With the aim of creating the lowest environmental impact possible, every element of our
product's journey and material content is considered. This is to ensure we come up with the
most sustainable solution possible.
Our mission is to provide our consumers with a completely transparent source log of the materials and human resources that have gone into the making of our products.
We believe handing over company and product data to consumers shifts the power dynamic of consumerism. Data is power and we aim to give our customers the power to make conscious decisions when shopping.
transparency
We make Bou Soie on a made-to-order basis, cut in the fabric colour of your choice. By manufacturing only what's needed, we reduce dead stock left behind due to overproducing. This means that dead stock will never be discarded. It also means that resources that go into making the product will not be wasted if the product is not consumed. For example, the energy used to power the sewing machines and manufacture the fabrics will only be used if a product is ordered.
We do not stock fabrics, the fabrics will only be purchased when an order is placed. This means we do not discard any dead stock fabric if we overbuy it. Made-to-order can also prevent impulse shopping and overconsumption.
Making to order also helps our brand grow as we do not waste our resources on manufacturing stock we may not sell. This means we have a larger manufacturing budget, and the machinists are paid fairly for the making of each garment.
Making to order can also prevent impulse shopping and overconsumption.
Made-to-order
Production runs
All Bou Soie products are manufactured in England. We make a percentage of clothing in small quantities ranging from five to ten pieces per production run, we do production runs during busier periods and for larger orders. We currently make in small batches to help eliminate potential waste left from overproduction, to keep jobs local and reduce shipping emissions. By keeping manufacturing local, we are able to ensure the working conditions meet acceptable standards.
Clothing is cut one piece at a time by Bou Soie Designer Megan, based in Hackney, London.
Pre-cut garments are then sent to The Pattern Room's machinist Hrissy to be put together. Hrissy makes a percentage of Bou Soie clothing from home and she has many years of experience in the production industry and manufactures all garments of beautiful, high-standard quality.
The Pattern Room is a small production studio which works to a high standard of garment making and pays great attention to garment finishing detail. They also believe in keeping their specialists local and reducing waste wherever possible in the early stages of production.
Bamboo raw material is organically grown on FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified land. The bamboo forests are annually checked by organic improvement crop associations to ensure no harmful chemical, natural pesticides or GMO are being used by the farmers. Weeds, pests and diseases are controlled by crop rotation, which is beneficial to biodiversity. Bamboo is grown without antibiotics and hormones and is given quality conditions.
Growing Bamboo organically helps soil stay reusable and fertile. Soil is enriched with compost, green manure and organic amendment’s.
Bou Soie labels are also printed on organic cotton.
Find out more about Organic Bamboo 'Silk'
growing organic
manufactring
fabric
The manufacturing of the fabric passes OEKO Tex class 1 manufacturing standards. No harmful chemicals are used in the manufacturing of the process of the fabric. The bamboo is grown and manufactured in China.
Our fabric suppliers use OEKO Tex certified dyes, these dyes do not contain harmful chemicals, they are gentle on the environment and they are gentle on your skin.
what's left
behind
To measure if a product is sustainable we believe it's important to consider the whole life cycle of a product from its creation to its eventail disposal. Starting with the growth of the bamboo to the eventual disposing of worn clothing. Products can have an environmental effect at any point. It's important we find solutions to minimise this at every point possible and not to neglect the effect the product may have after its life cycle comes to an end.
Our Organic Bamboo 'Silk' products are 100% biodegraded as they are a natural cellulose fibre and can decompose in soil.
To find out how to RePlant your old Organic Bamboo 'Silk' products.
scraps to
scrunchies
All the scrap fabric left behind after cutting Bou Soie clothing is repurposed to make scrunchies, to reduce fabric waste and instead turn it into something beautiful. Any scraps that are too small to repurpose are placed in compost.
( Please bare in mind not all our scrunchies are made from scraps )