In need of a New Year's resolution that you'll actually achieve? According to new research, some of the top goals Brits have for next year include spending more time with loved ones, sorting out finances and being more eco-friendly. A survey of over 2,000 UK adults, commissioned by GoCompare, found that two out of five (40%) plan to make resolutions for 2022. Being healthier and happier is on the agenda for many, with other goals including getting fitter, changing diets, and taking up a new sport. Elsewhere, their findings discovered that households want to spend less money on grocery shopping, have fewer takeaways, and also save on phone and broadband costs. Setting resolutions can help you get off to a good start in 2022, however it's important to think of measurable goals that you can actually track and achieve.
"Looking at the resolutions for 2022, it's clear that both mental and physical wellbeing are still at the top of the list for a significant amount of people," says Richard Jones, head of money at GoCompare. "With numerous lockdowns and an ongoing global health pandemic, it's perhaps no surprise that mental and physical health remain big priorities for Brits.
"Another key theme in peoples' financial resolutions is the need to cut back on expenditure, with groceries and takeaways being one of the major areas for saving money. With inflation costs continuing to increase, it's no surprise that people are looking to save on their outgoings next year.
Take a look at the goals below... TOP 10 NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTIONS FOR 2022
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Business reporter, BBC News
It was set up by Nish Parekh in 2015, when he had the idea re-using the offcuts from the clothes made by his mother, a fashion designer. His first product was a bookmark.
Now, his core business is to make his offcut goods as gifts which are sold back to clothes designers and given to customers along with the garments they have bought.
"In the past three years, we have recycled over 10,000 metres of fabric which would otherwise have gone to landfill," says Nish. "We work with over 300 fashion brands. It helps them gain environmental credibility. It's a tangible sign that they are committed to recycling.
"Nish and his team design their products at Kapdaa's studio in Kingston, London. The blueprints and offcut materials are then shipped to family-run workshops in Mumbai and Delhi to be manufactured.
Up until 2018, Nish relied on only one workshop to turn out his orders. That was until he hit a supply crisis at Christmas time.
"We were doing really well with our Christmas orders," says Nish. "They were gifts we were planning to hand out to clients. We sent all our work to our supplier. He wasn't expecting so [many] orders, but he still said he would do it.
"We had a delivery date of 2 December, I remember, and we were waiting - but the things weren't just getting done."
The orders finally arrived by air freight from India on 18 December and Nish had to pick them up at dawn from a warehouse near Heathrow Airport to distribute immediately to clients.
Nish says he remembers opening all the boxes on the streets of Hayes and repacking them to deliver them by hand on the same day.
"We delivered all the boxes and all the orders in time, but I would not do it again. It was too close to Christmas, and we were close to letting our clients down. We weren't giving them enough time to sell them or give them away."
Shortly afterwards, Nish decided he could no longer rely on a single supplier to deliver all his firm's orders.
"In January the following year, we started looking for a new supplier. Over the next 10 months we gave them small orders each month so they were ready for the next Christmas rush.
"Now we've divided up 20% of our work with our back-up supplier, 80% with our current [main] supplier, so both of them are happy and they know what to expect.
"Nish's advice to entrepreneurs is to take on a second supplier and give them small amount of regular work so that they can step into the breach if ever there are problems with the main supplier.
"Always have a back-up supplier and train them," says Nish. "Even if it costs a bit more, go ahead and do it because in the longer run, it will surely help you out."
Edinburgh’s stop for whisky aficionados has partnered with KAPDAA to make bespoke gifts from waste
Since 1988, The Scotch Whisky Experience has been helping visitors fall in love with Scotland’s national drink. Now, customers can enjoy an authentic, ethical experience following new sustainability commitments.
The Scotch Whisky Experience – which offers tours and hospitality to wanderers from around the world – has partnered with KAPDAA – The Offcut Company to inspire a new collection of upcycled gifts.
KAPDAA, is a UK-based textiles business that gives waste material a second lease of life as luxury trinkets.
The partnership will see The Scotch Whiskey Experience repurpose items no longer in use, starting with a new line of notebooks made from recycled kilts.
Operations Director Angela Dineen said: “We are doing our best to source local, sustainable products for our shop and KAPDAA allowed us to create something bespoke from items we would no longer have been using.
“We loved the ethos of KAPDAA and the story we could tell about the development of a product which was so unique to us.
