Inspired by era-defining 1990s catwalk looks modelled by supermodels including Naomi Campbell and Claudia Schiffer, the collection includes occasionwear dresses and jumpsuits featuring sequins made from recycled polyethylene terephthalate (PET), which is commercially used in single-use plastic beverage bottles.
For the collection, Monsoon-owner Adena Brands worked with Centre of Sustainable Fashion (CSF), part of the London College of Fashion, UAL, to research the challenges and opportunities of mitigating the waste issues of sequins in the fashion industry.
The sequin project was led in-house by Anneli Hallik, who became Monsoon’s first sustainability innovation manager in January 2023.
Monsoon’s design director, Caroline Jackson, said: “We view this collection as a statement of intent.
“We have used recycled PET sequins; and although after doing research with our partners we think that this is the most sustainable, commercially available sequin on the market, we know that this doesn’t go far enough.
“We know our customer loves sparkle and sequins. We know sequins are not currently an eco-conscious option. But rather than stop using them, we want to invest time and money into finding solutions. This fashion-forward collection goes some way towards showing what you can with using lower impact sequins.”
Hallik said: “It has been such an exciting deep dive into the world of sequins; exploring how sequins are made, what they are made of, who makes them and where are they made.
“This recycled PET sequin collection is the first step on our sequin journey, where we will keep on working with both our existing sequin suppliers as well as with new collaboration partners to develop innovative materials and processes. It is complex, with no easy answers. But in collaboration with various partners, we aim to bridge the gap between industry and academia and create solutions.”
The recycled sequin capsule collection will be available online at Monsoon.co.uk from Saturday, 4 November.
