Social impact upcycled brand The R Collective in June launched a collection in collaboration with Chinese London-based designer Wen Pan, achieving positive environmental change by rescuing excess luxury materials and upcycling these back into fashion — while giving back 25 percent of profits to Redress. Press start; it’s Temper Trending Time!
The R Collective X Wen Pan, 2019. All rights reserved
The ethereal collection entitled “Rinse” comes to life through the use of upcycled rescued excess luxury fabrics, continuously transforming the way clothes are designed, as well as reducing the waste and pollution caused by fashion — by the heavy load.
This seven-piece capsule collection takes its inspiration from the emotive narrative ingrained in every stitch of clothing through the wearer’s life and memories. True to designer Wen Pan’s signature style, this sustainable range, too, evokes the characteristics of femininity and roughness. A hint of delicacy juxtaposed by deconstruction, where imperfect raw fluidity meets rich textures.
Now sort those delicates and separate by color… Rescue, reuse and reimagine; it’s time to Rinse and spin!
The Permanent Press For Circular Transformation
Created using upcycled rescued excess luxury materials sourced from luxury brands, manufacturers and fabric mills from around the world, the Rinse collection uses circular fashion techniques to reimagine the destiny of textile waste, keeping fabric tumbling inside the fashion system and transforming the way clothes are designed.
Based in East London, Pan is a Central Saint Martins graduate as well as an alumnus of the Redress Design Award, finishing as a finalist in the 2015/16 cycle. Each piece is named after an East London borough, a reference to the imperfection, spirit of freedom and independence that inspires Pan’s work.
“I hope we can find beauty in imperfection. We do not need to dress or look like a celebrity, as being ourselves is beautiful enough,” explains Pan, “Rinse shows that you don’t need to make a loud statement to support sustainable fashion. When women wear pieces from this collection, they can feel a strong pride and inner confidence, ‘I am what I am, and I am making a small effort to make the Earth a better place, which makes me really cool.’” Boss.
A pair of Christinas wearing the Bermondsey Pants by The R Collective x Wen Pan
With a like-minded mission to reduce waste in the fashion industry, The R Collective x Wen Pan Rinse collection is the epitome of slow fashion featuring the Dalston Trench, a quintessentially British style with a twist created using upcycled crepe.
And then there are the Bermondsey Trousers made from upcycled monochrome houndstooth wool. In the words of Pan herself, “Fashion is overwhelmed with mass volumes of quantities and non-eco-friendly fast production due to the demands of fashion trends. If all fashion designers could consider sustainable ways to make clothes and still make people feel good, we will create less waste and long-lasting pieces.”
“Rinse” retails on The R Collective’s website, with price points ranging from US $179 to US $598. Select pieces are now available in Lane Crawford.
The Dalston Trench by The R Collective X Wen Pan, 2019. All rights reserved
The Supporting Stats At High Spin Speed
- An estimated 92 million tons of textile waste is created annually by the fashion industry and this is estimated to increase by about 60 percent between 2015 and 2030 (Source: Global Fashion Agenda and The Boston Consulting Group, Inc. (2017), Pulse of the Fashion Industry.)
- Every second, the equivalent of one garbage truck of textiles is landfilled or incinerated. Less than 1 percent of the material used to produce clothing is recycled into new clothing, representing a loss of more than USD100 billion worth of materials each year. (Source: New Textiles Economy, 2015, Ellen MacArthur Foundation.)
- In emerging markets, more than 65 percent of consumers have been found to actively seek out sustainable fashion, with the highest reported respondents from China. (Source: Cotton Lifestyle Monitor (n.d.) as cited in Business of Fashion (2016), The State of Fashion 2017.)
The Delicate Upcycle: About The R Collective
The R Collective is an upcycled fashion brand, born from Hong Kong-based environmental charity Redress, that believes in minimizing waste by challenging the way fashion is made.
The R Collective produces its Main Collection and also collaborates with multiple award-winning sustainable fashion designers around the world throughout the year.
The Sustainably Safe Detergent: About Wen Pan And Redress
Wen Pan is a Central Saint Martins graduate based in East London with her brand stocked in the iconic Selfridges. The designer is an alumnus of the Redress Design Award, finishing as a finalist in the 2015/16 cycle, and has previously interned for McQ by Alexander McQueen and Christopher Kane.
The Redress Design Award (formerly known as the EcoChic Design Award) was developed by and is wholly organized by Redress. Redress is an environmental charity with a mission to prevent and transform textile waste to catalyze a circular economy and reduce fashion’s water, chemical and carbon footprints. Their programs work to change mindsets and practices to stop the creation of textile waste now and in the future, as well as creating systems and partnerships that generate and showcase the value in existing waste.
Working directly with designers, manufacturers, brands, educational bodies, government and consumers, Redress aims to create lasting environmental change in fashion.
Break the cycle.
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Wholesale Inquiries: Sharon Tsang, COO, via sales@thercollective.com
Media Inquiries: michelle@thercollective.com or press@thercollective.com
EDITED BY ELSBETH VAN PARIDON
FEATURED IMAGE: WEN PAN, AW19. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
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