Emily Konkler
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Okay, so, I feel sheepish. The last article I posted I claimed that American Apparel is not eco-friendly. To my delighted surprise, American Apparel carries an organic line called The Sustainable Edition. This is not new news, but well, it’s new to me. I love American Apparel, so I’m incredibly pleased to know that this huge well known company is slowly trying to make the switch to carry only organic clothing.
The business world and the natural world are not inherently at odds with one another. American Apparel strives to be a capitalist success at the same time that it is a social and environmental success. We think that being profitable does not have to mean degrading the environment or making people settle for a low standard of living. The Sustainable Edition is part of our mission to make every aspect of our process a positive one, from growing cotton to selling clothes.
The Sustainable Edition is a selection of our most popular styles in 100% USDA certified organic cotton, with the same comfort and sex appeal as all American Apparel products.
Our retail stores offer the Sustainable Edition with the distinctive green contrast stitching, as well as “store exclusive” organic styles not available online or through wholesale.
Our long term goal is to gradually integrate principally organic cotton into our main production line so that every American Apparel garment will be a certain percentage principally organic fiber. In the long run, conventional agricultural methods need to be seriously reconsidered from health and environmental standpoints. American Apparel is actively seeking innovative ways to reduce the negative impacts of cotton cultivation.
Step by step, American Apparel is analyzing each phase of its production process to make it more efficient and low impact. At present, we recycle over a million pounds of fabric scraps annually and manufacture garments such as our Baby Rib Thong from pre-consumer scrap fabric. We recycle office paper, our cardboard boxes are reused, and we are exploring many other ways of becoming more resource efficient.
Three cheers to an extremely large company not only taking steps to make their brand eco-friendly but initiating a change for the industry. For an awesome list why American Apparel believes you should buy organic cotton, head on over to their Sustainable site.
Images Credit: American Apparel Sustainable Edition
