changeforthebetter

Design against waste

Waste is a major issue in our culture. Perhaps one of the biggest. Definitely a side effect of our lifestyle. Waste is the ignorant byproduct of our times, meaning the etymological non-understanding of what we leave at our back.

In other words, it is a blind and egoistic short-term vision. People don’t care. Their children will live in an open-air landfill. Not their business.

However, the problem is real, devastating, and we cannot hide it anymore. There’s no way to sweep waste under the carpet or make it magically disappear.

Acknowledging the problem and the environmental cost it carries along, is the first step. But what is the solution?

Design is the answer.
An accurate design is at the core of solving the waste issue. Changing the way we conceive products is absolutely crucial. We need thoughtful items in every single field and category – fashion, furniture, technology, etc.
Products made with eco, recycled materials. That will have multiple lives and eventually enter a circular pattern.
Items made to last.

By the way, it was so in the past in terms of lifetime. Now the life of a garment is just a couple of washings, the life of a cell phone, less than one year.
Moreover, the convenience culture played a huge role in maximizing waste habits and proliferating throwaway tendencies. Buying a new item is cheaper than repairing it. So throw it away and buy another one – even if it will last just a few months. The never-ending cycle has been triggered.

The point is that real designers make good designs.
Since fashion – like any other industry – is in the hands of people who are more attracted to marketing than design, it will be hard to see a change coming from the inside.

Unless a new generation of designers, aware of the problem and touched by it, will be willing to change for the better.
We are optimistic!

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The modern migration

Modern migration from big cities to small villages is the key to sustainability and happiness.

Transformed by the pandemic wake-up call, we decided to spend our August holidays back at our roots. A tiny small village in the Basilicata region – South Italy – immersed in nature and silence. Cows’ mooing, dogs barking, or the wind was the only sound.

Travelling in the middle of the night along the woods, we met a family of porcupines who was crossing the road, spines standing on end. Such a marvel! We promptly stopped the car to enjoy the unique show that nature offered us. We let them cross, caught in the headlights.
A scene impressed in our memory.

How different life is in small countryside villages! Healthier, for sure. You reclaim the value of time, space. You don’t feel trapped like in a city apartment. However big it is, it’s cement anyway. And you realise that in exchange for fewer services, perhaps you enjoy real life.

Reading the news, it seems that the migration from big cities to the countryside has already started, as a tangible effect of the pandemic. Indeed, the idea of a slow and sustainable lifestyle flows so naturally into this context, followed by a different way of dressing – which we will explore deeper – and decorating our places.
Surely, a way of living our life in tune with nature.

It has proven that economic growth and environmental impact are directly connected. What we used to call climate change is now a climate emergency. Therefore, in order to reduce our impact on nature, we have no other choice than to change our lifestyle.

To this end, modern migration to the countryside is an opportunity. Our needs have changed, big cities aren’t the answer anymore. We need more nature.

Therefore, we are envisioning a future where people repopulate small villages, giving them a new life. Intensive mass growing leaves space for smaller communities, all interconnected so as to support each other.

Finally, we can use progress and the web not to prevail or exploit but to genuinely and deeply connect.

With this in mind, we can be part of the solution and not part of the problem.

That’s the lifestyle for modern humans.

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The expiry date: fashion or mortadella?

Fashion communication – verbal, written and visual – has contributed to undermining the industry.
In a world where fast fashion became a synonym of luxury and other similar absurdities, we always feel the need to define what we say. Somehow, we need to restore the meaning in a state of general confusion.

Hysteric mass production led us to a broken industry incapable of selling all the tons of items they produce. Indeed, the surplus is burned, making room for the next manifestation of this insanity.

So, why do niche brands or even high-end designers subscribe to these practices? Why do they feel the need to hard-discount merchandise just a few months after its delivery to the stores, devaluing both products and the brand?

“This item is new now, but it’s going to be old in three months or less.” There is no consistency in that.

A devaluing communication

The poor language to attract consumers does not focus on worth but discounts or influencers:

PRE-SALE! – SALE! – Heavy discounts! – Black Friday! -60% -70%
Who offers less?!

“Today, with the influencers bad taste is everywhere.” – said Mr Valentino to “Il Messaggero”.

Herein lies a huge mistake in terms of communication, in the messaging of our industry.

When will fashion operators understand we are conceiving, producing, selling and communicating products born out of creativity. The moment we rediscover the value of that process, we’ll acknowledge the mistakes we made.

To deal with those products like they are milk or mortadella, treating them as products with a fast expiration date is not a brilliant idea.

We love mortadella, and we also believe it has a higher value than the majority of fashion products currently in stores. But, we think the actual value of the whole creative process has to be rediscovered and protected in making and communicating fashion. Like it is something meaningful, timeless, not something to get rid of as soon as possible.

What can we do to change?

Brands have to produce less, taking extreme care of the whole process.
Heavy discounts should disappear. They are not a healthy, long-term strategy.
People should consume less but better.

Let fast fashion do its work for what is cheap, for people who chose not to see. At the same time, let’s protect and celebrate the timeless value of creativity, quality, and craftsmanship. By using proper language to this end.

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The wake-up call

Lifestyle is constantly evolving.
It’s not about hectic fashion anymore, that time is over.
We learned the lesson, so we are evolving towards a new era based on consciousness. The pandemic is our wake-up call. Pollution, climate change, social issues, racism, our behaviour of the past led us here. Now, we must think about what kind of world we want.

Fashion as a reflection of who we are must be involved in the lifestyle evolution process. It’s about understanding the core values, so, as a consequence, we search for a design that fits our new vision.
Creativity takes time to express itself, manufacturing quality items takes time. Trust takes time too.
No need to hurry, not anymore. Slow is ok. Indeed, the process of consciousness takes time.

So, after the wake-up call, change for the better is what we are doing.
But don’t underestimate small changes. Even modest changes in our lifestyle can have a significant impact.

2021 is our blank page. Reset and restart with us.

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Knowledge vs an obsolete system

Knowledge is power. Being informed – educating ourselves – is fundamental in order to make conscious choices.
We love fashion, but we know there are many things to fix in the field. Since we have been part of the industry for so long, we are fed up with representing patterns that are no longer viable, representing an obsolete system.
When you are fed up with what you see, you have two options: you can sit and look at the show, or you take action. Decide to make a change.
We’ve opted for the latter. Change for the better is what we aim for.
Connecting with people who share the same vision is part of the journey.
Change for the better. We do it together.

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