Startups
What we stand for
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ETHICALLY MADE
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Before going ahead with this project, I wanted to make sure Bambooties could be made in the most 'people and planet friendly' way. I've outlined below some of the things I decided to focus on.
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USING RECLAIMED COTTON
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Cotton farming is responsible for 24% of insecticides globally, 15% of fabric intended for clothing goes to landfill and 95% of this could be recycled. To avoid contributing to stats like these, I decided to use reclaimed fabric.
A friend introduced me to an amazing husband and wife team, Deepak and Shweta, based in Delhi, India (thank you Floss!). Shweta connected me to lots of different manufacturers in the local area who had excess fabric from existing production lines. The hardest bit was catching the excess fabric before it went to waste. Shweta spent ages racing to factories to try and stop them from throwing it away.
We also wanted to be careful that the fabric was 100% cotton, to ensure it would be safe for baby feet. Eventually Shweta found a manufacturer who was a little more understanding about holding excess fabric for us and ensuring it was baby safe.
So, when you choose to buy a pair of Bambooties over another product, you’re protecting the planet by reducing fabric waste and you’re not contributing to global demand to grow more cotton, which has an impact on water consumption, greenhouse gas emissions and the spraying of pesticides. There are also plenty of hazardous by-products created during fabric production and dying, so you’re avoiding all those too! :)
...
TREATING PEOPLE FAIRLY
...
Another problem in the clothing industry is exploitation. 71% of clothing companies indicate there is a “likelihood of modern slavery occurring at some stage of their supply chain”. There are 152 million working children in the world, and 60% of these are involved in the clothing supply chain, often picking cotton in fields. Therefore I wanted to make sure I chose a small group of seamstresses I could get to know.
Shweta and Deepak introduced me to a team of 10 seamstresses, who specialise in baby clothing, based in Delhi. They're paid properly, have good quality sewing machines and they enjoy working together as a team. So for each additional purchase of Bambooties, we’re providing them with work they enjoy while also helping them to support their families.
...
SUSTAINABLE PACKAGING
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The tissue paper, cardboard boxes and brown paper wrapping is all made from recycled materials, and can easily be recycled again. Our stickers are biodegradable.
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CHARITABLE GIVING
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I wanted to make Bambooties into a giving project. I searched for a charity which combined all my interests - babies, female empowerment and the environment. I settled on ActionAid, who provide disadvantaged women and girls with the most important necessities in life. They empower them with the information and resources they need to create the future they want.
ActionAid's work is also deeply connected to the protection of the environment. As David Attenborough says, giving women power over their own bodies is vital if we want to solve one of the biggest environmental challenges: overpopulation. I also believe that women have a different way of thinking about the world and are naturally more nurturing. So the more women we can empower to do what they want with their lives, the better chance we’ll have of regenerating the natural environment.
...
TRANSPARENCY
...
For every £20 pair of Bambooties sold:
• £5 goes to the seamstresses in India.
• £5 goes towards paying back the initial £25,000 set up costs of the design process.
• £3 pays for the sourcing of the reclaimed cotton (frustratingly, it's actually more expensive to buy reclaimed fabric than new fabric!),
• £3.20 pays for a small parcel to be sent by Royal Mail second class post (unfortunately we are so used to Amazon now, that most shoppers get put off by an additional postage cost).
• £2 pays for website running costs and transaction fees.
• £1 pays for the packaging.
• The remaining 80p is "profit", of which 10% goes to ActionAid and the rest gets reinvested back into the business.
I don't yet pay myself for the time I put into the business. And any stalls or marketing comes out of my own back pocket. In time, once the initial set up costs have been paid back, I hope to be able to start paying myself from selling the booties and look forward to donating more to ActionAid.
...
ETHICALLY MADE
...
Before going ahead with this project, I wanted to make sure Bambooties could be made in the most 'people and planet friendly' way. I've outlined below some of the things I decided to focus on.
...
USING RECLAIMED COTTON
...
Cotton farming is responsible for 24% of insecticides globally, 15% of fabric intended for clothing goes to landfill and 95% of this could be recycled. To avoid contributing to stats like these, I decided to use reclaimed fabric.
A friend introduced me to an amazing husband and wife team, Deepak and Shweta, based in Delhi, India (thank you Floss!). Shweta connected me to lots of different manufacturers in the local area who had excess fabric from existing production lines. The hardest bit was catching the excess fabric before it went to waste. Shweta spent ages racing to factories to try and stop them from throwing it away.
We also wanted to be careful that the fabric was 100% cotton, to ensure it would be safe for baby feet. Eventually Shweta found a manufacturer who was a little more understanding about holding excess fabric for us and ensuring it was baby safe.
So, when you choose to buy a pair of Bambooties over another product, you’re protecting the planet by reducing fabric waste and you’re not contributing to global demand to grow more cotton, which has an impact on water consumption, greenhouse gas emissions and the spraying of pesticides. There are also plenty of hazardous by-products created during fabric production and dying, so you’re avoiding all those too! :)
...
TREATING PEOPLE FAIRLY
...
Another problem in the clothing industry is exploitation. 71% of clothing companies indicate there is a “likelihood of modern slavery occurring at some stage of their supply chain”. There are 152 million working children in the world, and 60% of these are involved in the clothing supply chain, often picking cotton in fields. Therefore I wanted to make sure I chose a small group of seamstresses I could get to know.
Shweta and Deepak introduced me to a team of 10 seamstresses, who specialise in baby clothing, based in Delhi. They're paid properly, have good quality sewing machines and they enjoy working together as a team. So for each additional purchase of Bambooties, we’re providing them with work they enjoy while also helping them to support their families.
...
SUSTAINABLE PACKAGING
...
The tissue paper, cardboard boxes and brown paper wrapping is all made from recycled materials, and can easily be recycled again. Our stickers are biodegradable.
...
CHARITABLE GIVING
...
I wanted to make Bambooties into a giving project. I searched for a charity which combined all my interests - babies, female empowerment and the environment. I settled on ActionAid, who provide disadvantaged women and girls with the most important necessities in life. They empower them with the information and resources they need to create the future they want.
ActionAid's work is also deeply connected to the protection of the environment. As David Attenborough says, giving women power over their own bodies is vital if we want to solve one of the biggest environmental challenges: overpopulation. I also believe that women have a different way of thinking about the world and are naturally more nurturing. So the more women we can empower to do what they want with their lives, the better chance we’ll have of regenerating the natural environment.
...
TRANSPARENCY
...
For every £20 pair of Bambooties sold:
• £5 goes to the seamstresses in India.
• £5 goes towards paying back the initial £25,000 set up costs of the design process.
• £3 pays for the sourcing of the reclaimed cotton (frustratingly, it's actually more expensive to buy reclaimed fabric than new fabric!),
• £3.20 pays for a small parcel to be sent by Royal Mail second class post (unfortunately we are so used to Amazon now, that most shoppers get put off by an additional postage cost).
• £2 pays for website running costs and transaction fees.
• £1 pays for the packaging.
• The remaining 80p is "profit", of which 10% goes to ActionAid and the rest gets reinvested back into the business.
I don't yet pay myself for the time I put into the business. And any stalls or marketing comes out of my own back pocket. In time, once the initial set up costs have been paid back, I hope to be able to start paying myself from selling the booties and look forward to donating more to ActionAid.
Overview
Location
United Kingdom, England, Forest Row
Employees
1-10
Phone
+44 7809 608262
Founded date
2016
FAQ about Bambooties
When was Bambooties founded?
Bambooties was founded in 2016.
Is Bambooties still active?
Yes, Bambooties is active.