Ranra wins Zalando Sustainability Award

London/Reykjavík-based design studio Ranra has been named the winner of the fourth Zalando Sustainability Award during Copenhagen Fashion Week, beating off tough competition from British fashion brand Raeburn and Parisian-based Mworks.

Ranra’s genderless collection impressed the international jury with its use of “exciting techniques” with textiles and dyes to create a colourful and fashionable catwalk show, which they added is “not as prevalent in more sustainable shows”.

The jury also liked how Ranra has created a brand that designs with a focus on longevity, as many of the garments featured in its spring/summer 2023 collection are adaptable and versatile. As well as its localised supply chain, as all its fabrics were sourced from its Italian supplier.

Alice Marshall, buying director of womens apparel at Zalando and Zalando Sustainability Award jury member, said in a statement: “We are delighted to be able to announce Ranra as the fourth winner of the Zalando Sustainability Award at Copenhagen Fashion Week SS23. The jury and I were impressed with the beautiful use of colours, and the exciting use of fabrics in the garments.

“The genderless collection makes it a really interesting and inclusive collection for our customers. We look forward to working with Ranra to create a capsule collection that explores the advancements and innovations that Zalando consumers are looking for.”

Zalando Sustainability Award crowns Ranra as the winner at Copenhagen Fashion Week

As winners, Ranra will receive a 20,000-euro cash prize and the chance to create an exclusive collection with Zalando that will further leverage more sustainable design solutions across materials, production processes, technological solutions and traceability.

In addition, Zalando added that they will make much of Ranra’s spring/summer 2023 collection showcased during Copenhagen Fashion Week available to its more than 49 million customers across 25 European markets.

Commenting on their win, Ranra founders Arnar Mar Jonsson and Luke Stevens, said: “It means the world to us to see our work being recognised by such a prestigious award. From the beginning it has been our goal to create a brand that will have an impact on how the industry is currently manufacturing; intervening within existing production methods or adapting historic approaches which offer more sustainable solutions to the issues the industry faces today.

"Winning this award is a huge step in further defining this path. More than ever, we feel motivated to keep pushing the boundaries of clothing design and how we define sustainability.”

Cecilie Thorsmark chief executive of Copenhagen Fashion Week, added: “As a jury member, it’s been an exciting process to review so many innovative brands that are seeking and implementing more sustainable approaches and are therefore contributing to a more responsible fashion industry.

“With the announcement of Ranra as the winner of this edition, the brand’s long-time dedication to combine its sustainability efforts with innovative ideas are not only resulting in exceptional designs but also reveal an experimental approach to their sustainability work that is truly inspiring.”

The Zalando Sustainability Award in partnership with Copenhagen Fashion Week was created to encourage fashion brands to explore alternative approaches to design and production to contribute to a more responsible fashion industry that is less harmful to the environment. Previous winners have included House of Dagmar, Nikolaj Storm, and Iso.Poetism by Tobias Birk Nielsen.