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The number of fashion and footwear brands making serious commitments to creating products that are sustainable and less wasteful continues to grow by the day (thankfully). From recrafting spent gear and using earth-friendly natural materials like hemp and other biodegradable fibers to practicing ethical sourcing and production and utilizing regenerative sources like sugarcane, each practice, while never perfect, is valid in turning the giant wheel of manufacturing forward towards a more responsible future.
Beloved Swedish brand Fjällräven is following suit with the Samlaren collection, a newly launched initiative using deadstock material leftover from the brand's own mills and factories to reproduce classic silhouettes in fresh, limited-edition colorways.
While Fjällräven has always been a brand that champions some degree of sustainability, most notably in making their outerwear and equipment durable by design, Samlaren redesigns the brand's waste processes, making use of fabric previously deemed unusable in normal runs of production due to color variation, limited quantities, size, and so on.
For the collection's initial release, Fjällräven has stuck close to home, reimagining their classic Greenland Jacket, the omnipresent Kånken backpack, and updated versions of the tote bag and cap in bright, color-blocked designs that pay homage to their patchwork origins. Each hand numbered piece is still beholden to the brand's high standards for functionality, durability, and reliability.
Moving forward, the brand intends to continually review their leftover fabrics and release Samlaren collection updates roughly once a year—though timing will ultimately depends on what waste is leftover. And with a continued commitment to reducing waste and increasing product efficiency, Samlaren's future may be more limited than initially expected.
As Fjällräven's Head of Sustainability, Christiane Dolva Törnberg, puts it, “If we become as efficient as we want to be in our product development, we will not have any leftover materials to work with... perhaps a strange way of looking at the future for (Samlaren), since that will mean that it becomes obsolete.”
So, strike while the iron is not obsolete, folks.
Published 03-01-2021
