MEDIA COVERAGE

RIVET 50 MEMBER - Rivet 50 features profiles diverse players in the denim business, spanning sustainable fashion designers, independent retailers and philanthropic entrepreneurs and business leaders. This year, Rivet 50 was compiled by nominations and votes submitted by peers acrossin the denim industry. More than 12,000 votes cast online votes determined the international honorees culled from five categories: executive, designer, retailer, influencer and supply chain.

Sourcing Journal

…Working out of her London home, denim consultant, designer and 2020 Rivet 50 nominee Claire Ford just finished the Spring/Summer ’21 jeans collection for U.K. fashion brand Reiss, and is putting the next steps in place for her other gig as designer for Outland Denim. The global team behind the Australia-based, Cambodia-manufactured jeans brand is taking a pause from their usual pace to reevaluate what they want from their products, she said.Ford recently sat down with Rivet to offer a look at how sustainability will remain a top priority even as the brands she designs for work their way out of the pandemic crisis. Though traveling to Cambodia is off limits for now, and small, everyday tasks like receiving samples in the mail can be a challenge, Ford said working during a pandemic and having to rely on feedback from those on the ground is improving her understanding of knowing exactly what she wants.

It’s a rare opportunity for Ford and the socially and environmentally conscious brand to slow down and respond to the coronavirus crisis in a considered and strategic way.

“We’re looking at what we can react to straight away within our core product and also looking at what other product categories we can work on as well,” Ford said. “It’s been an interesting time working with the pattern team and really focusing down on how do we improve every single product we’re sending out to market.”

Outland Journal

… Claire, who has worked with us at Outland Denim in designing our upcoming Spring ‘20 collection, and I discuss that a huge step going forward would be to see more designers at the Conference, as they are ultimately responsible for selecting raw materials. Sustainability starts with thoughtful design…

The director of Claire Ford Consultancy and head designer for Outland Denim tells us how designing for sustainability is vital, and that Outland’s new process for investigating exploitation in supply chains could be of value to other brands sourcing from Turkey.

What’s most important to you, in terms of your work and what do you enjoy focusing on?

The most important part of my job is the people I work with, and being aligned with the company's values and working to a circular economy. Sustainability is important to me from a social, economic and environmental view so making sure everything I do and design considers these values. Eighty percent of the impact of each garment is decided at the design stage so I always try to source the best raw materials, such as recycled cotton, Refibre, hemp mixes, design for longevity and I also try to make sure I am working with new technologies within the laundry to reduce our environmental impact. Our eventual goal for Outland and my clients should be to set our targets past circularity and to a point where the environment, and humans, are in a better place from our creation of garments, so not just closing the loop on our products, but to create a positive loop system.

Women’s Wear Daily

… Since launching her business in January, Claire Ford, a British fashion design consultant who specializes in sustainability and denim, has seen eager interest from brands looking to up their sustainability credentials.

“I don’t have any clients who say ‘no, we don’t want this’ whenever I suggest a sustainable innovation,” said Ford, who works for Australian brand Outland Denim as well as British high-street retailer Reiss. “They are aware that they will not be fully sustainable straight away, but it’s a work in progress. For example at Reiss, we’re changing the core range to incorporate recycled polyester and cotton as well as organic fibers, with all washes done more responsibly.” …

The Vendeur

… The later exposes workers to silica dusts which can lead to respitory problems and was banned in Turkey in 2009. However it’s something that Claire Ford, Design Lead for Outland Denim believes should be spread worldwide. The brand also use ‘E-flow Machines, which replace normal stone washing using air from the atmosphere transformed into nano bubbles,’ she told us. As a seasoned denim design consultant, Claire is all for sustainable innovation to help her create great denim without the environmental fall out. ‘Outland use laser machines to reduce the use of PP (potassium permanganate) when creating the ‘worn in’ look. In addition to Ozone water free bleaching where you can ‘bleach’ the garment by using ozonated water instead of Sodium Hypo-chloride,’ Claire explains.….

S & S Spotlight: Outland Denim

…Claire later shared her thoughts with me – “I believe that as a designer we have a huge responsibility, 80% of the impact of each garment is decided at the design stage so we need to design the whole process as well as the garment and create timeless pieces people will want to keep forever. As well as the environmental and economical impact, social impact is rarely discussed, even at sustainability events. 98% of garment workers do not make enough to meet their basic needs, a living wage is a human right! I love working for a brand that empowers their staff to forge their own path in life, free of poverty & exploitation.”…

Her signature piece? The most sustainable jeans in the world.

…Claire is a local denim guru. From chemical processing to the latest trends in music and culture, she combines all of her expertise to design ethical jeans. You might find yourself tempted to invest in a pair…

THE COMPLICATED WORLD OF FASHION CORES

Denim has always been a key part of core product ranges. “Cores are your commodity, they are the pieces in your range that are the base to your collection that you build around,” said Claire Ford, founder of Claire Ford Consultancy, whose clients include Outland Denim, Reiss, Strom and more. “Luckily, denim isn’t as fickle as some areas in fashion and moves a lot slower in [the] pace of trends.”

Once considered trendy, sexy and even aspirational, skinny jeans have settled into their role as a core. “The skinny jean has been a big part of core for the last decade,” Ford said. “As we have seen in the last three years, more relaxed styles have trended up for many reasons and have become new core pieces due to aspects like covid, work from home, more relaxed styling, the Gen Z rebellion against the skinny jean.”

The 5-pocket jeans normally associated with core are wearable, easy fits, and always selling from one season to the next, she added.

For a designer, core pieces are a starting ground. “When I work with a new client, I always want to start with their core range and make that the best it can possibly be before working on the trend pieces,” Ford said. “I find so much joy in working on the core range—dissecting it, relooking at fabrications, stitch detail…how it is being made.”

The core, she added, should represent the backbone of a brand’s collection.

Denim Industry’s Response to Coronavirus Will Determine its Future

…Despite the actions of some companies, the pandemic presents an opportunity for positive systemic change. Ethical denim brand Outland Denim, which recently extended an opportunity for the public to invest in its sustainable company, is seeing engagement even in the face of economic uncertainty.

Panelist Claire Ford, who serves as the brand’s head of design, says the crowdfunding’s success could signal that consumers are placing more value in sustainability as a result of the pandemic—a concept that denim specialist Leanne Jae thinks will change the industry for the better…

Strohacker Design School students have been privileged to be working on a live brand apparel brief for the fantastic Australian Brand, Outland Denim.

… On the project we worked closely with Nick Williams, ex Levis (Head of Graphics Europe) and Claire Ford, Design Lead for Outland Denim, clairefordconsultancy.com…