This is the sustainable home clothes that Gigi Hadid, Hailey Bieber and Miranda Kerr will wear this spring

SustainabilityMeet slow fashion house Public Habit and the timeless cashmere ensembles they've created in collaboration with sustainability expert Sophia Li

By Emily Chan

Although in the last year the pandemic has caused a clear increase in household linen purchases, the desire for comfort does not seem to lose steam as we go out more. Just ask Gigi Hadid, who we recently spotted walking around Manhattan with her daughter Khai, dressed in a cashmere ensemble that gave us a master class on how to adapt loungewear to our everyday style.

Adding to the joy, this unique and ultra-comfortable two-piece from Seattle brand Public Habit–who also counts Hailey Bieber (who defines her cashmere as “tasty and luscious”) and Miranda Kerr among its fans–also boasts sustainable credentials. Created in collaboration with journalist, director and Vogue contributor Sophia Li, the set is made from Mongolian cashmere that is traceable and OEKO-TEX certified (proof that it does not contain harmful chemicals). And, most importantly, it's built to last.

“Longevity has been a key factor,” Li, a prominent voice on sustainability, tells us over Zoom from his home in Brooklyn. “I wanted to create a cashmere outfit that would not only serve to be around the house, but also to go out and dress up; that you could wear it to a meeting or to go on a trip. It is not just for the pandemic, but for much later; designs that last beyond a specific season”.

Li became actively involved in design after Public Habit co-founder Sydney Badger contacted her in April 2020 with the proposal to participate in a capsule collection. It became essential for her to have a thorough understanding of the supply chain, including the exact source of the cashmere and where the garments would be made. "The cashmere supplier has the highest ratings you can find, and the goat hair is combed rather than sheared, which is much better for the animal," Li says, adding that the factory in Ningbo, China works Public Habit was chosen for its high environmental and social standards.

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To avoid contributing to the enormous waste problem generated by the fashion industry (the equivalent of a truckload of textile waste that ends up being burned or dumped every second), Public Habit does not accumulate stock, but instead works with a custom model. The customer will have to wait three to four weeks, the time it takes for each cashmere set to be produced and shipped to her home, in keeping with the brand's 'slow fashion' philosophy.

“The first thing we learned when we started is that supply chains were upside down,” says Badger, who founded Public Habit in 2019 with Zakhar Ivanisov, a former Amazon colleague. "A lot of waste is generated by wanting everything to arrive in two days, because that means the brand has to produce six to 12 months in advance, much more than they need."

When the brand teamed up with the global Carbon Calories initiative to measure the CO2 footprint of Li's cashmere sweater and compare it to that produced by conventional cashmere sweaters, they found that the traditional model can drift by 20 percent or more of unsold stock, which contributes to a significant increase in emissions. They also discovered that extending the useful life of the garment to the maximum is the most effective gesture we have to reduce its carbon footprint, a determining factor in terms of sustainability that is not analyzed enough.

That is why Public Habit asks each customer, upon payment, to commit to using her purchase a minimum of 30 times as proof that they understand garments as a long-term investment. "We have tried to do everything possible to ensure that the garments have the minimum impact and come from ethical sources, but the path to sustainability is followed by you, the consumer," concludes Li. "Just because you bought a sustainable item doesn't mean you're sustainable, it's a lifestyle you have to practice constantly."

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