Every brand has a story to tell. And at the core of a brand are its values, they are the compass that guide a brand's story. Kindness, comfort and style are the three values that Bowi Bear was built on.
Kindness To Our Planet - Sustainable Slow Fashion
This first ever blog post is dedicated to our planet Earth. Bowi Bear's first and foremost value is kindness to our planet earth. It’s no secret that the fashion industry has a disastrous impact on the environment. In fact, it’s the second largest polluter in the world, just after the oil industry. 85% of all textiles go to the dump each year and tons of untreated toxic wastewater from textile factories are dumped directly into the rivers. These are just two examples of a loooooong list of ways in which the fashion industry pollutes our planet. I’m not going to give you a breakdown as there are plenty of well written articles on this topic. So if this has sparked your curiosity and you want to know more, just use our friend Google to read up on the topic.
When I started Bowi Bear I thought long and hard about what I wanted my brand to represent. One thing that was really important to me was to make Bowi Bear products as eco-friendly as possible. When Emma was born, I became more aware and conscious of buying ecological products. I, like every other parent, want a bright future for my daughter and let's face it, that starts with a healthy planet Earth. I love fashion, but I was concerned by the current practices of the fashion industry and the environmental impact of the fashion industry on our planet. With Bowi Bear I wanted to create a brand that breaks the chain of fast fashion and instead promotes a more sustainable, slow way of buying fashion.
So how does Bowi Bear offer sustainable alternatives without compromising on your child’s look?
- All products are (hand)made to order. No more piles of clothes that don’t get sold at the end of the season.
- We choose to work with a fabric supplier who recycles, reuses and chooses earth-friendly options every step of the way.
- We only print the fabric that we need. No excess fabric is going to waste.
- Our fabrics are printed using a pigment printing process that consumes very little water and uses eco-friendly inks.
- We choose 100% GOTS certified organic fabrics. (more about that in another post.
- Quality over quantity. Organic cotton is more durable than conventional cotton. This means your garments will last longer and will look great even after countless washes.
- Fabric cuttings from orders are used to create other eco-friendly products such as washable wipes, sensory bags and bean bags (whoops, did I just give away a few new products coming soon).
Kindness To Our Planet - A Social Responsibility
Kindness is why we choose 100% GOTS certified organic fabrics. Not only kindness to our earth, but also to our fellow humans.
By eliminating toxic chemicals, organic farming methods put less stress on nature. A major source of water contamination is the use of fertilizers for conventional cotton production. By choosing organic cotton you help reduce the environmental impact on nature and ensure a better working environment for all workers across the manufacturing process. We all want a bright future for our children. And there’s no better way to help ensure a bright future than by contributing to a healthy planet Earth.
At Bowi Bear we go one step further. We don’t just care about our planet, but also about people. The people who work tirelessly to grow the organic cotton for our beautiful fabrics. The Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) is recognised as the world’s leading standard of textile production in organic fibres. To build a truly sustainable textile industry, the GOTS label doesn’t just define high-level ecological criteria along the entire organic textiles supply chain, it also requires compliance with a high social criteria. It ensures that fabrics are made in a sustainable and ethical way throughout the supply chain.
By choosing 100% GOTS certified fabrics we ensure that everyone involved in the process of making organic cotton is treated fairly. We place high value on ethical production and the GOTS certification ensures that this value is upheld. Yes, this makes our fabric more expensive and inadvertently the price of our products too, but isn’t that little bit extra worth it when you know that you’ve helped someone live a more healthy and comfortable life? To me this was a no-brainer, and I hope it is to you now too.
Why do we choose organic fabrics?
- No chemicals used, making organic fabric gently on the skin.
- More durable, making your child’s clothes last longer.
- Smaller environmental impact, reducing our footprint on the environment.
- Comfort for your child. The pure, soft fibres of organic cotton are not only gentle on your child’s skin, the unique properties of organic cotton also make it the perfect fabric for all seasons of the year.
Why do we choose 100% GOTS certified organic cottons?
- We care about people as much as the environment. The social criteria set by the GOTS label ensures healthy and fair labour conditions for all farmers and factory workers involved in the supply chain.
If you want to read more about the GOTS label, have a look at their website: https://global-standard.org
Kindness To Our Planet - Quality Over Quantity
After months of protection in your tummy, your baby deserves the safest and highest quality fabrics on their delicate skin. The pure soft fibres of organic cotton are gentle on your baby’s skin and prevent irritation. Produced without harmful chemicals, organic cotton is also far more durable and will last much longer than conventional cotton. High quality leads to long-lasting wear which in turn has a positive influence on our planet.
Everything we do and make here at Bowi Bear is with your little one’s future and wellbeing in mind. We're all about slow, sustainable and ethical fashion, and we promote quality over quantity. I hope this blog post has given you an insight into what Bowi Bear stands for and I truly hope that you can find yourself in this vision too.
Until next time,
Elise ☾ Bowi Bear Founder ✩