“We had a pile of kilts which were no longer being worn and KAPDAA provided us with the inspiration to breathe new life into the material by creating these new notebooks – a bit like the whisky industry reusing casks for maturation we could see there was value in something someone else could no longer use.”
Staying true to its name, The Scotch Whisky Experience partners with local producers of quality products related to Scotch whisky directly, or that are inspired by whisky and the Scottish landscape.
The new collections will help the company expand as it builds back from the lockdowns, while maintaining a commitment to ethical production.
Nish Parekh, the co-founder of KAPDAA, said: “We are excited to work with The Scotch Whisky Experience as they look to expand their operations.
“The passion driving these experiences is something we can really get behind. The Scotch Whiskey Experience is always finding new ways to share its story with the world, and we’re glad to be a part of that.
“From this partnership, we also hope to show that ‘sustainability’ is not limited to the world of fashion. All businesses can make sustainable choices to enhance the experience they offer to customers.”
Angela added: “I think, generally, everyone is more aware of the crisis the planet is experiencing and we are striving to keep sustainability at the forefront of our decision-making process.
“We can see what can be done and what it means to be a sustainable business by the example KAPDAA set.
“This has given us the confidence to challenge our other suppliers to raise their game to ensure that we all do our bit to become more sustainable.“
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There are so many pieces to putting together an amazing story – and it takes some serious skills to get it right. Luckily though, these days there’s more help than ever before, thanks to our good pals science and technology, but your gadget and tech needs may have now changed. And what’s more, if you’re a freelancer, you can very much whack them on your tax-deductible expenses.
So, whether you’re an intrepid news reporter, a keen-eyed photo journo, or an Instagram-savvy whizz-kid, here’s our pick of the best value gear right now. We’ve still thrown in some bits for those of you still braving the weather and reporting out there IRL – we know you might need a helping hand! Oh, and some incredibly beautiful notebooks. Because everyone loves notebooks.
All prices were correct at the time we published this. We’ll do our best to keep it up to date, but please don’t shout at us if we slip up.
]]>Sustainability brand, KAPDAA – The Offcut Company, saw interest spike through the pandemic as consumers opted for more environmentally friendly choices. KAPDAA has generated £285,000 in early stage investment from six supporters, including the London Fashion Fund and WILD Management, within the last 12 months. As a result, the London-based company has upcycled more offcuts in the past 12 months than in any other year.
Since 2015, KAPDAA has worked with more than 300 brands including Selfridges, RAEBURN, DAKS, Roland Mouret, Alice and Olivia, MET Museum for the MET Gala and the National Portrait Gallery to save 10,000 metres of fabric from landfill. This mission, to turn offcuts and waste into sellable and sustainable products, increasingly resonates with a market tuned in to ethical consumption.
Nish Parekh, co-founder of KAPDAA, said: “The number of investments and collaborations we have worked with over the last year is an endorsement of the growing strength and visibility of KAPDAA, which has grown in line with the burgeoning consumer interest in high-quality sustainability products in the UK.
“Not only are we working hard to assist brands to cut their waste, we also provide sustainable products directly to customers through our website.
Additionally, we have invested our time over the lockdown period to create a complete sustainable chain from the start of the garment, to reusing its offcuts, to now looking at shredding used clothing to give a new lease of life to it through The Sustainable hub.
“Governments and consumers are spurring demand for sustainable practices ahead of COP26 in November. There is a new responsibility for brands to get it right. Finding new ways to partner with producers, we are making processes cheaper and more efficient, helping newcomers into the market.”Owing to newfound faith in the industry and commitments to new means of manufacturing, KAPDAA’s partnerships have granted a 15% hike in B2B sales on last year’s figures, in turn lowering costs and making eco-friendly choices accessible to brands and consumers alike.
KAPDAA especially looks forward to its upcoming partnerships with the Scottish Whisky Experience and Maison Kitsune.In the lead-up to COP26 in November, governments have prompted markets to reflect ambitions in cutting waste and innovating cleaner ways of doing business. As reports highlight the 53 million single-use facemasks binned each day in Britain, opportunities have arisen in fashion and textiles to produce reusable items to support new demand.
Businesses today look set not only on improving products but refining and growing out processes; Chanel invested $25m in June 2021 to “take down barriers that hinder investments in climate adaptation from being scaled up.” The goal being to develop sustainable supply chains over the coming years to help grow the sector without damaging the environment.
