Responsible Fashion: How Can We Consume and Produce Differently?
Buy, wear, replace. For decades, the fashion industry has accelerated the pace of collections and multiplied the number of low-priced garments available.
In response to this increasingly fast cycle of consumption, another way of thinking about fashion has emerged: buy less, choose more carefully and extend the life of the clothes we already own.
At La Jaquette, this philosophy has been part of our story since the brand was founded in 2020. Our aim is to offer elegant, timeless pieces, crafted in Paris in limited editions, while giving new life to existing fabrics.
What is responsible fashion?
There is no single definition of responsible fashion.
It can involve the origin of materials, manufacturing conditions, production volumes, garment longevity, repairability or even the way clothing is transported.
Rather than looking for “perfect” fashion, it is more about making more considered choices at every stage.
For consumers, this can mean buying less often, choosing clothes they will truly wear and taking care of the pieces they already own.
For a brand, it means thinking carefully about how collections are designed, produced and renewed.
Producing locally in Paris
At La Jaquette, we have chosen to craft our pieces in our Parisian atelier.
This proximity allows us to follow the different stages of production closely, work in small batches and preserve craftsmanship that plays an essential role in our identity.
Producing locally can also reduce some of the transport required between design and garment production.
For us, however, Made in France is above all about maintaining a more direct relationship with the making process and with the people who bring our creations to life.
Producing in limited editions
We do not aim to produce large quantities of identical garments.
Our collections are created in limited editions, depending on the fabrics available.
This means that a particular material or colour may sometimes exist in only a small number of pieces.
When the fabric is still available, certain sizes can also be made to order.
We prefer to adapt our production to the materials we have available rather than systematically producing in large quantities.
Upcycling at the heart of our collections
One of La Jaquette’s core principles is to give new life to existing fabrics.
We notably select fabrics sourced from the stocks of leading French couture houses.
These materials have already been produced but have not always been used. Rather than systematically ordering new fabrics, we choose to transform them into blazers, trousers, dresses, coats and other pieces.
This is the principle of upcycling: taking an existing material and giving it a new use and a new value.
The amount of fabric available naturally determines how many garments we can produce.
Choosing materials with care
Fabric plays an essential role in a garment’s quality, drape and longevity.
Wool, cashmere, linen, cotton or silk: we often favour natural fibres for their comfort, feel and structure.
However, we also recognise that no material is without impact.
That is why our approach is not based solely on whether a fabric is natural. We also place importance on using existing materials, their quality and their ability to be worn for many years.
A beautiful fabric should complement the cut of a garment and retain its character over time.
Creating clothes designed to last
For us, longevity also begins with style.
A piece that depends too heavily on a passing trend can quickly feel outdated. We therefore prefer to work with timeless cuts that can be reinterpreted season after season.
A straight blazer, a fitted jacket, well-cut trousers or a long coat can evolve with a wardrobe over many years.
Colours and fabrics may change, but the silhouette remains.
Caring for and repairing rather than replacing
The lifespan of a garment does not depend on its construction alone.
How it is cared for also matters.
Airing a jacket, following the recommended cleaning instructions, storing it on a suitable hanger or repairing a button or seam can often considerably extend its life.
At La Jaquette, we encourage a more lasting relationship with clothing: taking care of a piece rather than treating it as interchangeable.
Restoring value to clothing
Behind every jacket are a fabric, a cut, time and the work of several people.
Responsible fashion is also about rediscovering this sense of value.
Buying a garment because you truly love its cut, fabric and colour, and then wearing it many times, seems more meaningful to us than accumulating purchases that eventually remain unworn in the back of a wardrobe.
At La Jaquette, we therefore focus on three simple principles: quality, timelessness and care in the way each piece is made.
An approach built on concrete choices
We do not claim that a garment can ever be entirely without impact.
Our approach is instead about making practical choices at our own scale: producing in Paris, working in limited editions, using existing fabrics whenever possible and designing pieces made to last.
Because perhaps a more responsible approach to fashion simply begins with one question: how can we create and wear our clothes for longer, and with greater meaning?