Sustainable pt VIII – Adidas + Stella McCartney + Grimes

The McCartney clan are having a really good couple of weeks.  It was just last week we were reporting on the opening of a new exhibition in Scotland of Linda McCartney’s photographic work that has been met with rave reviews.  In the same week Stella McCartney, one of the curators of the exhibition, also launched her capsule collection for A/W19, All Together Now, that took its inspiration from the classic film her father made with the rest of the Beatles, Yellow Submarine.  Not content with just sitting on her laurels, McCartney takes this week to launch the Adidas by Stella McCartney A/W19 collection with a new campaign fronted by Canadian pop sensation, Grimes.

THE FALL has already covered the global corporate shift Adidas is making towards positive climate action, and their continued collaboration with the luxury fashion designer who’s widely seen as the designer who makes sustainability sustainable (for a profit-making business) is fast becoming a template model for a wider fashion and apparel industry ironically nervous about how much doing the right thing will cost.  Much of this new collection is made from recycled polyester made with Parley Ocean Plastic and regenerated ECONYL yarn.  If ECONYL sounds familiar to you it’s because it was only a few weeks back we reported on Prada’s use of this new-age sustainable material for their new collection of Re-Nylon luxury bags.  No matter which way you look, the arc of positive climate action is bending, slowly, in the right direction.

Right now, we will always be wondering how slow is too slow to be effective under the circumstances.  But what is also true is that progress in the fashion would grind to a stand-still if the industry was producing sustainable clothes that didn’t meet the quality or aesthetic tests of their very demanding consumers.  One of the reasons why Elon Musk has been able to build a viable electric car manufacturing operation is because he recognised early on that designing electric cars that enthusiasts and regular drivers wouldn’t actually want to be seen in on the road is the surest way to kill progress and profits in one fell swoop.  This is the same business ethos Stella McCartney lives by.  As she will remind anyone who asks, first and foremost, she is a fashion designer.

The method by which her clothes are manufactured comes secondary to the design and wearability of her clothes.  Being the example to look to becomes a lot harder if you can’t prove your own sustainable model to be viable.  So just as much care, attention and passion goes into the creative process as goes into the manufacturing process – perhaps more so once that manufacturing process is locked in and working.

“Performance and style are at the heart of every piece Adidas by Stella McCartney creates, but we believe that this shouldn’t come at a cost to the planet. Our focus for this collection was to incorporate fabrics that help us get one step closer to our future goal of high-performing, sustainable performance wear.” – Stella McCartney.

Confidently taking aesthetic cues from the Stella McCartney A/W19 catwalk, graphic prints and bold mesh structures are contrasted with McCartney’s favourite soft, blush colour palette and earth tones.  As a further example of that deserved confidence, the new collection has tapped fellow climate activist and recording artist Grimes to be the face of the A/W collection.  Grimes’ hotly anticipated new album, Miss_Anthropocene, has been described by her as a “pro-climate change action record” that will be released later this year.  And, coincidentally, when it comes to the viability of sustainable businesses Grimes already has a perfect seat to the show by virtue of her relationship with Tesla Cars CEO, the aforementioned Elon Musk.

“Grimes is the perfect embodiment of the Adidas by Stella McCartney core values. She is passionate and outspoken protecting the planet, and a true trailblazer for pushing creative boundaries and inspiring women to unlock their potential in all aspects of their lives.” – Stella McCartney.

For more on Adidas by Stella McCartney click here.

Click here to read more in our Sustainable series.