The global fashion industry is notoriously opaque, and it depends upon exploitation of workers and environmentally damaging practices. It is an issue that we’ve spoken of many times and one that drives us to do our very best to remain as transparent in our methods and materials as possible. But for us, there is also great joy in sharing what we do—in finding beauty in building a community and working with such incredibly talented employees and artisans. Nothing that Alabama Chanin makes will be at the expense of our people or our planet.
The Fashion Revolution movement works to do all of this on a global level. Their goal is to unite the fashion industry in an attempt to radically change the way our clothes are sourced, produced, and purchased—so that what the world wears has been made in a safe, clean, and fair way.
Fashion Revolution Week runs from April 24th – April 30th and coincides with one of the events that inspired this movement: the third anniversary of the Rana Plaza factory collapse, where 1,138 people were killed and many more injured. They are asking people across the world to ask brands, “Who Made My Clothes?” as a way to demand greater transparency in the fashion supply chain.
We will continue to work toward the most ethical and transparent supply chain possible. At Alabama Chanin, these are some of the people from our studio and Building 14 production team who make your clothes. We invite you all to get involved and to ask more questions, not just of us, but of all your favorite brands and designers. #whomademyclothes
Luda Matmuratova
Olivia Sherif
Sue Hanback
Victoria McCoy and Margaret May
Corey tenBerge
If you own any of our garments, we encourage you to proudly wear and share them on Instagram tagging #alabamachanin and #whomademyclothes.
ME! I love being able to source materials and knowledge from Alabama Chanin. I love having clothes that aren’t like everyone else’s. Several weeks ago, six friends and I got together to make AC tops for the summer. Everyone brought the stencils they had, embellishments, AC books to share. We sat and stitched (and ate!) for two days. The kicker is five of us made the same top-the Alabama sweater. None of them looked alike-they were all different colors, some were long, some were short, some were sleeveless, some had sleeves, some had simple designs, some could be spotted in the dark they had so many sequins on them. In the end, everyone had a cool top for summer and had a blast making them!
Very thought provoking!
And am I willing to put the time in to make my own clothes? How about making clothes for my family too? I don’t have all the answers but I think it’s good to be thoughtful and do what makes sense.