Out of the pandemic, larger non fashion brands have expressed interest in collaborating with sustainable brands, such as KAPDAA, to create sustainable packaging and merchandise for customer giveaways, reflecting their commitment; at the end of 2020, 75% of luxury brands resolved to reduce their carbon emissions and offer more sustainable services.
Millennials have long been pegged as the primary driver behind sustainability, but today 25% of all consumers today judge ‘the S word’ to be a mandatory consideration when making a purchase. And with quality and sustainability increasingly poised to overlap, many brands have sought partnerships to help spur on innovation.
]]>which turns offcut material into sustainable products, has generated £285,000 in early-stage investment from six supporters, including the London Fashion Fund and Wild Management, within the last 12 months.
The company has upcycled more offcuts in the past 12 months than in any other year. Since 2015, Kapdaa has worked with more than 300 brands including Selfridges, Raeburn, Daks, Roland Mouret, Alice and Olivia, MET Museum for the MET Gala and the National Portrait Gallery to save 10,000 metres of fabric from landfill. This mission, to turn offcuts and waste into sellable and sustainable products, increasingly resonates with a market tuned in to ethical consumption, the company said in a press release.
Nish Parekh, co-founder of Kapdaa, said: “The number of investments and collaborations we have worked with over the last year is an endorsement of the growing strength and visibility of Kapdaa, which has grown in line with the burgeoning consumer interest in high-quality sustainability products in the UK.
“Not only are we working hard to assist brands to cut their waste, we also provide sustainable products directly to customers through our website. Additionally, we have invested our time over the lockdown period to create a complete sustainable chain from the start of the garment, to reusing its offcuts, to now looking at shredding used clothing to give a new lease of life to it through The Sustainable hub.
“Governments and consumers are spurring demand for sustainable practices ahead of COP26 in November. There is a new responsibility for brands to get it right. Finding new ways to partner with producers, we are making processes cheaper and more efficient, helping newcomers into the market.
”Owing to newfound faith in the industry and commitments to new means of manufacturing, Kapdaa’s partnerships have granted a 15 per cent hike in B2B sales on last year’s figures, in turn lowering costs and making eco-friendly choices accessible to brands and consumers alike.
Kapdaa especially looks forward to its upcoming partnerships with the Scottish Whisky Experience and Maison Kitsune.In the lead-up to COP26 in November, governments have prompted markets to reflect ambitions in cutting waste and innovating cleaner ways of doing business. As reports highlight the 53 million single-use facemasks binned each day in Britain, opportunities have arisen in fashion and textiles to produce reusable items to support new demand.
Businesses look set not only on improving products but refining and growing out processes; Chanel invested $25 million in June 2021 to “take down barriers that hinder investments in climate adaptation from being scaled up.” The goal being to develop sustainable supply chains over the coming years to help grow the sector without damaging the environment.
Out of the pandemic, larger non fashion brands have expressed interest in collaborating with sustainable brands, such as Kapdaa, to create sustainable packaging and merchandise for customer giveaways, reflecting their commitment; at the end of 2020, 75 per cent of luxury brands resolved to reduce their carbon emissions and offer more sustainable services.
Millennials have long been pegged as the primary driver behind sustainability, but today 25 per cent of all consumers judge ‘the S word’ to be a mandatory consideration when making a purchase. And with quality and sustainability increasingly poised to overlap, many brands have sought partnerships to help spur on innovation.
]]>With more businesses becoming eco-minded and looking for effective ways to help reduce their carbon footprint, we are shining a spotlight on entrepreneurs that have taken major steps to not only become more sustainable themselves, but to encourage others to do the same.
Along with our partners Starling Bank, the Great British Entrepreneur Awards prides itself on supporting exciting entrepreneurs making waves in the UK. Here are our 15 most exciting eco entrepreneurs to watch in 2021.
]]>Back in the nineties, Tiffany’s was one of the first major luxury retailers to issue a policy on sustainability as it responded to public concern over the sourcing of African diamonds. Acting promptly with an awareness campaign and a commitment to ethical purchases, the brand successfully deflected criticism and won over a loyal audience. Demand for sustainability has been catching up with us since the 1980s, with companies increasingly pressed to bring together ethics and aesthetics into something altogether more ‘complete’. To understand this, we can look at what separates luxury from other markets.
