The more I talk with designers, the more I want you to know what they’re thinking. Here’s some insight.

I recently asked nine various shades of green designers what they thought about the question:

“Does collaborating with big names like Target, Kohl’s or Wal-Mart sound enticing to you?”

Heyne Bogut: I think in order to make that work you need to have a very packaged and defined product that can be understood and categorized quickly and easily. I’m always up for a challenge and I like the idea of contributing to pop culture in any way, shape or form, but it’s tricky to water down what you do enough to make it work in those places.

Plus, there’s the quality end to consider, and the concern for what conditions it’s made under. So, basically, the idea is intriguing, but a lot depends on what these partners are like to work with. I know people who design product for Wal-Mart and the process is living hell. I’ve been approached in the past by mass producers and have found the attempted collaborations uneven and unsatisfying.

Mociun: I think collaborating with someone like Eastpac or Keds would be great. Or some company that makes things I don’t. I would love to have a printed backpack or something like that. So I guess I would be more interested in doing a collaboration with a company where I could design print one of their products. And doing something with a company like Target could be cool, just to get exposure and see what production on a really large scale would be like.

Harper Della-Piana:  There would be positives connected to working with companies like that, of course. The prospect of making a large-scale impact on my company’s finances; provided the pieces I design for a company like that are made in the U.S. or by ethical workrooms would be part of the guarantee. I would not work on a project with a company like that if it didn’t have a positive impact on the workers or the environment in some way.

Alison Kelly/Dahl: Collaborating with larger corporations is at once appealing and unappealing. First, you will have to mass produce your collection in a ghastly inexpensive manner. Department stores like these aspire for quantity, not quality, which leads you to the question of whether or not you’ll want to forfeit the integrity of your designs by having to use cheaper textiles, eliminate important design elements and manufacture in China. I have a friend who just turned down an Anthropologie deal because they would not succumb to her eco-friendly standards. It becomes a question of morality.

Cmarchuska: I have mixed views about collaborating with big names like Wal-mart or Target. Ultimately, I feel  there could be some great opportunities for exposure and marketing when combining efforts with a major retailer.  However, it is tough as a small start-up/new designer to find favorable agreements for both parties. I think I would work with a major retailer if the terms were right.

Souchi: I understand why designers are enticed by these types of collaborations but I have no interest in this avenue of exposure. The type of collaborating that would excite me would be to work with artists I admire in all mediums. I think Marc Jacobs is fantastic with this. His collaborations with Stephen Sprouse and Murakami were great because they were new and unexpected for a house that traditionally was about the brown and camel logo. Or when Hermes hired Martin Margiela to be its house designer. For me, it would be a combo of materials – mixing yarn ideas with metal smiths or painters.

AK Vintage: Enticing?  Yes. Very much so, in fact. I’m interested in building my business and doing it as green as possible. I think if big box stores like these were ever to approach me they would obviously be interested in the sustainability of my product/brand just as much as my ability as a designer, because that is part of the identity I’m creating for my lines as well as for myself.  And, under these circumstances, I would absolutely be open to having that conversation.

Mothlove: I grew up in a small town, where my quaint little downtown full of mom & pop shops not only supported its community, but was supported by its community. Wal-Mart arrived in our town, and that sad story we’ve already heard started playing. A small, yet thriving community ceased to exist. Those small shops now represent the individually-owned boutiques I pursue as a designer.

I believe in the independent, the well-crafted and the local. I also believe that the designer-to-boutique, boutique-to-customer [relationship] creates community; communities with consumer awareness, communities that self sustain and support. Of course, financially the idea of big box collaboration is tempting, but I’d lose my story. And the consumer would lose its culture.

Aster And Sage: Collaborating with Target or Wal-Mart is definitely an enticing idea. I daydream about my imaginary Target collection all the time. Mmmm, yes.

Read more candid thoughts from eco designers.

Image: j.reed

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You like to buy U.S. designed and manufactured clothing, but how do designers feel about their roles in it?

11 designers would like to tell you.

Emily Katz: I enjoy being able to talk with my contractors, meet with them when need be to make sure they are doing the quality that I require, and know that they are only a few miles away. I could bike to 2 out of 3 of my sewers’ workplaces. I think it is important to know how the garments are being made and to have a hand in it. However, we still need to find cheaper ways to produce locally. It is difficult to compete with big brands who are “luxury” and are charging the same amount as small eco designers who manufacture domestically. They have a much higher profit margin, and that can be the difference from staying in the mainstream consciousness, or going out of business.

Angel Court Jewels: To me, an eco line is about a concern for the whole. Producing in the U.S. is the same sentiment. Production in the U.S. helps us all just as producing and buying eco helps us all.

