Gwyneth Paltrow

Having largely conquered the cold, sustainability-minded countries of Europe, Ecoalf is now upping its fashion credentials and visibility by opening a boutique in central Paris — with Milan and Los Angeles locations also coming soon.The Spanish brand, known for its holistic approach to green fashion, took a bright 1,600-square-foot space a stone’s throw from the BHV in the buzzy Marais district, troweling the walls, floors and fixtures with a concrete mixture containing old, shredded T-shirts.
“In France, the brand is not known, and the store will help,” brand founder and president Javier Goyeneche said in an interview at the boutique, which has a vibe somewhere between contemporary art gallery and surf shack. “Paris is very important, and the location is fantastic.”

Although the brand is sold in almost 2,000 wholesale doors in Europe, with Germany, Switzerland, Austria and Scandinavia the most established markets, it is only sold in about 70 doors in France.

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A spring 2022 look from Ecoalf 1.0, its premium line.
Courtesy of Ecoalf

Goyeneche said its new premium line Ecoalf 1.0, which debuted for fall 2021 retailing, is helping garner the brand attention and appreciation with its minimalist allure in the vein of old Celine or current Cos, but with the highest sustainability credentials.
“It’s not basic, it’s timeless, which is a key component of sustainable fashion,” he noted.
Touring the bifurcated space at 14 Rue du Temple, the executive pointed to polo shirts which shed hardly any micro-plastics when laundered; a sleek tote bag made of plastics retrieved from the bottom of the ocean; and sleek sweatpants made of Kapok, a natural cellulose fiber sourced from the dried fruits of the kapok tree.
The brand is also pursuing collaborations that are bound to heighten its profile, including one with Gwyneth Paltrow’s apparel and lifestyle brand Goop, landing at retail in October, and another, streetwear-driven tie-up with Spanish model Jon Kortajarena, slated for February 2023, Goyeneche said.
At present, about 60 percent of the Ecoalf business is wholesale, 20 percent retail and 20 percent online, he noted.
The next retail opening will likely be Milan, followed by Los Angeles this fall, in tandem with a full-court press into the North American market. In fact, Goyeneche plans to relocate from Madrid to California to set up the office, warehouse and flagship store. Wholesale distribution in North America will be handled by the M5 showroom in New York, which has launched the likes of Stone Island, Woolrich and Herno in the market.

The Paris boutique is made with eco-minded materials.
Alexandre Tabaste

The brand also counts flagships in Madrid, Barcelona, Berlin and Tokyo.
Ecoalf logged 67 percent growth in 2021, and is targeting revenues of 40 million euros this year, and 60 million euros in 2023, according to Goyeneche.
Sneakers account for about 25 percent of sales, with the outerwear category preeminent in winter collections, and T-shirts, sweatshirts and swimwear for the summer. The brand will next stretch into apparel for yoga, jogging and other active pursuits.
Founded in 2009, the company is turning its attention to the end of its products’ life cycle by focusing mainly on mono-filament garments, rather than ones made of blended materials.  Goyeneche noted already 94 percent of its fabrics are mono-filament, including organic cotton and cashmere as well as plant-based polymers Sorona by DuPont and Solotex.

SEE ALSO:
Ecoalf Introduces Its Most Sustainable Line Yet
Lenzing Talks Textiles and Eco-Fibers, State of Sustainability Market
What’s to Come of Patagonia’s Microfiber Washer, ‘Fabric Meta Chip’ and Other CES Innovations?