Implied in luxury is a sense of a world beyond necessity – something beautiful or rich in spite of its immediate utility. In economics, luxury is defined by its price elasticity: the more money you make, the more likely you are to shop high-end. And between these two positions, the industry for luxury produce affords itself the time and talent to respond to these initially niche consumer demands. Not so long ago, conscious consumers turned away from meat and dairy, prompting the market to respond with a string of vegan alternatives on Islington high streets and the aisles of Waitrose.
Over time, these first few steps drive awareness and push down costs, prompting others to keep up with ethical trends. Today, sustainable food alternatives have become far more accessible thanks to the innovation of those first pioneers.
The market for sustainable luxury is no different. Tesla’s investment in high-end tech has made possible a new industry of more affordable makes and models. If brands truly care about the causes they purport to – fair working conditions, waste minimisation, responsible material sourcing – the precedent is there to be set. Perhaps, in fact, luxury has the rare opportunity to show us what really is necessary. Voltaire reminds us that scissors seemed at first an unnecessary luxury; how different the world would be had somebody not sat down to innovate.
Luxury is uniquely positioned to devote the time and craftsmanship necessary to develop an industry without taking moral shortcuts. Where commoditised markets may fall back on cheap alternatives, luxury has the option to invest in change without sacrificing customers or quality. Luxury – and perhaps only luxury at this stage – has the tools to build its empire on sustainability.
The demand is already there. Between them, Millennials and Generation Z are already behind 85% of luxury sales growth. Gen Z – born after 1995 – make up 40% of all sales. These groups are most concerned with buying into business that reflects the way they view the world. 73% say they would be willing to spend more on a socially conscious brand and younger consumers are increasingly likely to boycott those acting unethically.
The transition will not be easy. Producers will be expected both to keep up with the times and to define them. Hypocrisy will quickly be called out. But whether we accept these new demands or not, those seen getting it wrong stand to lose very much in the digital age. As we work through teething problems as an industry, sustainability, ethics and transparency must all be guided by cooperation. I think there is space here for brands to work together, to share insights and to collectively reap the benefits of a job well done.
My company, KAPDAA – which makes luxury items out of material offcuts – has collaborated with over 300 brands to teach and learn from the practices of others. I am confident that it is as a result of working together that we are able to see best practice develop at such an extraordinary rate.
For luxury, there is not only a moral duty to drive the transition to sustainable manufacturing; there is also an existential threat for brands that fail to adapt to the new challenges ahead. The new market of consumers sees not the products it buys, but the products it buys into.
Luxury names like Louis Vuitton have managed the pandemic well and now stand to gain from a consumer base with money to spend. The challenge will now be to ensure that ethical priorities align.As we move into the 2020s, I hope brands can see the value of evolving together – and not in isolation – as we start to question the role and definition of sustainable luxury.
]]>KAPDAA works with designers to turn their offcuts, end-of-rolls, and excess materials into unique, sustainable, and branded products. Since launching just three years, ago, KAPDAA has already stopped over 10,00 meters of fabric from going to landfill.
Their innovative product range, includes: notebooks, eye masks, luggage tags, card wallets, files, and many more. KAPDAA has collaborated with some of the largest brands and designers in the industry, including: Selfridges, Holland & Sherry, Raeburn, Alice + Olivia, Mary Katrantzou, Roland Mouret, DAKS, and more.
Nish Parekh is the brain behind KAPDAA. Nish has spent his entire life dreaming up the endless creative possibilities for unused fabric since he was a child (partly inspired by those early, happy memories spent in his mother’s fashion studio). Years later, he crafted a one-of-a-kind bookmark using offcuts, and this marked a new chapter in his life: eco-friendly, sustainable products, – as a labour of love.
Nish’s unique idea of creating something beautiful from neglected offcuts struck a chord with many brands, designers, and clients worldwide, and KAPDAA: THE OFFCUT COMPANY was born in 2015.
However, prior to launching KAPDAA, Nish built an impressive portfolio in advertising and marketing for the likes of Saatchi & Saatchi, and Ogilvy. KAPDAA works with family-run businesses for their shipping requirements: they employ craftsmen for traditional practices, such as screen-printing, and hand-binding for their books, – ensuring that they maintain a livelihood, even in current times, where everything is automated.
