The art of repurposing fashion’s dead stocks

At the Nona Source showroom in the north of Paris, designers opt for luxury textiles with ornate names: curly alpaca, geometric macramé guipure, silk diamond cloque jacquard.

What makes them truly exotic, however, is that they all come from “deadstocks,” the scraps that designers throw away when they’re done with a roll of fabric.

Until recently, it was common for dead stock, such as unsold clothing, to be burned or buried. At best, they collected dust in storage rooms.

Conscious of its image, luxury giant LVMH founded Nona Source three years ago, selling deadstock at a significant discount to emerging designers.

“I realized that in the depots there were so-called ‘sleeping beauties’, beautiful fabrics that were there for years after the collections were created,” says co-founder Romain Brabo.

Last year it sold about 280 kilometers of fabric, enough for about 140,000 garments.

Among the regular customers is Arturo Obegero, a 30-year-old Spanish designer who uses only upcycled and recycled materials.

Despite working from a small space in his home, he has scored a number of big-name orders, including a sheer corset dress for Beyonce during her Renaissance tour, a sign of his skill and the increasing appeal of climate-conscious design.

“I come from a family of surfers, of fishermen. When you come from a small town, you are connected to nature and you learn to respect it,” Obegero said.

He says Nona Source got him working in the big leagues. “People are more conscious about what products they buy… but it can be complicated to offer something truly sustainable at an affordable price.”

Evolving beauty

As pressure mounts on the fashion industry to control the mountains of waste and its enormous ecological impact, initiatives like Nona Source are proliferating.

Luxury giants like LVMH can afford to put in the effort, and also understand the marketing value.

It has ambitious goals, such as shifting transportation from planes to boats, training suppliers in better water management and investing in technology-driven new textiles such as vegan leather (it says it tested 300 such innovations last year).

But Helene Valade, LVMH’s head of sustainability, says the company’s most important role is to “evolve” people’s understanding of beauty.

“That’s really our strength. Ten years ago when we wore something recycled, people thought it was ugly. That’s no longer the case,” she told AFP.

“Beauty is no longer something that is completely smooth, perfect, straight… It is also what designers can do with recycled fabrics.”

Some are skeptical.

“Until they remove PVC plastic from their supply chain, especially at Louis Vuitton, LVMH will never be a green company,” says Dana Thomas, author of “Fashionopolis” about the industry’s climate impact.

Louis Vuitton, the world’s best-selling luxury brand, makes most of its money from its monogrammed bags, which are made of PVC-coated canvas.

‘Big change’

Thomas welcomes ideas like Nona Source, but finds it frustrating. “It’s a sensible idea. So why didn’t they do this 20 years ago?” she said.

“Fashion is so behind compared to, for example, the car industry. You can now buy an electric truck, but bags are still made of plastic?!”

She says a new generation of fashion executives is finally paying attention, and Nona Source is seeing the impact as an increasing share of the deadstock she receives is already made from recycled textiles.

“We’re seeing a really big change,” Brabo said.

As he spoke to AFP, in walked Charles de Vilmorin, the 27-year-old prodigy who was creative director for Rochas and runs his own Parisian label.

“I come here for inspiration. I like to be surprised,” says De Vilmorin.

“I think it’s great that they’re breathing new life into these materials, that they’re not being thrown away or destroyed… It’s very important.”