Sustainable and Ethical Clothing Brands in Australia

Eco-fashion has emerged out of the increasing importance of sustainability in all aspects of life. People want to lessen their negative impact on the planet, and fashion brands find their way to meet this need. Let’s take a look at good examples of sustainable and ethical clothing brands in Australia. 

The Social Outfit

Image from The Social Outfit 

Founded in 2014, The Social Outfit is an ethical fashion brand that celebrates diversity and innovation by hiring and teaching people from refugee and new migrant populations. In Newtown, Sydney, they run an ethical manufacturing facility and a retail store. 100% of the earnings go to support our retail, manufacturing, and design training and employment initiatives. Their collections also utilise remnant fabrics. 

Liandra Swim

Image from Liandra Swim

Liandra Swim is an Aboriginal sustainable clothing brand that specialises in high-end designer swimwear. They take pride in producing swimwear using ethical ways. All of their bikinis are offered separately so customers can mix & match. Their prints are also a current depiction of Aboriginal culture and how they relate to our ancestors. Recycled plastics and recycled elastane are also used in their fabrics. Their mailer bags decompose, and their cassava-based packaging is non-toxic and biodegrades in a matter of months.

Outland Denim

Image from Outland Denim

Outland Denim is a sustainable denim brand that produces high-quality essentials, particularly jeans. They also provide training and employment to some of the world's most vulnerable individuals: victims of sexual exploitation. They reduce environmental effects by using environmentally friendly raw materials. They also encourage their customers to “wash-rinse-repeat” until passed on to younger generations or a friend in need. In 2018, Meghan Markle wore a pair of Outland Denim on her Australian tour.

Bon Label

Image from Bon Label 

Bon Label is another Australian sustainable brand selling organic cotton clothing and donating to charity. Their clothing is printed and stitched locally, reducing trip miles and carbon emissions. They also use enviro-friendly water based dyes for the prints on their designs. They refuse to individually bag their garments in plastic sleeves. Instead, they use forestry packaging that is recyclable, biodegradable, and sustainable. Their paper and plastics are recycled. In fact, they use FSC-certified and Australian-made paper. Lastly, they rely on natural light in their studio as much as possible.

Pure Pod

Image from Pure Pod

Pure Pod is another ethical clothing brand in Australia established on the principles of people, earth, and passion. They sell organic cotton clothing. Their hand loomed textiles are manufactured with deliberate design, small production, natural fibres (GOTS certified), and support community Artisans. They ethically manufacture their garments in Australia, Asia and India (Zenana Women). Hand block printing, screen printing using low hazardous dyes, and hand embroidery have all been used on their designs, each having their own unique narrative to tell. 

The Common Good Company

Image from The Common Good Company

The Common Good Company is an ethical brand in Australia. They are dedicated to giving a long-term alternative to the apparel business, demonstrating that there is a better way to consume as well as a better way to manufacture. The brand is born out of a love for the earth, a desire to safeguard its people, and a desire to improve production policies. In the production of their clothing, The Common Good Company uses recycled pre-consumer textile waste and recycled polyester.

Our Contribution as a Sustainable and Ethical Clothing Brand in Australia

The brands we mentioned have their own way of contributing to a better planet, and we do as well. DulcieDot practices slow fashion: a movement that arose from the need for ethical and sustainable standards when it comes to manufacturing and purchasing clothing.  

We create limited edition small runs, slow and small ensures we stay focused on reducing our textile waste and are only making for the demand. This means we can sell out fast but it also allows us to support our makers welfare without applying unnecessary pressure and also pay more attention to detail - which again contributes to reducing garment waste. 

We want to reduce our impact on the environment by ensuring our garments are ethically made under FairTrade conditions with The Social Outfit in Sydney and SA8000®/GOTS certified manufacturers in India from GOTS certified organic and natural biodegradable environmentally friendly fibres. (More here)

All of our orders come in compostable bags that can be broken down in your very own home compost. Our paper packaging and postcards are made from recycled paper and calico bags are a great reusable library bag. Our manufactures do not wrap our garments in plastic, instead we opt for cardboard packaging.  

Your purchase directly supports the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Artists we partner with for each collection with licensing payments. It also assists us to build training and economic opportunities within the art, fashion and photography industries with both First Nations, refugee and new migrant photographers, models and makers throughout Australia.

This is our way of taking part in making this world a better place to live for future generations. As a sustainable and ethical clothing brand in Australia, we hold on to the hope that as we live up to our purpose, that our customers will also be inspired to have their own way of being kind to people and to the planet.