“I believe that there is still a lot of work to be done. After working with over 300 designers and brands, we will soon be launching THE SUSTAINABLE HUB, – a progressive solution to the ecological challenges of the fashion industry. This will be a green-garment manufacturing solution where you will witness KAPDAA’s obsessive commitment to going green across the entire value chain with low minimum orders and quick turnaround times,” said Nish Parekh.
Nish is now on a mission to spread his offcut message to a wider audience, – calling upon designers and brands to work together on his journey towards building a zero waste industry.
]]>KAPDAA has quickly become known as one of the most progressive and eco-conscious companies working with fabric, leather and wall paper offcuts to emerge in the last few years.
Linton Tweeds are proud to have partnered with them in producing several products and accessories (which you can find for sale on our website). We have also given off cuts of our tweed to them which they have used to create fabulous items that they sell through their website including passport covers and eye masks. We wanted to know more about this incredible company and to share their journey with our blog readers.
How did KAPDAA start? “KAPDAA was started with an idea to reuse offcuts in a creative way. On completion of my MA, I visited my Mum in Mumbai and that’s where the light bulb moment happened. In her studio I saw tons of lovely fabric material fall to the ground and that eventually would be thrown away. I just couldn’t see the beautiful fabric go waste, so I sat down with the head designer at my mother’s workshop and cut a rectangular piece of fabric, which was then pasted together to create a beautiful bookmark. This was the first offcut product.
”Where does the name KAPDAA come from? “Remembering the idea of creating a brand, I thought why not use her brand KAPDAA and add The Offcut company. As the idea came from her offcut and I am her offcut too (: Hence KAPDAA – The Offcut Company was born!”
What would you describe what KAPDAA does to new customers? “We here work with designers, mills and makers to try turn their offcuts, end of rolls, and other excess materials into unique, sustainable and branded products – notebooks, eye masks, luggage tags, passport holders and many more. Each product is handcrafted and is supporting traditional skills like book binding and screen printing, something which resonates with the brands they work with.
”What is your company ethos? “Sustainability, ethics and transparency – these are the three things we strongly believe in and try to implement in each and every collaboration. We work with family run businesses for our shipping requirements. We even employ craftsmen for traditional practices like screen printing and hand binding the books. This ensures that the craftsmen have a livelihood even in current times where everything is automated. We even send over videos of the production process as we completely promote and believe in transparency.
How did you find out about Linton Tweeds? “We came across Linton Tweeds while we were doing our initial search for mills and makers. Once we interacted with them, we loved their enthusiasm and passion for sustainability. Delighted to have collaborated with them, looking forward to more! ”What are some of the innovations you have produced so far? “Printing ink – We use Soot, which is waste from factory chimneys, to make ink for screen printing in the notebooks. Every paper we print on is manually screen printed. We are also currently working on getting 100% biodegradable plastic bags, for the transport of our products. We have also started using an electric van for local delivering in London, thus reducing carbon emissions.
” What’s next for KAPDAA?“KAPDAA was started with an idea to reuse offcuts in a creative way. As the business has grown, we have come across various new challenges as well as the shear scale of offcuts and waste material in the post production of fashion / interior designers.
Our dream now is to have all the day to day products created from offcuts which makes a sustainable circularity model. We want to be recognized as being a one stop solution for all textile manufactures and designers for all their waste materials making it a simple way for them to be sustainable.
Over the past three years we have saved 5400 meters of fabric from going to landfill and have collaborated with over 250 brands to create beautiful and sustainable products out of their unused fabric. Our “offcut suppliers” range from mills in Scotland, to interior designers from New York to fashion designers in Russia.
We also work with London and LA based shoemakers, Parisian weavers, Belgian pram manufacturers, and tailors at Savile Row. The list does not stop there, and we are always looking to bring new designers on board to help us spread the sustainable Eco-friendly message and create a zero-waste industry. With each establishment we’ve had a different story and experience, but in the end, the result was always positive.”
]]>At KAPDAA – The Offcut Company, every piece matters! KAPDAA have been working with over 250 brands worldwide to convert their waste fabrics, offcuts and unsold stock into unique, sustainable branded products. Some of their signature collaborations include Selfridges, MET museum, National Portrait Gallery, Mary Katrantzou, Christopher RAEBURN, Roland Mouret, Alice + Olivia, DAKS, Holland & Sherry, and The Woolmark Company.
