Three sustainable online marketplaces you should know

In a world that is increasingly aware of the importance of sustainable production, consumers are looking for convenient shopping locations that maintain their growing environmental awareness values.

Independent online marketplaces offer a bridge between the evolving digital landscape and the demand for sustainably produced goods, while providing a space for brands who want to tell their stories. Each site has its own purpose, while constantly seeking new opportunities that contribute to the field of sustainable fashion.

FashionUnited spoke with the CEOs of these three markets that define e-commerce calculations, introducing us to their selection process, values, and perspectives on the world’s sustainable future.

Curated Crowd: community builder

On a mission to bring designer-to-consumer services more direct to the industry, Curated Crowd CEO Ada Yi Zhao translates her love of shopping for specialty fashion brands that haven’t been discovered around the world into a digital platform. Starting out as a crowdfunding site supporting new designers, it quickly turned into a UK-based online marketplace for designers who didn’t quite fit into the ultra-luxury or traditional fast-fashion prints.

Curated Crowd was developed in response to the growing demand for mid-level fashion, looking further down the supply chain at individual designers who often struggle to find their way to access international consumers directly. Through its growing community, emerging labels from around the world can tell their stories as well as market their products.

Through extensive onboarding calls and studio visits, resulting from an open app system, Zhao establishes a personal connection with the designers, getting to know the stories behind their labels and the future goals they have in mind. Few options made it to the market, with each item available either a limited edition or made to order as a way to avoid potential mass overproduction.

The business side of sustainability is far more important than the materials and journey of the product – from its conception to how the product reaches the consumer’s home, explains Zhao. For me, I always look at each designer and how they run their business. Is it sustainable as a business? Is this a sustainable lifestyle for designers? I’m totally against the so-called fashion cycle and I think every piece we have on our platform should be something that consumers will have to cherish for years.

The concern for the designer’s relationship extends to his personal relationship with the customer. As many as 60 percent of orders come from returning shoppers, according to Zhao, who regularly communicates with them via WhatsApp and other social media channels.

For us, it really curates that community, he said. We are not for everyone. We are for a certain type of people with an educated purpose. People come to us because they want to learn and know about brands, what sustainability is, and how to preserve wardrobes for the seasons to come. We target conscious consumers.

A pop-up shop in London accompanies the online marketplace, offering personalized styling assistance while gathering valuable visitor feedback about products. Future plans could see Curated Crowd continue the development of this omnichannel business model, implementing this physical experience into the digital sphere.

Recently relocated to Amsterdam, Ada Zhao’s new base also presents new possibilities, such as additional potential pop-up shops or the opportunity to assist European brands in their forays into the UK market.

As a member of the British Fashion Council, I see so much talent in London but because of Brexit, it is very difficult for them to have a voice here on the European continent and vice versa. We want to be a bridge between the two, explained Zhao.

He continued: From an online perspective, we also wanted to launch our US site to cater to a wider audience. We ship worldwide, but we recognize that more localized curation is becoming more and more important for our customers.

Seezona: the new designer center

Since its launch two years ago, the Scandinavian luxury market Seezona has established a diverse platform offering everything from high-end fashion and accessories to beachwear and activewear, particularly from new designers. The multi-brand store curates internationally from over 25 countries, securing a unique selection of brands that you might not find on alternative sites.

Through our technical platform, we facilitate interaction between small businesses and customers, and maintain the entire value chain involved in the process, explains Seezonas founder and CEO, Anna Helander.

His love and interest in the industry began at a concept store in the South of France, where finding new designers allowed him to stand out from the crowd. After getting into this sector, Helander began to see the different barriers that made it difficult for new brands to reach consumers.

“I’m starting to understand how heavily dependent the wholesale industry is,” he said. As a result, many designers with great potential never thrive, simply because they don’t have the right connections with buyers or the capacity to produce a certain number of products. I wanted to solve that problem and, in the midst of our digital age, found that technology was the best solution for doing just that.

Each of the more than 100 brands featured on the platform has faced a rigorous selection process, which involves a meeting where labels are evaluated against a list of criteria. Hearing each founder’s story and the process behind production allows relationships to form and further ensures that the brand is a good fit for the Seezona platform.

Helander stated: We are always looking for brands that use quality fabrics, have a local mindset in their production, a sense of community, above great design of course.

The items on this site vary between bold statement pieces and more basic staples, offering something for almost every conscious shopper who visits. Additionally, the virtual setup room feature allows shoppers to test clothes and products in a digital try-before-buy setting.

Seezona is still pretty fresh on the scene and constantly looking to develop and discover. Regarding the upcoming project, Helander said: We do have a lot of big plans, this is just the beginning. Stay tuned!

The Wearness: clear conscious shopping

Germany-based The Wearness, founded and run by four women, started as a way to prove sustainable clothing can also be in fashion. Functioning as a marketplace, not wanting to come across as a marketplace, specially curated brands have a home on a platform that also considers the environment and ethical production can be achieved in a number of ways.

We started The Wearness to show that sustainability doesn’t necessarily affect the look and style of a piece, but that it can be the most beautiful thing with more sustainable production, says Julia Zirpel, co-founder. We want to point out that this is not a contradiction, because five years ago sustainable goods on the market were not fashionable in our eyes.

The high-end pieces on this site are selected through a rigorous questionnaire process that explores individual sustainability sectors. Once on the site, each item is displayed alongside the applicable criteria, allowing shoppers to shop according to their specific needs. This can include organic matter, fair production, and other specifically defined areas of sustainability.

This arrangement ensures that buyers know exactly what they are buying, and also allows a bit of flexibility for brands that direct sustainability efforts to different perspectives of the production process. We write about brands and we explain why they are sustainable, but we also show where they may not be so sustainable yet, says Zirpel, emphasizing the importance of transparency.

Handicraft is a very important element for us as well and is something that is not so obvious to many people. This opens up the possibility of traditional and heritage production, as well as local manufacturing, explains Zirpel. Many women work in this field, and this is another part of sustainability that people are less aware of.

Women’s empowerment is an additional core value of The Wearness, which takes into account the very real work of women in the fashion industry. The market is seen highlighting the rights of women workers, emphasizing the importance of education, child care and other assets that support and empower women in the workforce.

Alongside a growing portfolio of brands, The Wearness also releases its own limited collection every three months. Only certain products are available, this edition dresses and shirts, each with a concept based entirely on the ideas of circularity and bio-degradability. Crafted with natural materials and locally produced, the items for sale define the circular wardrobe that The Wearness seeks to promote.

Addressing circular production, Zirpel said: We think this is one of the most important topics that will come up in the future, but the market is not there yet. Everyone talks about recycled materials, they just don’t realize what happens to products when they are no longer used.

In fact, the lack of effective waste management is one of the main barriers Zirpel identified, noting that there needs to be a focus on blocking the disposal of garments before they end up in markets that Europe can no longer control. As part of its own efforts, products from The Wearness collection can be returned to the platform once they are no longer in use, and the company is also considering implementing a repair service.

Guya Merkle, co-founder and creative director of Vieri’s high-end jewelry, has embarked on the development of sustainable waste management. Together with a Dutch NGO, he initiated an initiative to produce recycled gold from old cell phones, which were transported from the African market back to Europe.

Further future plans for the platform include establishing a physical base, where consumers can see and touch clothes in person, enabling face-to-face encounters with shoppers. Zirpel concludes: Especially now during covid, we feel that people really miss personal contact and not just get everything online.