The Nu Form Story So Far
Who and what is Nu Form?
Ours is a familiar tale. One that began at an early age when we found ourselves drawn to beautiful editorials in fashion magazines. The intricate garments and the eccentric designers behind them filled us with such curiosity and joy that it’s no surprise we ended up with careers in the fashion industry. Whether we’re designers, creative directors or factory owners, all of us at Nu Form are here for the same reason; we love fashion and the creativity and expressionism it affords all those who engage with it (which, by the way, is anyone who wears clothes!).
FASHION: A DIRTY INDUSTRY
But like many of us who were drawn to this magical world of textiles and colour and pattern and creativity, we quickly learnt of the catastrophic impacts it has on the environment. The facts are clear, the fashion industry and more specifically fast fashion, is playing a huge role in the uncertain future of our planet:
• 10% of global carbon emissions come from the fashion industry
• Australia dumps 6000kg of clothing in landfill every 10 minutes
• Nearly 70 million barrels of oil are used each year to make the world’s polyester fibre
• Fashion accounts for 20 to 35 percent of microplastic that flows into the ocean.
We could go on, but you probably get the picture by now; fashion can have catastrophic effects on the planet. So after working in fashion for a combined 37 years, we decided to face the facts and do something about it. As a team that’s spread across the globe from Hong Kong to Naarm (Melbourne), Australia, we came together to create a brand that would allow us to do what we do best, while also addressing our core values: to shift consumer habits and fundamentally call for change in the fashion industry.
A SOLUTION: MOVEMENT ESSENTIALS
The first and most important thing we landed on was the idea of creating movement essentials. While we have years of experience creating quality garments, we didn’t want to make gym clothes that are stripped off after your yoga class and stuffed in your bag before you put on your ‘proper’ outfit for the day. Instead they had to be versatile, functional and comfortable items of clothing that made the wearer feel confident, at ease, and ready for the day ahead. So while we do make tights that are perfect for wearing during a sweaty workout, they’re also just as ideal to wear to a coffee date. Our t-shirts aren’t just an item of clothing you wear when walking the dog, they’re also statement pieces that can be worn under a blazer to work. This desire to create versatile clothing addresses the issue of constantly changing trends fuelled by fast fashion that invite us to want something new every week. This shift to a slower more conscious way of dressing tackles one very big, unsustainable problem.
PROGRESS BEFORE PERFECTION
And when it comes to sustainability (the biggest buzzword of the last decade) our stance is one of progress before perfection. We don’t claim to be a sustainable brand and we know that one fashion label alone isn’t going to change an entire industry, but it can spark important conversations. That’s why we’re working to be a truly ‘collectively conscious’ brand, meaning that we want you to come on this journey with us. We want to learn from you as well as share with you. By staying transparent and sharing information with you about our manufacturing practices, we can reach our sustainability goals—something that we believe should be a prerequisite for all fashion labels, not their point of difference. Some of our practices include carbon offsetting, responsible manufacturing with environmentally friendly fabrics like hemp, Repreve® and GOTS certified cotton, reducing the use of plastic and unnecessary packaging like swing tags, and ensuring our factories are accredited to global standards both for the environment and our workers.
OUR VALUES
At the core of all this, we’re a values-driven business. Our values, including inclusivity, consciousness, transparency, movement, curiosity and responsibility, underpin each and every decision we make to reach our collective goal of shifting consumer habits and making change in the fashion industry. To learn more, head to this page where we dive into each of our values and why they’re important to us.
WHAT’S NEXT?
So where does that leave us? Well, the Nu Form story so far is probably a lot longer than anyone would have expected given that we haven’t even launched our first collection yet, but we plan to stick around for a long time (and a good time too of course). So it’s only natural that we’ve developed a strong vision for the future. We can’t wait to bring you our first drop in the coming months, but in the meantime be sure to give us a follow on socials and sign up to our newsletter to learn more about us but to also engage in interesting conversations that address some of the topics we’ve covered in this blog post.
