Towards climate-smart fashion

Climate-smart measures we take today

For us, it is important to have as little impact on the climate and our environment as possible. We therefore try to make it easier for you too to make climate-smart choices in life. Below you can read about what we do today and what we are working towards being able to do and offer in the future. As well as some tips about what you can think about in your life if you want to live more climate-smart and environmentally friendly.

We work actively to become more climate-smart and find ways to improve our production, our working methods and our range on an ongoing basis.

You can read below the climate-smart measures we are already taking.

Climate-smart production and supply

Offering climate-smart alternatives involves more than just thinking about the material in the products. Although of course we have the material as part of our list.

  • CLIMATE SMART MATERIALS
    We use as much as possible materials in good environmental choices in our clothes. Such as: organic cotton , recycled materials, ÖKO-TEX and GOTS certified fabrics, bamboo buttons .
  • TIMELESS DESIGN
    When developing our products, we focus on designing timeless garments. This is so that you as a customer can love and use your garment from us for as long as possible.
  • DIGITAL WORK PROCESS
    We work digitally in our design process and make as few prototypes as possible to minimize our impact on the environment. We sell out the prototypes a few times a year in the store in Visby, so keep an eye out!
  • CLIMATE SMART RANGE
    In addition to our own products, we also offer you other brands that also work for a better future climate. It can be through reuse, new smart materials, organic, locally produced, slow fashion, etc

Climate-smart packaging

Of course, we also want our packaging to be as climate-smart as possible.

  • EVERY BAG COUNTS
    We send our garments to you in paper bags and tissue paper when you shop online. And when you shop in our physical store in Visby, you also get a paper bag to carry your purchase home in. Our bags and tissue paper are made from recycled paper or new paper that is FSC certified. . In this way, we save the environment and our trees a few more turns. More information about FSC certification, click here!
  • RECYCLED PACKAGING MATERIALS
    To the greatest extent possible, we reuse the packaging material that we receive in the store. We save and reuse as much as possible. For example. in our own warehouse or when we send deliveries to our dealers. It is because we want to take advantage of what we already have instead of producing new ones. We hope you like it as much as we do!
  • IF IT IS NEW THEN IT SHOULD BE CLIMATE SMART
    Sometimes it happens that we don't already have packaging material that we can reuse. Then we only use packing materials made from recycled materials. We use paper as much as possible and avoid plastic as much as possible.

Source sorting, recycling and repair

So what do we do with what's left? How do we manage our waste and residual products?

  • SOURCE SORTING A SELF-CLEARNESS
    We sort all our waste at source and reuse as much as possible and we hand everything in to recycling stations.
  • CREATIVITY WITH FABRIC PLAY
    We are constantly working to create as little waste as possible in our production. But sometimes there are pieces left over. We try to use these for other products as much as possible, they can, for example, become hats or headbands. We also collaborate with jewelry designers who reuse our fabric waste. If the pieces are too small to be able to make something out of, we submit them to fabric collections at recycling stations.
  • NO CLOTHES ARE THROWN AWAY
    If a garment or development sample cannot be sold, we leave it to second-hand shops where the profit goes to charity. We can also transform the garment into something new.
  • WE REPAIR AND FIX YOUR CLOTHES
    With our own sewing production, we have the privilege of being able to offer you the repair of your garments. Get in touch if you want to have your Esther & Inez garment made, and we'll help you!
  • SECOND HAND
    Via Facebook, you can sell your Esther & Inez garments on to people who are in our Facebook group for secondhand sales. You need to be a member of the group yourself to be able to sell on. Find the group, click here!

Our suppliers

We review all our suppliers carefully in order to choose the most sustainable suppliers possible.

  • ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY ENERGY
    Our electricity is completely green and only comes from environmentally friendly sources. We travel as environmentally friendly as possible.
  • SUSTAINABLE FABRIC SUPPLIERS
    All our fabric suppliers work sustainably and are GOTS certified for a more environmentally friendly future. We only work with suppliers that are within Europe and as close as possible to minimize shipping and emissions.
  • CONSCIOUS LANDLORDS
    We have chosen our landlords with care and work continuously to get environmentally friendly updates such as tighter windows and doors to minimize energy emissions.

Climate goals for the future

We will never stop striving to make our products, our production, working methods and our services more climate-friendly. No matter how good they are - there will always be room for improvement. Our motto is that it is always possible to develop a little more.

Below you can read about our goals for the future.

