organic should not mean that we must change our lifestyle. Elroy's designs use eco fabrics without sacrificing style. A beautiful garment with an even more beautiful story behind it. What story does your clothing carry?
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