It’s that tension and exquisite beauty in walking the line. VBH The Another Tomorrow aesthetic is all about strength in tailoring and construction married with femininity. And advocacy because better choices are not enough either – governments need to step up to improve regulation to support living wages, compassionate treatment of animals, and regulate the environmental impacts of the industry as well as creating the enabling infrastructure for a more circular economy.ĮW Tell me about the AT aesthetic and how it unfolded? Education because apparel supply chains are exceptionally opaque and complex and there is a lot of consumer education required to build the foundations for better choices. There is a clear dearth of values-aligned product out there modeling what can be done and there was and is considerable white space to bring exceptional quality to the market at a more accessible price point. What ultimately led me to start a brand in the first place is that this is where the consumer relationship exists – between people and the brands who add value to their lives. To create change, I truly believe you need all three working together. VBH My three pronged approach is creating a foundational wardrobe of ethically and responsibly made clothing, and a platform education and activism to amplify our collective voices. Each of them had a deep understanding of who I was as a full person and could understand how this opportunity allowed me to bring my best self to a problem that deeply motivated me.ĮW What is your “three pronged approach” to sustainable fashion? How did it come about? VBH My husband, my sister, a couple of close friends, one of my mentors during my finance career, and a senior executive in the fashion industry who really showed me the ropes having had zero experience otherwise in the industry. EW Who were some of your “cheerleaders and mentors” during this transition? Fashion itself became much more important to me as a professional woman in a conservative industry as one of few means of personal expression so in a weird way it’s all full circle that I am applying my business knowledge to a problem of both personal and global significance. I grew up in a hippie, academic, household surrounded by ideas around conscious consumerism with an artist mother and a sociologist father in small towns in the midwest. Looking back now, I can see that in some ways the seeds for this decision were sown long ago. It became information I could not unknown and I felt what I can only describe as a calling, professionally for the first time in my life, to be a part of the solution in this industry. The impacts are enormous on people, animals, and the planet and the complexity and opacity of the supply chains are just immense. When I got to fashion, it stopped me in my tracks. At the beginning of that time, I decided to look at a number of different industries to try to understand their impacts on a global scale starting from the bottom up. Initially I thought I would stay in finance and ultimately took a sabbatical from my career in emerging markets to make that transition. I had a moment of clarity in late 2016/early 2017 that I wanted to spend the rest of my career putting my energy toward purposeful change. Vanessa Barboni Hallik Another Tomorrow was an accident for me. Erin Walsh Let’s talk responsibility and purpose and how you got started- tell me about your career transition that led you to ANOTHER TOMORROW.
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