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“The Sustainable Route ™ is not a destination, it’s a journey of continual improvement.” – Richard Boissevain, CEO
Our sustainability at Route One is an ongoing process, and one that can never be complete as every product we sell uses natural resources and comes with an environmental cost. However, we know that we have a big responsibility to our community, our planet and ourselves, to acknowledge our footprint and improve as a business. Therefore, we’re making small steps each season to lessen our impact and find a more sustainable route forward. We’ve only got one shot at protecting our planet and we’re all in it together.
We’ve been making improvements bit by bit, starting with environmentally friendly packaging, recycling schemes like our in-store Deckcycle and Re-Use-A-Shoe initiatives and supporting environmental NGOs. But that was just the start of our sustainability journey, and we’ve still got a long road ahead.
More recently, we’ve started looking into our supply chain and thinking about sustainable options for our Own Brand clothing. The development process really changed for us here as we entered a whole new process of fabric production, with difficulties along the way we could not have predicted. Thinking not only about what each product was made from, but how the raw materials were grown, the inks used, the garment packaging, down to how the product was transported to us. After a lot of work to address these questions, we’re launching our new “Sustainable Steps..." range.
Our “Better T-Shirt Range” features several different designs, all constructed from 100% GOTS Certified Organic Cotton and grown without the use of pesticides, insecticides, herbicides, or genetically modified organisms. The polybags these t-shirts are packaged in are fully biodegradable, and the swing tags are made from FSC certified card, meaning the paper comes from trees grown in responsibly managed forests.
Introducing one of our best-selling pants, but made from 100% GOTS Certified Organic Cotton, and with some new designs to freshen things up. The Route One Organic Beach pants are also printed using GOTS approved inks, meaning there are no harsh chemicals used. These pants are a wardrobe staple, and this time in a more sustainable fabric, so you can feel good and look good! All prints have been designed in house by our graphics team.
Our plain organic tees feature a crew neck and a small tonal embroidered logo for a very simple look. We felt that these t shirts didn’t need any large graphics, or colourful screen prints, as the quality and hand feel of the tee does all the talking.
We know we still have a lot more work to do, and this is at the forefront of our minds when designing and developing any of our new styles. From raw materials through to the finishing touches, we want to make them as sustainable as possible. We would eventually like to see sustainable products within all our Own Brand categories and for them to be accessible for everyone.
