Commerce équitable et mode lente pour les femmes naturelles

Who or what is Valérie Berckmans?

The Belgian designer started her clothing brand in 2006. With her brand she focuses on the woman who prefers simple, but also elegant clothing. What matters to her is that a garment lasts a long time and that the customer feels good in it. In an interview with Metro, Valérie said that she believes that consumers should change their purchasing behaviour: “If customers knew how much work there is behind each piece in my shop, they wouldn’t find 130 euros for a sweater expensive”.

Slow fashion all the way?

Valérie calls her clothing brand slow fashion. “I don’t follow the rhythm of the fashion world and I certainly don’t follow the trends. I always create timeless collections, so that the pieces can be worn for a long time,” she says in the interview. But is it good for the environment? It depends. Valérie prefers to work with biotextiles such as organic cotton and fabric residues (pre-consumer textiles). It is the latter that is not always ecological. Zero Waste on the one hand, but whether it is good for the environment on the other hand, is still a big question for Valérie and for us. That is why we will contact Valérie in the future. This way we get more information from the direct source and you as a reader of COSH! get the whole picture.

Valérie & people

The clothing brand is definitely fairtrade. When it comes to production, the designer only works with companies that pay their employees a fair wage. Staying local is also important for Valérie. She works together with two workshops in Brussels and a third in France. The latter has a special place in her heart. “I absolutely wanted to work with them because their story inspired me so much. In 2008, they would’ve closed their doors.
But the employees refused and succeeded in setting up a cooperative and getting back to work. I work with them because I really want to support them,” she says in the interview.