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A pioneer among the biggest names in fashion, Marine Serre, a young protégée from Rihanna, asked about the fashion of the future during her last Fashion Week. In a context of environmental crisis, R-PUR has joined forces with the luxury of tomorrow in a futuristic atmosphere initiated by the talented designer Marine Serre in her "Radiation" show presented during her autumn/winter 19-20 collection in Paris. We can ask ourselves what role luxury will have to play in the coming years. |
This is not new, fashion is the second largest source of pollution in the world after transport. Always pushing us to consume more through advertising campaigns distilled and displayed on all our screens, fast fashion has literally taken over our way of consuming.
Beyond approaching consumers with a moralizing tone, it is essential to develop an awareness of a new way of consuming by seeking more sustainable solutions together.
A look back at our collaboration with Marine Serre.
Radiation Parade by Greenhouse Marine
It is 2017: Marine Serre, 26, won the LVMH Talent prize awarded by Parisian couture icons Karl Lagerfeld and Nicolas Ghesquière.
Recognized for its ambitious and innovative dynamics, it quickly created its brand thanks to the support of the world luxury giant LVMH and quickly grew from 3 to 30 partners in the space of a year.
Our common history begins in November 2018. Marine Serre, sensitive and curious, contacts our team in order to set up a new collaboration where fashion would meet technology. Her discipline, her creative sense and the ecological issues she strongly denounces are in line with our cause.
Our common challenge will be to raise awareness among the general public, especially luxury consumers, of the ecological issues to which we are all subjected today. Air pollution is also a social issue that is increasingly present in our daily lives.
This collaboration perfectly represents the fashion aspect, portable on a daily basis, sensitive to a large number of customers, and more importantly, the technological and ecological aspect of our masks.
This fusion of the two worlds reduces the drama of wearing a mask by placing it in a lifestyle and committed perspective.
Respirator : the R-PUR x Marine Serre anti-pollution mask
Most of the masks found on the market are made of ordinary materials that deteriorate easily. We saw and reviewed the "hospital mask" spirit mask, which is not pleasant to wear, where it is hot and where we quickly feel oppressed.
Our mask R-PUR Nano® x Marine Serre is totally new because of the premium materials used (quality fabric, aluminium ring), its design 100% made in France, and above all its advanced technology unique in the world.
It is able to filter out nanoparticles while maintaining a perfect hermeticity, comfort and support for optimal protection.
Accustomed to creating sleek and classic designs that match all skin tones and outfits, we discovered the designer's inspirations and entered her futuristic world.
Of the four models presented at the Paris Fashion Week in February, two were subsequently produced and put up for sale.
From September, the masks were presented in exclusive venues such as the Dover Street Market in New York.
The success was there, and all the masks were sold out in just a few hours.
Marine Serre FW2019 collection special installation has arrived at Dover Street Market New York
This is one of the first times that a luxury artist has really committed herself to ecology, how did she get there ?
The place of luxury in today's ecology and tomorrow's world
It is not too much to remember that pollution is the leading cause of death in France after tobacco and alcohol and reduces our life expectancy by an average of two years.
The "Radiation" collection presents the hypotheses of what fashion could be in "5 to 10 years". Marine Serre clearly does not emit a utopian vision, already imagining a new apocalyptic era in almost a decade.
It is important to realize that the harmful effects of pollution are already present and irreversible effects are beginning to appear.
Its collection of synthetic furs, jeans, lycra, cotton and recycled leather features futuristic silhouettes. Hybrid clothing focused on protecting its users symbolizes very well the humanistic and ethical values dear to both our universes.
Marine Serre is the first designer to take ecological issues into account in a radical way, ingeniously displaying a dichotomy between the abundance of luxury and ecological minimalism. More than 50% of her collections are made of recycled materials that reflect her childhood and adolescence, where she used to transform, reinvent, metamorphose and renew each item of clothing found in thrift stores or collected from her family.
This novice and avant-garde sense is today transcribed into futuristic and revolutionary work through the use of recycled, washed and worked materials to give that "vintage" and "worn out" side that fashion loves.
Trying to anchor themselves in a responsible dimension, some luxury houses have timidly tried to reinvent the design of their collection in a more ethical and ecological approach.
The famous Stella McCartney company is a pioneer in this approach, having stopped its production of animal leather and other exotic skins in 2001. Followed by Givenchy, which also stopped animal fur production in 2017 and then by Chanel in 2018.
This reaction, which is obviously more marketing than committed, is not possible in the long term. It is necessary to know that the ethical values advocated by these luxury houses are simply an obstacle to their development and to the increase in their turnover.
Ready-to-wear is very low selling and represents only 30% of sales on average while accessories and bags represent 65%.
Luxury customers are undergoing real change, following the logophile codes dictated by an ever-increasing demand for exclusivity, and are mainly looking for precious skins that are obvious symbols of social success.
It is therefore difficult for luxury houses to tackle in a fundamental way the challenges of ecology in an era where collections must be ever more important with about 6 collections per year and ever more consequent to meet a frenetic demand from its customers waiting for novelty and exclusivity.
Nevertheless, thanks to the actions of influential personalities in this field, mores are slowly evolving towards a more ethical and responsible vision and could well radically change the codes of luxury.
For our part, we are not closing ourselves off to other possible collaborations that will respect and share the same values as us.
On your side, do you think that luxury brands will be able to take the responsible turn that many expect from them ?