KAPDAA was born with a simple idea on how to reduce beautiful, unused materials of various sizes from going to waste. Co-founder, Nish, has been determined to eradicate fashion waste in the most creative and sustainable manner, all-the-while supporting a circular economy. Over the past 3 years, KAPDAA has saved more than 7800 metres of textiles and wallpaper from going to landfill.
HOW IT WORKS The process is simple. KAPDAA’s Zero-Waste Advisors counsel you with the best possible options, keeping in mind the type and size of your offcuts, unused textiles, misprinted materials, unsold stock or end of rolls. Next, the advisors share the product catalogue, which includes notebooks, eye masks, face masks, collapsible sunglass cases, tote bags and more.
All products can be customised to feature your fabrics and branding. Following the product selection, send your materials to KAPDAA’s offices in London. The design team will work alongside you to make a bespoke product, as per your brand and requirements. All materials are sent to the Sustainable Hub in India for product manufacture. KAPDAA’s ethos ensures that every element of the process is sustainable: using natural glue, recycled paper, soot /natural ink for printing, biodegradable packaging and supporting local vendors.
KAPDAA provides fair trade employment to local artisans’, who handcraft and quality check each product. In doing so, they contributes towards organically increasing living standards. Once made, the items are shipped back to your studios using electric vans.
]]>It is estimated that 30% of fabrics in garment factories ends up on the factory floor, only to be taken to landfill. We don’t want that to happen to our fabrics! To lengthen the life cycle of our fabrics, we have partnered with some other companies and their founders to be able to recommend our customers where to send their fabric scraps. Here are some of our scrap partners, all of whom will take your offcuts after you have finished a project and use it in their business.
20 British brands will be arriving in Gothenburg, Sweden on the 15th of February. FÖMO Pop-Up Store in Mölndals Galleria and the Department for International Trade at the British Embassy in Stockholm have selected the brands for the limited-edition concept called British Island, highlighting companies and products focusing on sustainability and well-being.
The selected product ranges from the brands will be available exclusively at FÖMO Store between 15th of February and 31st of March 2019.The brands offer products in categories ranging from fashion and beauty to accessories and giftware. The limited edition British Island marks the first entry to the Swedish market for the 20 brands, which have been carefully selected and curated by the micro-department format store – FÖMO and the British Embassy. On February 28th, there will be a Meet The Buyer event where representatives from the 20 brands will come to Gothenburg to meet with Swedish buyers, agents and distributors.
“Through British Island we are offering these brands a unique opportunity to showcase their products to Swedish consumers, as well as industry contacts. We see an increased demand in sustainable products in the Swedish retail market, and the Brits are at the forefront of this development” says Lisen Stenberg, working with export promotion at the Department for International Trade at the British Embassy.
”FÖMO Store is a physical lifestyle magazine which is designed as a gateway for international brands to enter a new market easily, with low risk and cost, comments Ilona Taillade, CEO and co-founder of the FÖMO concept. “It’s great to be able to support brands that are so forward-thinking when it comes to sustainability and wellbeing”, she adds.
Gothenburg shoppers for a limited time will be able to browse, experience and buy British products between February 15th and March 31st. British Island at FÖMO is part of the British GREAT marketing campaign and aims to highlight British excellence in sustainability, fashion and design.
List of brands Fat Face – Christianah Jones – NKD Life – Kapdaa – EliRose – Urban Veda -Winser London – Lana Siberie – A. Andreassen – Memoize London – Sarah Straussberg Jewellery – Closet London – Dotty Dungarees – I Love Lowie – Merc London – Dear Curves – Miss Pompom – 001 Skincare London – Leather + Cotton London – ROKA London
]]>leader in the art of printing and production of the finest fabric, is a made in Italy excellence and partner of the most important luxury brands all around the world, from 1945.
Since 2011 Ratti has undertaken a journey of sustainability, paying particular attention to the matter of waste. In this way the company decided to promote the art of recycling, thanks to a collaboration with Kapdaa – an English company specialized in re-use fabrics scraps in order to create new products – working on a project to create responsible notebook and tote bags.
The result of this collaboration is a capsule collection who valorized Ratti wasted fabrics in a creative way, giving them a new life.
