Banana Republic goes green!

[2Nova]

At least it's SOMETHING I guess... will be interesting to see

 

[izzie stevens]

^ true.

 

[renee]

coming from a designer at banana republic

all good comments. the idea is to make a step towards the green movement. making a little progress is better than none. it's a good thing.

 

[izzie stevens]

^ are you a part of the new design team?

 

[homeboy]

I'm not holding my breath since "green" tend to mean premium price and inferior design.

 

[ApertureRomance]

I'd rather that they sorted out the accusations of what is essentially slave labour at one of their Indian factories that they source clothes from , the green bandwagon is being jumped on a little too late.

 

[renee]

hi! there isn't a new team for green. we all design the main collection as well as the green and monogram concept collections. i don't personally design for the green collection.

 

[writergal28]

hi! there isn't a new team for green. we all design the main collection as well as the green and monogram concept collections. i don't personally design for the green collection.

Are they online yet? Also, will they come in petite? Petite sizes are REALLY, REALLY important for me.

Thanks.

 

[pinksatin]

Is this the same as the "Green Elephant" thing? B/c I work at a really small banana and we don't usually get much novelty or special collection items but we have the green elephant men's polos. I didn't know the details except that they were organic cotton which I thought was reason enough for people to buy them. It's good to know 1% is going to a cause too (if the green elephant is the same thing). ALthough I wish it was a higher percent. Either way, the logo is cute so people should buy them for that.

 

[lucy92]

the green collection is higher priced that usual banana stuff.
pic from nylonmag.com

the organic cotton collection at H&M doesnt cost any more than normal H&M stuff...hmmn.

 

[izzie stevens]

hi! there isn't a new team for green. we all design the main collection as well as the green and monogram concept collections. i don't personally design for the green collection.

yes, i know that there isn't a new team for the green collection. what i was asking is if you are a part of the new banana republic design team in general. i heard that there have been many changes to the team ever since deborah lloyd left to kate spade, and the team is rather new and fresh.

 

[izzie stevens]

the green collection is higher priced that usual banana stuff.
pic from nylonmag.com

the organic cotton collection at H&M doesnt cost any more than normal H&M stuff...hmmn.

h&m's quality of clothing, though, is also really horrible. i think h&m is on the same level of quality as forever 21 is. but i'm interested to know where you found the prices? i don't see them online or on gap web.

 

[renee]

yes, i know that there isn't a new team for the green collection. what i was asking is if you are a part of the new banana republic design team in general. i heard that there have been many changes to the team ever since deborah lloyd left to kate spade, and the team is rather new and fresh.

oh! well, i've been here for almost 2 years, so no. i was here when deborah was EVP of design. we have not had any new designers since she left but a few people in the other departments have left. we have a new creative director who, himself, is rather new and fresh. but dl is a legend here.

 

[renee]

Are they online yet? Also, will they come in petite? Petite sizes are REALLY, REALLY important for me and to readers of my Shorty Stories blog.

Thanks.

the green collection will be in stores and online soon. i am not sure if petites picked it up, but it is quite possible. what is this "shorty stories" blog?

 

[izzie stevens]

So, there seems to be more to this entire going green collection...

GREENING OUR PACKAGING
Many of our current packaging supplies, including boxes and shopping bags are made with a percentage of recycled material–and we are working to increase these percentages wherever possible. Here's what we're doing now:

• In 2006, we purchased 2,481 tons of recycled paper to reduce our use of paper supplies made from virgin pulp.
• Our everyday shopping bags contain 15% recycled material and are recyclable.
• Our shoe boxes contain 50% recycled material and are recyclable.
• Our standard gift boxes are made with 35% recycled material and are recyclable.
• Our price tickets are made of 100% recycled material are currently being phased into all stores.

GREENING OUR STORES
We do our best to make our stores as green as they can be. We are a proud partner of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Climate Leaders program, a voluntary initiative to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 11% by the end of 2008.

Efficient fluorescent lighting, temperature control and management training on energy-saving practices demonstrates our commitment to reducing our impact and has helped us achieve an overall energy savings of over 41%. We're proud to say that thanks to these upgrades, each of our energy-efficient stores saves over 16 metric tons of CO2 from entering the atmosphere each year.

Energy-savers
• We're replacing our lighting fixtures with energy-efficient halogen bulbs to significantly reduce our CO2 emissions.
• We've committed to the installation of a one megawatt solar system at our Fresno, California distribution center, enabling us to run a portion of our operation with clean solar energy. The system is expected to generate approximately 1.9 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) annually, equivalent to the electricity required to power approximately 350 homes for a year.

Materials
• Banana Republic store floors are made with Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified wood from sustainable forests.
• Our store restroom tiles are made of 15% recycled material.
• Many of our outdoor advertising billboards are being recycled and reused as roofing material for homes.

GREENING OUR PRODUCTS
Denim Clean Water Program
• Our denim products go through an extensive dyeing and treatment process in order to achieve the look and feel that our customers love. This process takes place in special laundry facilities around the world. To ensure the safety of water these facilities discharge back into the environment, we require laundries to participate in our water quality program, which is based on Business for Social Responsibility's strict clean water guidelines.

Organic and Sustainable New Products
• Banana Republic values the opinions and ideals of our customers. That's why we responded when we learned customers wanted eco-friendlier products. We're proud and excited to introduce a selection of products featuring organic cotton and other sustainable fibers in Summer 2008. This collection features both basic essentials as well as iconic pieces that represent the best of Banana Republic design.

Look for the Green Elephant
• All Banana Republic products and packaging made with sustainable fibers will feature our green elephant icon which easily and clearly identifies the products we carry that support earth-friendly efforts.

credit: br.com

Is this the same as the "Green Elephant" thing? B/c I work at a really small banana and we don't usually get much novelty or special collection items but we have the green elephant men's polos. I didn't know the details except that they were organic cotton which I thought was reason enough for people to buy them. It's good to know 1% is going to a cause too (if the green elephant is the same thing). ALthough I wish it was a higher percent. Either way, the logo is cute so people should buy them for that.

so, yes, it's the green elephant thing.

 

[izzie stevens]

oh! well, i've been here for almost 2 years, so no. i was here when deborah was EVP of design. we have not had any new designers since she left but a few people in the other departments have left. we have a new creative director who, himself, is rather new and fresh. but dl is a legend here.

lloyd really is a banana republic legend. she did so much for the brand. i was really, really, really saddened to see her leave.

i had a feeling that since there have been so many changes with br, period, mainly marka being moved to gap and deborah leaving, that most working at corporate had also left or had switched brands, too. but i guess i was wrong.

 

[jennifer~]

Marketing fad.

Yep, but that unbleached, undyed natural cotton matches everything in its neutrality.

 

[fashionista-ta]

not to be a wet blanket but even the kotex thing is stupid. most women around the world deal with their periods without using the same pads/tampons in modernized countries. if they have food/water/clothing than they can deal with their period their own way-- usually with rags which is a lot more reuseable.

anything company that tells people to buy things to help people leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

The really traditional way is the "red tent," yes? And nowadays we have places to go, people to see, school to attend Though I have to feel that anyone using this particular product is automatically less fortunate

Do we have pix of this BR stuff?

PS I see we do ...

 

[izzie stevens]

^ i agree about the kotex thing. who uses rags anymore unless they are exceptionally less fortunate? rags aren't even sanitary when you really think about it.

 

[Kora]

I mean I think that it is a great idea, but the fact that they are only donating 1% is a bit off-putting to me.

exactly and up to a 100k. Obviously this is a "ad campaign"