A Different C.L.A.S.S. of Sustainability

After a long career in fashion, James Mendolia had grown disillusioned by an industry that seemed to care little about the waste, plunder and destruction it left in its wake. Through his work in fabric development and merchandising, he counted Ralph Lauren, Barneys and Italian manufacturer GFT (which has produced collections for Dior, Armani, Valentino) among his employers. The common element throughout his career was the ever-present connection to Italy, whether it was working with its factories, sourcing fabrics from its mills, or collaborating with its craftsmen. So when he decided to strike out and do something to tackle the industry’s problems, he teamed up with with a business acquaintance, Milan-based Giusy Bettoni, who had already established the initiative C.L.A.S.S. Their aim was to showcase new technological advances in fabric, and they have been behind the increased visibility of Re.Verso, BACX, ROICA, ECOTEC and Newlife, trademarked and copyrighted names that, at first glance, might mean little, but in fashion terms, mean upcycled wool and cashmere introduced at Gucci, ecosilk at Erdem, and technosilk at Maxmara.

Sustainability has gone out of fashion

“Giusy and my paths just kept crossing,” said Mendolia. “And we both thought There’s got to be something we can do. The company was founded in 2007 by Bettoni who wanted it to be a design-centered approach involving like-minded individuals who challenged existing processes and generated change. Sustainability is a word that’s kind of gone out of fashion; now we talk about smart textiles.

Is that why you’re approaching schools, to find like-minded individuals?

“Students have the power when they make a garment to crusade for smart sourcing and therefore expand our outreach. They are the decision makers of the future. And today’s students are naturally good at staying connected, forming communities, and are much stronger collaborators than previous generations, who were perhaps much more competitive and kept knowledge to themselves. Students seem to instinctively have more awareness of these issues than professionals. This type of positive thinking is built into their DNA. But the new division of C.L.A.S.S., which is about educating, not only speaks to students, but faculty too, who perhaps are new to this type of thinking. I’ve just come from Kent State’s NYC studio; I’ve met with FIT, and later this week I go to DOMUS in Milan and Westminster in London. In April I’m speaking to LaSalle in Montreal, and I want to involve schools in Latin America in the conversation also.

Just last week, Mendolia and Bettoni hosted a fashion workshop at the CFDA headquarters to bring smart textiles to the attention of this year’s finalists in the CFDA+Lexus Initiative, a group of designers which includes TOME and Prabal Gurung. Among the technological advances they exhibited were cutting-edge polymers made from Italian post-consumer traceable plastic bottles and the only cotton that actually conserves water (currently, cotton is the textile industry’s most popular fiber yet it consumes massive quantities of water, is riddled with pesticides and has destroyed large-scale ecosystems in various parts of the world, creating ill health for people living or working near the cotton farms). The duo are conscious that smart textiles must be luxurious and beautiful or they will hold no appeal for designers nor customers. As Giusy says, “Sustainability is a strange word; it is in between science and emotion.”

So it seemed a logical step to create your own education system through your upcoming workshops?

“This year is the first, but I just find myself scrambling to keep up with my ideas. The launch week is July 11–15, when we will host a weeklong series of interactive workshops in Milan, during which we will schedule on-site lectures, and tour mills to illustrate the ways traditional, established Italian companies are adopting new, responsible business practices and what that means for creativity. That will be for students and, later in July, we will host a week program for industry professionals.”

It’s the new face of the old endangered Made in Italy label.

“It is bringing renewed pride to the country’s exceptional fashion-manufacturing tradition, setting them once again on the cutting edge of innovation and allowing them to be competitive.

Factories that have been in place for over a hundred years are conserving water, installing solar panels; it’s the new generation of Italian manufacturing. We’re seeing the same thing happening in Japan, where the younger generation, maybe the great grandson of the founder is leading the business forward. None of the creativity is being compromised and there is a new optimism.”

For information on the C.L.A.S.S. workshops and initiatives, please consult their website http://www.classecohub.org/

By contributing guest editor Jackie Mallon, who is on the teaching faculty of several NYC fashion programmes and is the author of Silk for the Feed Dogs, a novel set in the international fashion industry.