A few months ago, I reported about this event but, at the time, I didn’t think it would gain as much positive press as it has. According to people on the ground at the event, the night was a huge success — attendees had a grand time and the event itself has helped mark the start of something new that I hope is set to grow and evolve in the future.
In a nutshell, RE:Fashion is here to stay! RE:Fashion was established to transform social and environmental standards in the fashion industry for the next 10 years and these first awards have made steps towards achieving this goal. A list of winners were recognized at the event and I am happy to say some were on my list in my earlier story:
- RE:Fashion Designer of the Year — From Somewhere
- New RE:Designer of the Year and Estethica Prize — Izzy Lane
- Accessories Commendation — Fifi Bijoux
- RE:Business Award — Pachacuti
- RE:People Award — Pachacuti
- RE:Environment Award — Veja
- RE:Use Award — From Somewhere
- RE:Model Award — Lily Cole, Erin O’Connor and Alek Wek
- RE:Cotton Award — Commendations to Tesco and Pants to Poverty
- RE:Manufacturer Award — Mantis/Sunflag
- RE:Retailer of the Year Award — Adili
- RE:Consumer Award — Marie Claire
- RE:Africa Award — Made by the People for the People Ltd.
- Ethical Pure Commerical Prize — Amana
- UnLtd Prize — Sophia White
As part of the night, there was also a fashion show featuring “one-off” pieces to help highlight that being green and having a conscience does not necessarily result in hippie fashion and hemp patchwork. Pieces highlighted include a bark piece designed by Zandra Rhodes, whose tribal-printed poncho was made from bark cloth sourced from a ficus tree in Uganda, and Vivienne Westwood, who made a man’s and a woman’s outfit from organic cottons and silks (originating in Uganda and Brazil).
One of the founders of the awards, Tamsin Lejeune, director at Ethical Fashion Forum, had this to say on the night: “With more than 200 applicants to the awards, we have been stunned by the quality and breadth of what has been achieved. Applicants are changing thousands of lives and have the potential to change millions more. The RE:Fashion Awards represent not just the most important movement since fashion began — but also the answer to the industry’s future.”
Sam Roddick, daughter of the highly missed and inspirational founder of The Body Shop, Anita Roddick, and who runs her own ethical sex shop, Coco de Mer, also spoke of the need to transform how the fashion industry works to ensure a better future. She spoke of working together as a collective to bring about change in the entire industry. I have met with Sam a few times here in London and she is a true believer in this concept. We need more people like Sam to help change the eco fashion industry and to highlight to the public the choices that can be made (and still look good).
Other celebrities attending the show included Daisy Lowe, Pixie Geldof, Leah Wood and her mother, Jo Wood — but the night’s real stars were the companies and labels who use fair-trade initiatives, community projects, recycling and sustainability.
Overall, it seems that the night was a huge success for everyone involved, including all the winners, nominees and the fashion industry as a whole who continue to keep taking risks, standing up for better values by making choices — especially in the sourcing, production, selling and buying of fashion for the greater good of our planet. And with RE:Fashion a fanatical success for 2008, we have 2009 to which we can look forward!
