CHNGE, a New York brand, launched in 2017, is offering a sustainable alternative to traditional T-shirt production process with its CHANGE line of T-shirts, long sleeve tops and hoodies for those who care about making a positive impact in the world through their purchases.

Every year, 2 billion classic T-shirts are sold around the world, reinforcing the vicious cycle of disposable fashion. According to the company, an average American throws away 70 pounds of textiles a year. “We at CHNGE are determined to turn this tide, by sustainably producing the perfect T-shirt – a shirt that you will love for its looks and integrity.”

While a typical T-shirt weighs around 5.5oz and is made from run-of-the mill conventional cotton, a shirt from CHNGE weighs 8oz and is made of plush, 100% organically grown Turkish cotton. “Our shirt is spun with longer fibres that don’t have to be joined together as frequently, making for a highly constructed, luxuriously soft fabric,” the company reports.

Cotton

On average, it takes more than 700 gallons of water to make one t-shirt from conventional cotton. That’s the amount of water one person would drink over a 2.5-year period. In addition, conventional cotton production is responsible for 16% of total insecticides worldwide and 7% of pesticides, while only taking up 2.5% of the world’s arable land.

By choosing GOTS certified organic cotton for its initial line, the brand says it used zero harmful chemicals or pesticides, while also saving over 500 gallons of water for every shirt it produced. “We also used 62% less energy and had 70% less acidification potential than conventional cotton shirts,” the company adds.

Factory

“When a t-shirt has been made and sold cheaply, your savings are someone else’s suffering. Everything about the garment, from its production to its fit and feel, has been considered. We broke down every element in your most fundamental piece of clothing and perfected it. We were willing to accept the higher costs to make this the right way out of the right material. At CHNGE, spending more costs a lot less,” the company said.

The brand’s organic cotton production partner Continental Clothing is located in Denizli, Turkey. The factory has extensive experience working with sustainable materials. It has been a member of the Fair Wear Foundation since 2006, an organisation working to improve workplace conditions in the garment industry.

Production

The organic cotton fibres are taken to the spinning facility, where they produce the high-quality yarn. These yarns are then spun into fabrics that meet the brand’s quality and production standards. This state-of-the-art spinning facility separates the organic yarns and fabrics from non-organic materials to ensure there is no contamination.

At the dyehouse, not one single worker ever touches a chemical. Using only Oeko-Tex and GOTS certified dyes means that chemical use is kept to a minimum and all the processes are bound by stringent European REACH regulations. Wastewater from the dye house is cleaned and used again for irrigation, and hot wastewater from operations can be used as heat recovery for energy.

Finally, the cut and sew facility is GOTS certified meaning it doesn’t use harmful dyes or chemicals in production, and the rights of workers are protected. Workers elect a committee of their peers to take any issues they have to the factory’s management.

Supporting change

In addition, 50% of the company’s net profits go to organisations and individuals creating progressive social and environmental change. Partners include Acumen, which deals with tackling poverty, Charity: Water, which brings clean and safe drinking water to people in need around the world, Malala Fund that champions every girl’s right to 12 years of free, safe, quality education, Pencils of Promise, which creates schools, programmes and global communities around the common goal of education for all, and Stand for Trees, a carbon credit programme that protects endangered forests while offsetting CO2 entering the earth’s atmosphere.

www.chnge.com