The idea behind the project is the possibility to regenerate those fabrics who ended his life cycle.Ratti new accessories proposal contribute to discover new ways to reuse the fabrics, highlighting sustainability and responsibility, in a elegant and stylish way.
To be fashion, to be responsible.
"English Version only In this "Eco Changemaker" series we introduce you to inspiring personalities, that are caring for a crucial change in the sustainability industry. Spending as much time in this business as we do, you realize that every step towards a sustainable future counts. When it comes to sustainability in the fashion industry there are a lot of problems to start with: What are sustainable fabrics? How are the garment workers treated throughout the supply chain? How to convince people to consume less and the right things? Another one of those problems is the quite big amount amount of waste that comes with cutting the fabrics.
The founder of KAPDAA® the offcut company, Nish, made this waste problem his business. UPCYCLING, BUT PRETTY. When he watched his mother cutting fabrics in her designer studio as a little kid, he realized that making fashion also means producing waste. Later when he graduated from university he would build up KAPDAA®, which has a simple yet significant concept: it produces notebooks covers and other accessories with leftover fabrics from different companies in a small production in Mumbai, India. The company that is located in Greater London works on different projects to develop unique pieces for their customers. We teamed up this summer to create some beautiful notebooks. We're happy that Nish took the time and answered our 25 change maker questions below. Enjoy reading!
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From Blue Chips to start-ups, some of the UK's most exciting green businesses will be celebrated at this year's awards BusinessGreen is today delighted to announce the finalists for the 2018 BusinessGreen Leaders Awards, the UK's most prestigious celebration of the best of green economy.We are also pleased to announce one of our keynote speakers at this year's awards on the evening of June 27 will be Energy and Clean Growth Minister Claire Perry.
"This year's awards were more competitive than ever with a record number of entries across all categories providing a testament to the growing strength and influence of the green economy," said BusinessGreen editor-in-chief James Murray. "Congratulations to all our finalists and good luck at this year's awards.
"Finalists now have until Monday May 21 to confirm their place at this year's gala dinner and awards ceremony at the Brewery in central London.BusinessGreen can also today announce that the charity partner for this year's awards will be leading solar development charity SolarAid.
]]>]]>#green business#kingston green radio#the offcut company
Kapdaa The Offcut company are based in Kingston and manufacture in India. Focused around the principles of sustainability, the company demonstrate how possible it is to produce high quality products from the waste of the clothing industry.
In this programme CEO Nish explains how this unique company came into existence. Like any good idea, it was simple but not simply found. The light bulb moment finally happened when we created our first set of bespoke notebooks covered by designer fabric offcuts.
They looked beautiful, elegant and niche. A piece of the designer, that was now made as a matching souvenir, in what better form than a notebook. To be able to write down thoughts, doodle ideas and be creative gave me the chance to inspire an array of people to be fashionable whilst making a sustainable statement.
Reducing waste has always been a top priority for more efficient business but the pressure is piling on fashion brands to reduce the amount of textile sent to landfill to protect the environment too.
The Council for Textile Recycling estimates that 25 billion pounds of textile waste is generated in the US alone and 85% of that ends up in landfill. While there are many schemes to rescue fabric from the cutting room floor and send it for recycling or to be upcycled by other brands, greater uptake of these initiatives is being hampered by the need for brands to protect the intellectual property.
However, one unique company is providing a solution that’s proving popular with clients including Selfridges, Halston Heritage, Alice + Olivia, Orlebar Brown, Erdem and more.
Kapdaa started life as a B2C company, turning fabric off cuts into bookmarks but when furniture brand Galapagos approached them to help upcycle their wastage, the business took a whole new turn. Over the past two and a half years, they’ve helped save approximately 5,250 meters of fabric by turning it into stylish, handcrafted products ranging from notebooks to slippers, eye masks and passport holders to be used as marketing gifts by the brands who designed the fabric. In some instances, they’ve even created limited edition products to be sold directly to customers too.
Nishant Parekh is the co-founder of Kapdaa. He previously worked in advertising and marketing for the likes of Saatchi & Saatchi and Ogilvy before starting the business inspired by the scraps of fabric left behind by his fashion designer mother.
“The biggest advantage I’ve found over time is the IP and design issue. All the fashion designers and the interior designers, they’re very reluctant of giving out anything because they feel that someone will take advantage of their design.”
]]>