When Theodore combines ethics and chic
Created in 2015 by two curious and self-taught Corsican young men, Theodore is a children's clothing brand combining comfort, elegance and natural fibres.
Rethinking the essentials to make unique quality pieces, designing useful accessories and trends, renewing fashion with a quirky spririt and keeping in mind that details are essentials : here's the DNA of Theodore. The insular brand dedicated to children is above all an affirmation of a spirit combining high quality, coolness and personnality. Its ambition ? Give you the keys to childish elegance to dress up your desires and those of your children. Theodore is all about ethics : «elegance: yes! But not at any price… ». The brand will be first timer at Playtime Paris this summer, at the NEW NOW area. We wanted to ask some questions to Julien Biasotto, co-founder Theodore : life story of the brand, ethical commitment and plans for the future, he tells us everything !
Can you tell us a bit more about the name of the brand ? Why Théodore ?
To those who ask the question why Theodore, here is a part of the answer. The research of a name for a brand is usually a faithful representation of an assault course. In this case, Theodore came to us naturally... Attached to the island where we come from, we wanted to honor the one and only sovereign it has ever known. This explorer who landed on our beaches, has been crowned a few days after by a jubilant population. This image corresponded in every way to the idea of our project and, more specifically to the name of the brand. Beyond this historical point, Theodore wants to put the spotlight on children ! We wanted to bring back to former glory the expression "spoiled child" : at Theodore we think that children are the best representatives of our clothes…
opposite : Collection "New Napoleon", AW16
Why did you choose to create a children ethical brand ? Did that choice change your process of creation ?
In everyday life, we do our best to spread values which represent the fundamental ideas of our brand. Respectful of the world around us, our whole clothing manufacturing is made in total accordance with environmental standards. Ecology and childhood go with protection and future. This passion as well as our spirit are based on a choice : sustainable development associated to well thought-out use is the key to preserve next generations.
Chosing to make organic clothing changes naturally the process of creation and realisation. Having the lowest impact on the environment by producing in a responsible and sustainable way is the very essence of our engagement. We make sure that we establish short channels with all of our raw material suppliers to reduce our carbon footprint. With the launch of our collection summer 2017 « Les Petits Monstres » we have reached a new level in our search for excellence as we have been granted the GOTS certification for the selection of our raw materials. This certification originates from some prominent and renowned actors in the environmental sector ; it is one of the strictest and most esteemed labels for the conception of organic textile. It is now getting more and more recognition thanks to the direct involvement of consumers, and it’s exactly what we want to encourage by establishing smarter and more sustainable consumption habits where humans are the core concern.
Nouvelle Collection "Les Petits Monstres", SS17
Why did you decide to commit yourself with UNICEF ? What were your motivations ?
We care for your children. Therefore, we strongly fight for the protection of childhood and especially against child labour. The moral code is still not a main aim in the children’s clothing around the world, considering child labour as cheap and easy to manage. In this context, Theodore has chosen to commit itself with UNICEF helping out with its good working and more specifically by financing missions against child labour.
What kind of advice can you give to new designers who want to switch to ethical production ?
Ethical production brings high obligations… But more significantly, it adds much value to your production and gives you a feeling of personal accomplishment. Some pitfalls must be avoided; that’s why we recommend being particularly rigorous (if not adamant) with suppliers. Ideally, you should establish your own chart and ask any of your business partners to sign it to avoid any unpleasant surprises.
Tell us a bit about your plans for the future...
We have countless projects in mind… First of all, we’ll keep structuring our brand to spread our spirit over the world throughout our creative works. We’ll design brand new lines : our collection 2018, which we’ll present during this show, satisfies this desire and is full of surprises ! Finally, we might duplicate the spirit of our textile creations into other domains such as art / interior decoration… But that’s our secret!
Collection SS17 "Les Petits Monstres" © Theodore
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