PURPOSE

When founder Grace Beverley shifted from fast fashion to more sustainable options in her everyday clothing, she found a host of responsibly made options in every category other than activewear. The activewear industry - despite booming - was completely underserved when it came to responsibly made alternatives, especially at a price point that wasn't eye-watering.

That's the idea that started TALA: If you could buy the same quality activewear at the same price, but made in an environmentally and socially conscious way, wouldn't you?

TALA is a female-led brand on a mission to make consciously-made active and off-duty styles accessible and inclusive without sacrificing performance or fit. We exist to show the industry that better options are available, if and when you choose to shop.

The notion of sustainability in fashion itself is an oxymoron which sparks complex debate entwined with systemic issues around privilege, consumerism, and capitalism. Sustainability is nuanced and should be viewed as a fluid concept rather than one with black-and-white answers. That's why we limit the use of this word - whenever we can, we try to be more specific about our actions instead of merely saying we're sustainable.

For us at TALA, sustainability is a progressive journey, not an end destination. It is about making choices and demonstrating we can do better as an industry.

Part of the Problem

Worldwide, the average number of times a garment is worn before it ceases to be used has decreased by 36% compared to 15 years ago (Ellen MacArthur Foundation, 2017).

It is estimated that more than half of the fast fashion produced is estimated to be disposed of in under a year (Ellen MacArthur Foundation, 2017).

Existing in the fashion industry, we recognise we are both part of the problem, as well as trying to be part of the solution. As a product-driven business, we rely on creating items that are profitable to disrupt the market to deliver options that are made more responsibly, compared with industry alternatives. If we don't do this, it gives more space for unsustainable options to thrive as the only options in the marketplace. Given that people will shop, we want to be a better solution. We know that recycled materials aren't the perfect solution, and there are complexities and multiple barriers to living more sustainable lifestyles and accessing sustainable products. But merely finding sustainable products you can trust shouldn't be so difficult.

Part of the Solution : Product

Our talented product design team and trusted suppliers work together to create versatile pieces that are made to last. We pride ourselves on creating wardrobe staples that are thought-out investments to wear, season after season.

At TALA, we release data-driven and responsive collections according to what our TALA community wants. Being a social media-first brand, we can understand Team TALA's likes and dislikes, and with every launch, we have learnings along the way to better inform our buying practices.

Our collections are carefully conceptualised, created and made with recycled and naturally sourced materials. This is intended to reduce strain on the environment by utilising pre- and post-consumer 'waste', turning this into valuable materials such as in our SkinLuxe, DayFlex and Sculpt Seamless collections. Our 365 basics are made from wood pulp-based fibre sourced from sustainably managed forests, all certified under strict guidelines.

You can read more about what we're doing with our design, fabric, and factories in section III:

Part of the Solution : Beyond Product

Packaging: We removed packing slips from all orders in 2022- this removes 150,000 pieces of paper annually (and even our clothing tags are plantable!). In 2023, we replaced our plastic mailer bags with naturally sourced paper bags that are 100% home-recyclable, meaning once you've received your TALA goodies, your mailer bag can go straight into your recycling bin. Easy.

HQ: Our London office is run on 100% renewable energy sources. We work with a local eco-friendly dry cleaning and laundry service to clean clothing for our photoshoots. We never print materials for meetings; where possible, we use public transport when commuting. We host office-wide clothes swaps for events like Halloween and the annual Christmas party - sharing is caring.

Circularity: We are continuously learning and striving to support driving a global shift, from the linear 'take, make, dispose of' economy, to a more circular economy. In October 2023, we launched ReTALA in partnership with Reskinned. You simply post the TALA pieces you no longer wear and Reskinned take care of the rest by keeping them out of landfills through a transparent process of reselling, repurposing, or recycling and giving them new life. As a thank you for your pre-loved TALA pieces, you will get a voucher from us to spend on your next TALA purchase.

In 2024, we launched the next stage of our takeback programme with Reskinned, which allows you to buy refreshed and repaired pre-loved TALA at a reduced price. This includes deadstock that we can no longer sell, items returned to us through ReTALA, or even shoot samples - either way, saving products from landfills and saving money on pre-loved TALA pieces is a win-win.

We are incredibly grateful to our TALA community for allowing us to push industry barriers today and every day. We're always open ears to new ideas, so if you think we can do things better, please let us know at hello@wearetala.com.