offering bespoke ordering and sustainable production, danish brand by basics is helping to reduce fashion waste one garment at a time.
made-to-order buying is the very cornerstone of danish label by basics’ concept. its ethical approach helps to reduce as much overconsumption and waste as possible. plus, it provides stockists with a high level of flexibility.
retailers can order via the b2b section at bybasics.com, selecting the exact styles, colours and sizes they need for their store. there are no fixed assortments, packs or collections - everything is cut and sown when the customers place their orders.
it’s been a part of the brand’s concept from its initial launch seven years ago. coo peter grensteen explains: “as we started back in 2015, made to order was implicit in our original set up. today our customers can still expect 100 per cent bespoke orders and no styles produced for stock.”
minimising waste
as numbers point out, the textile industry is a key contributor to global pollution. add to this the thousands of tonnes of clothing that never gets worn – disposed of by producer, retailer or consumer – and made-to-order fashion becomes a greener solution.
“we wish to avoid producing clothes that are never worn,” says grensteen. “therefore, we give our customers – the shops – full flexibility. they know their customers so we offer them the possibility to buy exactly the styles, colours, and sizes they know will sell in their shop.”
besides its made-to-order-concept, by basics also focuses on minimising waste throughout its entire production process:
“all of our knitwear is knitted in denmark, while skilled seamstresses at our production facilities in poland cut and sew the final pieces,” explains grensteen.
“in this process, we hand-cut the styles – reusing the patterns repeatedly to reduce our paper waste. remainders from our knitwear is also used for smaller styles and all our wool is unravelled at a local factory. we do our best to use every piece of thread in the best possible way”.
and when it comes to buying, the brand’s b2b web shop is open 24/7 while there’s no minimum order stipulations, bogo or discounts for buying more.
“we truly urge our customers to only buy what they need,” grensteen concludes. “this makes sense in every way – from taking care of the environment to ensuring a low financial outlay for our stockists.”