At the age of 28, she left the oil and gas industry to set up a sustainable fashion company
Pic Credits - www.Cnbc.com Pic Credits - www.Cnbc.com Creating sustainable fashion in a vintage atmosphere may sound like a daunting task for most people, but 28-year-old Eileen Tan never stopped quitting her job and embarking on a
Pic Credits – www.Cnbc.com
Pic Credits – www.Cnbc.com
Creating sustainable fashion in a vintage atmosphere may sound like a daunting task for most people, but 28-year-old Eileen Tan never stopped quitting her job and embarking on a journey. Tan quit her full-time job in the oil and gas industry to start Vintagewknd in 2019 as a sustainable alternative to fast fashion. This is all to minimize the waste experienced in the fashion industry. Her dream was to design and manufacture second-hand clothing using old fabrics and make them look brand new. But this road has never been so easy.
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She also stated that Much is about thinking. People and businesses are quick and enthusiastic about trends. In the process, things related to the environment are lost-of course, we also have to struggle with the production of sustainable clothing.
Tan, along with partner Eden Tay, began part-time curating and selling second-hand clothing at the online marketplace Carousell in 2015. It wasn’t until 2019 that they took over the business full-time, and they began to focus on sustainability. Upcycling is the key to their business, as all their remastered garment materials come from scrap garment factories and production lines. Upcycling refers to turning waste and unwanted products into useful ones. In this case, it could be a bag or clothing.
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Since then, the duo has left the carousel to set up their own e-commerce store and have expanded to other social media accounts such as Instagram with over 34,000 followers. Their marketing efforts are currently primarily focused on TikTok, shooting niche styling videos based on themes such as Winnie the Pooh, Pokémon, and 90s TV shows.
When asked about the demand for sustainable garments, Tan said that garments tend to be made in smaller batches, making products more expensive, so size and price are barriers to entry.
Changes in consumption habits
However, the outlook for sustainable products can change quickly. According to a survey by
Consulting firm Bain & Company and social media giant Facebook has recently been renamed to Meta, and more and more consumers are focusing on sustainability when shopping.
According to Tan, Vintagewknd’s customers generally embrace the idea of continuing a sustainable message in fashion. Retailers like the online fashion brand ZALORA publicly prioritize sustainability, but Tan wants other companies to embrace the same vision. In order to make a lasting impression, larger fashion houses must change, she said. For future business plans, Vintagewknd is experimenting with the production of household goods and gift items, Tan said.