Three services for a circular economy

We want to become more circular. That is to say, create a cycle within Esther & Inez. Where our products are primarily reused. Alternatively, the material is recycled. And in the absolute last resort, the material becomes energy. You can read more about circular economy at the Nature Conservancy , the Ellen MacArthur Foundation or Wikipedia . We are working hard to get started with a circular offer in the form of various services:

  1. REPAIR SERVICE
    Already now, as I said, we can fix your clothes when you drop them off at the store. In the future, we also want to offer a service where you can send your damaged garments to us. And get them all back again.
  2. RECYCLING
    In order to become more circular, we are looking at different options to take care of our fabric waste in a better way. We are investigating the possibility of tearing down our waste to a fluffy fiber level where the waste can serve as new products, such as stuffing in pillows, insulation in the construction industry or other exciting things we may discover during the journey. If you have any thoughts, please get in touch and let us know!
  3. SECOND HAND
    Sometimes it happens that you no longer want to keep your garment, maybe it no longer fits. Then in the future we want to offer you the opportunity to hand in your garment to be resold via us. So that another of Esther & Inez's friends can have the opportunity to love the garment. Right now you can sell your garment yourself through our Facebook group, click here to find here!
  4. REDESIGN
    Imagine you have your favorite pair of jeans, the ones you've worn until they almost fall apart. You probably have great memories with that particular garment. One goal that we are exploring is to be able to offer you an opportunity where you send us your favorite broken garment and we redesign it into something else for you.

Eco-friendly materials

We keep track of the latest research findings regarding how different materials and their manufacturing processes affect our environment and the climate when it comes to using more environmentally smart fabrics. And because we always want to develop and improve, that goal is and remains a future goal.

We look ahead to be able to quickly catch on when new materials and manufacturing processes become available on the market and work in our business. Did you know e.g. that research is being done on how old bread can be used to grow mushrooms which in turn can be transformed into a cotton-like material? Read more here .

Climate-smart production

Since we have our own sewing production in Visby, we can already today produce to order in small quantities. In this way, we can produce according to demand and be very flexible in which models we sew and so on. This means that we rarely have to get rid of clothes that we have already sewn up. If a size is missing or if you want a garment in a different fabric than what we have sewn up, it can therefore often be arranged.

In the future, however, the goal is to move more and more to "production on demand". This means that we only produce the garment after you have placed your order. Something that would lead to us not having any overproduction at all. We have already started this work in the fall of 2023 with completely unique "production on demand" collections such as our Black collection - which is only sewn up after order. We hope to be able to do more of it in the future.

Click here to get to the Black collection.

We will also work more and more to involve you as a customer when we design our clothes. So that our range will suit you as well as possible. Do you have any thoughts about our models, something you are missing or would like to change? Don't hesitate to tell us! We love that kind of feedback because it helps us be better for you.

And now some climate-smart tips on what you can do in your everyday life

No one can do everything but everyone can do something as they say. And that's right. None of us can save the climate by ourselves. However, we can do what we can to reduce our negative impact - our footprint on the climate. We have therefore compiled some tips for you as a private individual and clothing lover.

Consume climate smartly

  • Avoid over-consuming products and take advantage of what you have in the first place. Good for both the climate and the wallet.
  • Love and care for your clothes as long as you can. And only buy what you really want and are sure you will use.
  • Shop locally, locally produced and make environmentally friendly choices . Choose products that are made in organic materials, locally produced and products to support the transition to a better future, such as in recycled materials.

Climate-smart clothing care

  • Avoid washing your clothes as much as possible. Focus on airing the garments as long as possible. You can e.g. air them in the bathroom when you shower. The steam helps to clean the garment and makes the garment hang out and become less wrinkled. When the weather is good, you can air the garment outside. But keep it in the shade to avoid sun bleaching the colors.
  • Do not iron unnecessarily . Rather hang your clothes in the bathroom in connection with the shower. So that the steam and heat help to smooth out any wrinkles.
  • Run on eco programs and low temperatures when you wash, which saves our energy consumption. Did you know that every time you wash, some fibers come loose from your clothes and are washed out with the water from the washing machine? So if you wash synthetic garments that are made with oil, that micro plastic ends up in our oceans.
  • Use environmentally friendly detergents and skip the fabric softener, this way you minimize the release of chemicals into our environment. And also saves energy and raw materials that are used for the production of the product. If you want the clothes to smell, you can rather put some dried flowers or scent balls in the wardrobe instead.
  • When your garment breaks , make sure to repair it so that its lifespan is as long as possible. Repair it yourself or send it in for repair. In our store in Visby, we are happy to receive your clothes and can make them for you.

And when you no longer want your garment

  • When you no longer use a garment , donate it to charity. Or sell it on through our Secondhand group on Facebook . Or via Tr adera , S ell py or whatever suits you best. Let the garment live on with a new owner who will love and care for it.
  • Recycle and sort your waste as much as possible. Hand it in to places where you know the material will be taken care of in a good way. So that it doesn't just burn up. And if it burns up, check if the energy created goes further in the circuit - e.g. district heating, biogas etc.