Aster and Sage: I’m in New Jersey and my products are made by me or by my stitchers in New England. UPS ground guarantees next day delivery, so I can get stuff to or from them overnight. I can visit them easily (though I wish I did that more often). I think it’s a little like buying fruits and vegetables; I may think globally, but I try to eat and manufacture locally.

Filly: I benefit from manufacturing in the USA by being able to connect with my manufacturer. I know her. Her name is Mary. She lives in San Francisco. She drives a Mercedes. And she likes my designs. She is beautiful and kind and rooting for me. Neither of us is exploiting the other but we are both benefiting from our relationship.

cmarchuska: I benefit from having my line manufactured in the U.S. for numerous reasons; some of the most notable would be:

– quality control standards – I am able to be involved actively in every aspect of the manufacturing process and to make sure the pieces are put together according to my standards.

-shorter runs/on-demand runs – Manufacturing in the U.S. provides you with the luxury of being able to produce smaller run sizes and on-demand runs which is very important in this tough economy.

-fair trade/fair labor/eco-friendly processes – I guess this relates more to start-ups and smaller companies, but you are able to oversee the operation (as mentioned in my first point) versus working with China/India where you might just be entrusting another individual on these very important issues.  This was one of my main reasons for manufacturing domestically here in NYC.

Souchi: I love that our production is not only made in the U.S. but that 100% of our line is made in our studio in Portland, Oregon. The benefits are on many levels: creating jobs in the town I live in, overseeing quality on each piece, cutting shipping costs which  lowers fuel costs.

Figs and Ginger: We benefit from feeling good about supporting our local economy.  There’s nothing better than feeling good about yourself!  Also we have much more control of the quality of our products because we’re making it ourselves in the U.S. and not having it produced overseas.

Kate Organic: Producing Kate Organic in the U.S. 45 minutes from our house has a lot of positives and negatives. We like being in control from start to finish, but, we hate being in charge from start to finish. Every decision is ours. Every choice that is right or wrong is ours. No excuses! When we made the line overseas, sometimes it felt like flipping a coin and whatever you got, you got.

It is nice to keep as much money in the U.S. as possible. But, since it is made in the U.S. the costs are so much higher. Stores do not like that the costs go up. They want it made in the U.S., but they want it at a lower price point, so it gets rough. At this point our biggest issue is keeping stores in business.

Feral Childe: Feral Childe works with printers, dye houses, cutters and sewers within a 50-mile radius! Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan, Long Island and Paterson, New Jersey are also frequent stops. We want to support our local garment industry and have become so friendly with our suppliers and contractors that it would break our hearts to get our clothes produced elsewhere. The New York City Garment District is totally unique. Where else can you get your clothes cut and sewn on the sixth floor, run across the street when you discovered you’ve run out of elastic, dash back upstairs and then scoop everything up to get the snaps put on by the guys on the sixth floor? Not to mention our accountant and our favorite fabric showroom are across the hall from one another in yet another tall building! It’s one-stop shopping. Business is very much done by word of mouth here so everyone really counts on one another – it really is a community. We love the history of the Garment District and we are proud to produce Feral Childe in New York City.

Mothlove: The costs I face as a small/independent and American-made designer currently outweigh the benefits. The average citizen has been so spoiled by low-cost, poorly-made and outsourced products, reluctance to truly support local artisans remains. Education is key; re-learning the importance of not only locally-made, but well [made] – and with environmental/economical consciousness comes cost. Costs to the designer (especially small-scale designers) in supplies and production equal higher price tags, especially in independently owned/operated boutiques – the new “mom & pop” shops that support them. Without supporting the boutiques, we don’t support the local economy. Without supporting our local economy, we lack the support for the artisan. And without the local artistic community, we lack culture.

Kim White: Number one, my buyers care. They ask where my stuff is made. Number two, locally made means I can see production and catch mistakes. I don’t get production from, say China, and it’s done wrong. Quality Control is waaaay easier.

Image: The Shopping Sherpa

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It’s always a great idea to bring lots of accessories on a trip, right?

After all, sometimes the poor clothing choices we made need help. And who knew it would be 40 degrees in Dallas the day you got there? By accessorizing with a great ring, necklace or pair of earrings you can whip that travel wardrobe right into shape and reuse the one pair of emergency jeans you brought without notice.

But, if you’re anything like me, you toss those accessories in little plastic bags and by the time you unpack, your baubles look like voodoo in a bag, hard to decipher and frustrating to undo. Not to mention, who wants to pull their pretty baubles out of a plastic bag?

Enter (trumpet please) Aster and Sage’s jewelry envelopes.

Made of 100% recycled polyester and soda bottles with recycled sensuede appliqués, the Elizabeth envelope has felt panels inside for securing earrings, small inside pockets, and a separate larger compartment for putting in your bangles.

So, as you step out into day three of 40-degree weather in Dallas (wearing the one pair of jeans), you’ll at least be relieved that you brought so much jewelry. More pants may have been better, though.

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