From a history of rich meaning and traditions, pink still rises as the color to shock, entice, and enthrall.
Photographed by Julien Vallon
Ursula von der Leyen’s mood was about as magenta pink as her blazer when she was denied a proper seat during a diplomatic visit to Turkey in April. The first woman to head the European Commission and one of the most powerful in the world was relegated to a couch as her colleague Charles Michel, president of the European Council, and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan of Turkey settled into two chairs. Afterward, standing tall before the European Parliament, Von der Leyen warned that sexism endures at all levels. The German politician even speculated if appearing in less feminine attire would have granted her the treatment she deserved that day. “Would this have happened if I had worn a suit and a tie?” she asked.
Photo: Courtesy of Chanel
Historically, pink has proven to be one of the most emotionally evocative and controversial colors of all the spectrum. It’s most dazzling iteration, shocking pink, was popularized by the late Italian couturier Elsa Schiaparelli, who made the intense magenta her signature color in 1937, ensuring her subsequent designs stood out against the austere palettes of the battle-weary Forties. Decades later, further socio-political movements in the west would embrace the color again, when knitted pink hats became a symbol of the 2017 Women’s March, a worldwide protest movement against US President Donald Trump.
Pink is said to have been worn in ancient India and imperial China, as well as the upper echelons of 18th century European society, where it was a symbol of social status, since the materials used to dye such lavish garments were imported from expensive expeditions to central Asia and South America. In art, it symbolized youth and romance. Madame de Pompadour, the chief mistress of Louis XV of France, was so enamored with the color, French porcelain manufacturer Sèvres created a shade specifically for her, called Rose Pompadour, in 1757. Yet for centuries, the color was associated with masculinity, with boys being dressed in pink and girls in blue (with babies traditionally wearing white and the military mostly wearing red, pink was seen as appropriate for boys). This connection only started swapping in the 1940s, with the final transition to pink as a feminine color coming in the 1950s, when US first lady Mamie Eisenhower wore a pink gown as her inaugural dress, thereby cementing the color as one for “ladies.”
Photo: Courtesy of Stella McCartney
Bright pink soon found its way to the big screen, too. Marilyn Monroe wore shocking pink to scintillating effect in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953). Dressed in a raspberry William Travilla silk strapless gown and matching opera gloves, Monroe swatted away suitors with her fan while singing “Diamonds Are A Girl’s Best Friend.” In the 1957 Audrey Hepburn movie Funny Face, the magazine editor-in- chief character Maggie Prescott sings an ode to the color, exclaiming, “If she’s gotta think, think pink!” And who can forget the pink satin jackets donned by the Pink Ladies in the 1978 film Grease? The color made it off-screen, too, with many stars choosing shades of pink for some of their biggest moments. A tearful Gwyneth Paltrow wore a powder pink Ralph Lauren gown when she accepted her best actress Oscar in 1999; Rihanna chose a voluminous Giambattista Valli dress for the 2015 Grammy Awards; Lady Gaga displayed her unbridled sense of female emancipation on the 2019 Met Gala red carpet in a billowing shocking pink Brandon Maxwell dress.
Marilyn Monroe. Photo: Alamy
Designers from Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel to Schiaparelli’s most recent successor, Daniel Roseberry, demonstrate that pink is a symbol of feminine power. For his SS21 couture presentation, Roseberry borrowed a page from the maison’s surrealist past, unfurling a glossy black molded bustier with chiseled abs, enveloped in a signature shocking pink bow. “The pink, in particular, I find to be a very modern code of the house,” reflects the artistic director.
Lady Gaga. Photo: Getty
Regional couture designers Zuhair Murad, Nicolas Jebran, Azzi & Osta, and Rabih Kayrouz are also helping propel pink through the millennium. Known for their fashion-forward couture, George Azzi and Assaad Osta opted for a dessert motif for their SS21 collection of floor-sweeping evening looks, including luxuriant jumpers fastened with glamorous swathes of iridescent melon satin. “We don’t see pink as a color for girls. With its endless shades, pink can be perfect for decoration, interiors, menswear… Anything, really. For women, it signifies blush powders, vibrant skin, attractiveness… It represents the softer or wilder side of a man or woman,” Azzi & Osta explains. Meanwhile, Chanel offered bubblegum pink tweed suits styled over magenta swimsuits for Resort 2021; Loewe featured the rosy hue as a backdrop for sunflower prints for SS21; Gucci SS21 offered electric pink as potential officewear in the form of a shirt and pants; and Stella McCartney broke out the potent hue across a one- sleeved dress with capuche for its SS21 presentation.

Many of the colors on the runway are conceived by textile mills like Taroni SpA near Italy’s palazzo- studded Lake Como. Its CEO and creative director, Maximilian Canepa, a 12th generation textile maker, is the keeper of more than 1000 color recipes influenced by everything from shiny salmon skins to corals; from camellias plucked from the family garden to the vintage cars. “If you take a color from something valuable or so rare in nature and from something powerful and rich, it resonates with creatives,” remarks Canepa.
Photo: Courtesy of Zuhair Murad
Pink does have its naysayers, though, especially among people rejecting the rigid gender-conformity still associated with it. While some parents choose not to buy their daughters any rose-colored clothing, others have spoken about being “pink shamed” for dressing them in pink instead of more gender-neutral colors. Perhaps pink will always carry the ability to shock. Roseberry considers that the prowess the color stands for has become even stronger over time. It is a hue ever related to power, creativity, and individuality – fit for the women of today.
Read Next: Burberry Makes History with this Groundbreaking Pledge
Originally published in the June 2021 issue of Vogue Arabia

Photo: Getty
From Rihanna to Gwyneth Paltrow, several celebrities have taken to social media condemning the recent surge in anti-Asian violence after a 21-year-old man entered three massage parlors on March 17 in Atlanta killing eight women – six of whom were Asian.
The shooter Robert Aaron Long, who was arrested earlier this week, has admitted to the killings. Now, celebrities are calling for people to not “be silent” about the increase in hate crimes against the Asian community. “Please pay attention to what is happening,” wrote actor Gemma Chan on Instagram. “Racism and misogyny are not mutually exclusive. In fact, sexualised racial harassment and violence is something that many of us face regularly.”
Cherokee County Sheriff Frank Reynolds claimed that Long’s actions “did not appear to be” motivated by racism. However, a recent Stop AAPI Hate report found that 3,795 racially motivated attacks had been committed against Asian Americans since the Covid-19 pandemic began a year ago – with many attacks going unreported.
Below, celebrities call for #StopAsianHate
Gemma Chan

Rihanna

Olivia Munn

Gwyneth Paltrow

Katie Holmes

Kate Hudson

Bernice A King

Margaret Cho

I’m angry. This is terrorism. This is a hate crime. Stop killing us. #StopAsianHate pic.twitter.com/rZghXp4nOQ
— Margaret Cho (@margaretcho) March 17, 2021

Barack Obama

Even as we’ve battled the pandemic, we’ve continued to neglect the longer-lasting epidemic of gun violence in America. Although the shooter’s motive is not yet clear, the identity of the victims underscores an alarming rise in anti-Asian violence that must end.
— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) March 17, 2021

Mindy Kaling

The targeting of our Asian brothers and sisters is sickening, but not surprising given the normalizing of anti-Asian hate speech in the past year. We have to #StopAsianHate, enough is enough!
— Mindy Kaling (@mindykaling) March 17, 2021

Ava DuVernay

The hashtag #StopAsianHate is rightly trending. How do we do that beyond just tweeting? Some ideas. Examine stereotypes you hold about Asian people. Work to dismantle that within yourself. Raise your voice anywhere that anti-Asian sentiment is present. Normalize calling it out. https://t.co/KENMNCsEvy
— Ava DuVernay (@ava) March 17, 2021

Read Next: 11 Black Creatives Open Up About Representation in the Middle East
Originally published on Vogue.co.uk