As a fashion consumer, I started my journey to be more ethical when it comes to my wardrobe choices. Fortunately, on this course, I have come across several brands that are trying to break the fast-fashion mold and creating beautiful collections that are ethically made. In fact, many well-known {conventional} brands are also making an effort to be more responsible and adopting sustainable practices.

While the number of new ethical fashion brands is growing, there are only a few regions in the world where "Ethical" and "Sustainable" fashion is making noise. I am frequently asked by my readers, and friends on social media if there are responsible brands which are more accessible, especially in countries outside Europe, Australia, and the USA. 

So I rounded up six sustainable brands, that are easily accessible in most parts of the world. These brands are making genuine efforts to be more responsible towards the communities they operate in, the planet and the people who live on it.

Step away from fast-fashion, and embrace the good stuff:

G-Star Raw

Patagonia

Alabama Chanin

After having studied Environmental Design at North Carolina State University, Natalie Chanin worked in the fast fashion industry and witnessed first-hand the damage it is doing to our planet and the people. That led to the inception of her brand Alabama Chanin - a zero-waste, sustainable fashion brand that creates hand-sewn clothing crafted by well-paid skilled artisans using 100% organic cotton along with repurposed and reclaimed materials. Her designs are authentic and beautiful, pieces you would keep {and wear} in your wardrobes for years and possibly would want to hand down to the next generation.

Known for its timeless and high-quality styles, this Swedish brand has been engaged in sustainability for many years. The company gives a large emphasis on what materials it uses, where it gets them from, its longevity and recyclability. You will find organic cotton, organic linens and recycled materials in abundance in its collections. They have pledged to use only sustainable materials in all its collections by the year 2030. 

Staying true to its Scandinavian spirits, the company is also very transparent about its sustainable practices and discloses on its website every detail of each outfit down to the complete information of the vendor who made it. 

Not just that, it also has introduced a unique 'leasing' concept in its stores {across Europe} under which you can lease last-season garments at ~20% of its retail price and return it to the company after use, hence reducing the need to buy and produce more. These items are then sold second-hand. How clever is that?

Adidas by Stella McCartney

I remember doing a case study on unethical practices during my university days, and Nike and Adidas were part of the report for the use of sweatshops to produce their popular shoes. Back in the 1990s and early 2000, Adidas was subject to criticisms in relation to worker exploitation. However, the brand has come a long way from there and is working towards improving its supply chain and wipe out modern-day slavery as far as the German brand is concerned.

While I am not big on Adidas as a whole, since there are more sustainable alternatives available now, but I definitely love Adidas collection called Adidas by Stella McCartney, for the obvious reason - Stella is part of this unique partnership. The well-known fashion designer, McCartney is often dubbed as the queen of sustainable fashion and her unique partnership with sportswear brand Adidas, since 2005, is no different when it comes to ethics. In addition to being sustainable, they are also vegan, which means you will not find any leather, silk or other animal materials in this line.

For all your athleisure and activewear needs, this is certainly the brand to shop from. They are ethically produced using sustainable materials like organic cotton and recycled yarn and incorporates innovations like a special dyeing process that uses no water. How cool is that? Above all, they are super stylish and comfortable too!


In addition to the above names, there are many other upcoming sustainable fashion brands cropping up in all parts of the world - some popular and other not so known (but equally good). Doing some research online is a great way to identify such brands.

However, if you are still not able to give up on fast-fashion brands like Zara and H&M, try to shop more responsibly from them and pick from their respective sustainable collections. Oh yes, most fast-fashion brands have introduced their sustainable collections, which comprise a small percentage of their overall lines, but still offers a large variety to pick from. H&M calls it Conscious Collection, while Zara's sustainable line is called Join Life. These collections are produced using sustainable materials like organic cotton, Tencel, vegan leather and recycled materials. Each item under these collections has an additional special tag with their respective names on it. These aren't the best choice as there is little known about the conditions under which these items are produced, but they are better than their regular collection.

As consumers, the moral responsibility to bring the change lies on us. If more consumers demand clothing that’s made ethically and sustainably, brands won’t have much choice but to follow that lead. After all, brands produce what consumers demand. 

So let's ask the brands the right questions, and award those that are already ahead on their ethical curve, by supporting them and shopping from them!