Where Does It Come From? - Cool Clothes that Tell Tales
Do you ever wonder where your clothes came from? Do you think about the people who created them and how they did it? We are increasingly finding out about the sweatshops, the child labour and the environmental damage that are now part of garment production. Most people just want to buy good quality clothing and have peace of mind about where it came from. We can give you all that and more! When I became a Mum I tried to find beautiful, soft clothing to dress my children in. I also wanted that clothing to have been produced ethically, without negative impact, which led me to ask a lot of questions about where our clothing comes from and who makes it. This information was difficult or impossible to find out from clothing brands, which is why I founded 'Where Does It Come From?' in 2013. We make great clothes and each of them comes with a code on the label so that you can trace your garment's creation journey - right back to the cotton fields.
Why Traceable Clothes?
At Where Does It Come From? (wheredoesitcomefrom.co.uk) we believe in beautiful clothes - attractive to the eye, comfortable to the skin, considerate to those who made them and kind to the environment. We are a clothing brand with a difference because not only do we sell clothes like these, but we also share with our customers the life story of any garment they buy from us so that they and their children can explore exactly how their garment was made and get to know the people involved. We believe that this understanding will encourage a better relationship with their clothes and ultimately lead to wiser and kinder shopping choices and less throwaway fashion. It's also very interesting and educational too! You can read more about our thinking on sustainable clothing and Fairtrade at our blog here.
The Clothes must be Great Too!
Design is key to what we do – our children’s clothing is designed to be worn all year round, to last through a growth spurt and to be funky and stylish. Handwoven cotton is naturally breathable so the fabric is soft and comfortable. We use azo-free dyes to colour our fabrics - these don't contain toxic chemicals and can achieve the vibrant colours we want. All our childrens' clothes are machine washable as per the washing instructions on the label.
We also have some beautiful ladies scarves - handprinted and available in a wide range of designs (we currently have 15 designs!). These scarves have been very popular as gifts. Our Ant design - a surprise best-seller - is nearly sold out!
We are crowdfunding to enable us to launch a range of adult shirts in different styles and colours. We want to move into the adult clothing market with a timeless shirt design that can be worn again and again. The soft, breathable fabric will be cool and comfortable and the use of organic cotton and non-toxic dyes makes it a better choice for the skin and for the environment. We also have plans to create some organic stripy pajamas for all the family (we've selected the fabrics already!)
How We Make Our Clothes
We work with ethically run co-operatives and small artisan groups. We've recently returned from Gujarat, India, where we visited many of the co-operatives and production units that make our clothes. You can read more about our trip in our visit report. During our production runs the garment story is also created using input from the workers so that the customer gets not only a beautiful garment but its fascinating journey too. Finding out about the people and processes used helps us to connect with our clothing and love it more - it's a bit like people who grow their own vegetables insisting that theirs taste better!
Why We're Pitching
Since launch in 2014 we have built up a reliable customer base and now it's time to publicise and grow the business and to create a wider range of clothing products. Moving into the adult market will give us a wider audience for our clothing and we plan to create timeless, lasting items that can be worn again and again. This means more choice of high quality, beautiful clothing for our customers and more work and income to our artisans, which means they can improve their quality of life too.
Your reward for pledging on our crowdfund (to the right of this screen!) will be one of our yet-to-be-created organic adult shirts. Here are the first designs for these shirts which will give you an idea of what yours will be like.
We launched a range of children's organic shirts last year and plan to use the same thickness and style of cotton. We are currently exploring colour choices but you can see some of the contenders here. The fabric is handwoven and breathable - rustic in style, cool and comfortable.
Memberships and Accolades
We are very proud to be members of the British Association of Fairtrade Shops and Suppliers (BAFTS) and licenced by the Fairtrade Foundation. We've also been recognised for our work: In 2015 we were chosen as one of East Anglia's top 100 Green businesses and in 2016 we were selected by Theo Paphitis as a winner of his Small Business Sunday programme and also achieved a Highly Commended and runner up in 'Greenest Product' Category at the Suffolk Creating the Greenest County Awards. A fabulous video about Where Does It Come From? was created for the awards - you can watch the video here.
New Markets
We are now selling our clothing wholesale and creating some custom offerings for the business market. If you would like to stock our products or are interested in some custom designed clothing then please read our business proposition here.