SUSTAINABILITY
We aim to bring awareness to both environmental and social problems.
We aim for higher Sustainability standards: more durability, fair work practices, recycled materials and zero waste.
We act with humility and integrity, trying to do the best we can not to hurt the planet, while knowing there is always room to improve.
We aim to create Cool Sustainable Streetwear.
We try to embrace all types of Sustainability.
In our pieces we are working towards a Unisex collection, which is socially more sustainable, and can embrace different types of bodies.
In our SS22 collection, for example, 90% of the collection is Unisex, and you can find sizes from XS-XL.
MATERIALS
As a small brand, we do what we can to contribute for a better world:
- Whenever possible, we incorporate fabrics from previous collections, which we still have in stock, in the new collection we are producing - to REUSE;
- When choosing fabrics, we always have quality in mind, so that the pieces will last longer.
- As our production is still small, we can produce mainly with materials from factories’ deadstock, which helps eliminating stock and waste. Since our AW22 collection, we added Maeba International to our list of suppliers, and our selectef fabrics have a ReLiveTex® certification, which attests that they have been removed from processes of devaluation and promoted to new uses as required by the objectives expressed by the Circular Economy Package of the European Union (Directive 2018/851) - to REDUCE;
We also have been working with certified and eco-friendly materials like Organic and Recycled Cotton, Recycled Polyester, Bemberg™ (biodegradable)
and SEAQUAL® (Yarn made from 10% Upcycled Marine Plastic and 90% post-consumer plastic from land sources) - to RECYCLE;
PRODUCTION
When cutting our pieces, as we cut all of the garments in house, we avoid waste and try to maximize the cutting area;
with the fabric parts that don’t go into making the garments, we make accessories to present on the collection - ZERO WASTE
We are based in Portugal, which is a country known for its quality in production both of materials and garments, so our supply chain - from raw materials to logistics - is concentrated in a 300km area from Lisbon to the North of Portugal. This way we can try to Reduce the CARBON FOOTPRINT.
We also produce locally, so we make sure all of the people who are working with us get rightly paid for their work, which they do with care and love, as part of our family
(we have Fair Trade in mind).
PACKAGING
Our packaging is mainly composed by card boxes, paper bags, paper flyers and custom hand illustrations made by the designer Ana Duarte.
Nevertheless, in the past we used to have poly mailer bags which will now be substituted by a smaller card box.
Our goal is to have FSC certification in all our packaging.
C.L.A.S.S. ICON AWARD 2021
Ana Duarte is the winner of the C.L.A.S.S. Icon 2021 Award: the annual competition for visionary creatives who combines design, responsible innovation and communication, capable of raising contemporary consumer awareness of the new values of sustainable fashion.
“DUARTE injects sustainability into streetwear with a bold, energetic, positive and fresh style language and brand-new sustainable values. It perfectly matches our vision for a four- dimensional fashion,” says Giusy Bettoni, CEO and Founder of C.L.A.S.S. ecohub. “We believe that true new generation fashion is the blend of style, innovation and responsibility, but it also requires proper and good communication, the fourth dimension, to deliver positive, authentic and value driven messages to consumers. DUARTE achieves that. It’s time to overcome green washing, it’s time to give voice to brilliant designers like Ana who create exquisite storytelling matching virtuous story-making.”
“Having known Ana and her ethical and moral qualities, we understood how important sustainability was in her collections: she brings the coolness and freshness of streetwear together with responsibility. The brand is characterized by a fresh and innovative design that creates a contemporary lifestyle linked to sustainable streetwear enriched by unique prints, resulting in a cutting-edge brand that stands out on the Portuguese and international market." says Alex Albini, CEO Idee Brand Platform.
“Ana Duarte renews streetwear in an artistic way blending together an outerwear soul and unique and exquisite prints. 'Reef', her ultimate collection acts for the Great Barrier Reef, a natural wonder endangered by the ‘whitening phenomenon’, an emergency that the designer intends to put under the spotlight for consumers.” says Federico Poletti, Marketing & Communication Director White.
“Duarte embodies values in environmental protection, but also human wellbeing in a unique and creative way. It's not something I've seen very often in the street style space. I think Duarte has a great potential of making people wear their love for our oceans and inspiring others to protect them” says Iris Skrami, Co-founder and CEO at Renoon.
SUSTAINABLE BRAND PLATFORM
We are proud to currently be one of the brands on the Sustainable Brand Platform.
At the moment we have an evaluation of 4 in 6, and are working towards an even better performance.
