Last year, eyewear brand Monc won the Sustainable Store Design award at the 2023 Drapers Sustainable Fashion Awards. Ahead of Earth Day on April 22 – an annual event to show support on protecting the environment – founder Freddie Elborne reveals the steps the brand is taking to promote circularity in this area.
As the British high street eyewear sector becomes increasingly saturated and competitive, the industry is awash with misinformation.
Many eyewear businesses claim to be sustainable but do not provide true supply chain transparency, circularity initiatives, recycling programs or customer education. Almost all the eyeglasses businesses I've been introduced to over the years sell glasses that have 'Made in Italy' printed on the frames. [when in fact the frame and components are manufactured in China and shipped to Italy for assembly and packaging, based on the Italian decree no. 135/2009 which allows the “Made in Italy” mark to be applied when at least two production phases took place in Italy and the remaining are traceable], so there isn't a lot of honest manufacturing supply chain activity in the eyewear industry right now. People who don't put the “made in” label on their products for some reason don't want customers to know where their products come from.
In an increasingly globalized world, the laws, certifications and systems we rely on to run our society have been programmed without consideration of impact and circularity. This means that designing for circularity is extremely difficult. An example of this is the recycling industry. The recycling system is broken. Latest figures from the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs show that in 2021, 44.6% of all household waste in the UK was classed as recyclable, although that figure only shows that it sent for recycling rather than where 'mishandled' waste is rife, meaning it is often left behind or burned in open dumps.
To address such issues and ahead of Earth Day on April 22, we've updated our eyeglass packaging, previously made from recycled coffee cups, to mushroom roots, also known as mycelium . Each packaged box is grown for about seven days by feeding the mycelium with hemp core, an agricultural byproduct. Once the consumer receives the Monc cup, they can make a second use of the mycelium packaging in the form of a product tray or planter, or dispose of it by adding it to a compost pile, where the can will biodegrade. study for a maximum of 45 days.
Monc collaborated with Caley Brothers mushroom farm to create a live mushroom wreath to display in their store window. The wreath was made from pieces of old jeans by the charity Age UK.
To further reduce our environmental impact, we use bio-acetate made from cotton fibers and wood pulp for our frames, while our recycled leather cases are made from leather scraps and scraps from tanneries. skin across Europe. We have also replaced plastic microfiber fabrics with cotton-based fabrics, manufactured by Selvyt in Manchester.
What we want to do is try to be as honest and calculated as possible in our decisions: we make sure that if we choose ingredients, we make sure that we can source everything locally as possible for us. The Italian factory or our store on Chiltern Street, so that we can control and understand our supply chain and ensure that our products are truly sustainable.
Among people who wear glasses, an estimated 65% of the world's population, most of us own multiple pairs of glasses. Because prescription customers need to replace their lenses every one to two years [with prescriptions only being valid for two years from the date of issue in the UK]. This means that when a new lens is made, the old lens is often wasted. Lenses are made of acrylic, nylon and polycarbonate, which are potentially harmful to the environment if not recycled. For our over-the-counter sunglasses, we use mineral glasses made from natural minerals, mainly sand.
Another reason that contributes to the short lifespan of eyeglasses is poorly designed frames that do not last more than a few months. One of the most common problems is broken or broken hinges – where the front of the frame connects to the temples.
Over the past 30 years, as mass production and low prices have driven consumption, so has the design – high quality and repairable eyeglass hinges since the early 20th century.lame pants century have been replaced by cheap, irreparable, tight-fitting hinges. This means that if the hinge breaks, it usually ends up in the trash. This doesn't just happen with cheaper products, the higher end of the market is also guilty.
Monc is featured in Drapers' autumn/winter 24 women's buying guide
Our commitment to our customers is that they have the 'right to repair' their glasses within our repair policy, which means when you invest in MONC glasses they will last for many years and they can be corrected and rejected if they need to. If something can be fixed, we will fix it. However, most of the feedback we receive from customers is that our glasses are sturdy and unbreakable. Our goal as a company is to look at the design process from the raw material source until the customer can no longer use their product and help it become 'useful'. in return, by extending its lives or giving them the opportunity to exchange them.
People say you can't have a successful product repair company. I think that's completely untrue. In the midst of a waste epidemic, we're trying to show that you can repair glass and give consumers the opportunity to do so.
Elborne (right) receives the Sustainable Store Design trophy at the Drapers Sustainable Fashion Awards 2023. Pictured is awards host Mark Watson (left).
