Canadian firm plants ten trees for every apparel sold

10 Oct '12

3 min read

Eco-fashion or sustainable fashion is increasingly gaining ground in every facet of the garment and textiles industry around the world. Many apparel makers today are getting inspired by the idea of creating eco-friendly attires in order to restore the environmental balance. However, a Canadian firm has given a different orientation to the concept.

Fibre2fashion spoke to the Canada-based company Ten Tree International’s co-founder Mr. David Luba, about the inspiration behind their company’s unique and thoughtful motto of planting ten trees in lieu of every single piece of clothing sold.

“The inspiration behind Ten Tree International has been our love for enjoying the outdoors. Our business model is for every item we sell, ten trees are planted. This is great for the environment and for the air we breathe,” he reveals.

Informing about the firm’s rapid expansion in the North American continent, he says, “We have retail presence in 100 stores in North America and this is growing very fast as we have only been around for nine months.”

About the company’s target audience, he says, “Our target buyer is anyone who is in between the ages of 15 to 30. However, people of all ages have been buying our products and loving them too.”

Ten Tree International currently offers tank tops, t-shirts, long sleeve shirts, crew necks, hoodies and trucker hats, but the company is looking forward to expand its product line and accessories.

Talking about the latest buzz of sustainable fashion, he opines, “I would say sustainable fashion is when the clothing continues to give back to a cause and the model is sustainable.”

“Companies like ours can play roles in the community by getting people involved in activities that give back to the community. We have different programs that enable us to go into communities that we sell in and plant trees and get local people involved,” he adds.

Emphasizing on the 'sustainable' approach that is driving the industry today and how the consumer’s preferences and buying behaviours can actually amplify this aspect, he says, “Consumers love feeling good as well as looking great while purchasing a product. And that is why sustainable products are starting to dominate the market and companies are finding better eco-friendly ways to produce products.”

Mr. Luba says at a time when retailers and consumers are all trying to create a better environment, it becomes all the more easier to raise awareness about the issue by having an economically sustainable business model like their firm Ten Tree International has.

“Our company is trying to plant tons of trees and raise awareness about the environment,” he concludes.

Fibre2fashion News Desk - India

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