Tales of Thread: turning ethical sleepwear into a reality

It is never too late to make a change in your career, not matter what age or stage you may be at. Just look at Rebecca Fordham, award winning BBC journalist and UNICEF member, who decided to try her hand at storytelling via an entire new medium, namely fashion. “I guess you could say I had itchy feet and just wanted to run my own business. I wanted to do something that was creating employment, but on a smaller level,” explains Fordham to FashionUnited on the reason why she started Tales of Thread. Fordham, who is also a mother of one, is now the CEO/Creative Director of Tales of Thread, a luxe British/Ghanaian ethical sleepwear brand which launched online this May. “I had written about textiles all my adult life, so that’s what motivated me. I see it all as a logical progression of my career - Tales of Thread is about people’s stories and what motivates them.”

Tales of Thread: Ethical sleepwear which tells a story

The brand itself was in part inspired by Fordham’s travels when she worked as a journalist as well as her own personal passion for textiles and desire to create something which positively touched the retail supply chain. “I love Africa, it is my spiritual home. My daughter is half Kenyan, so I wanted to develop something which would enable me and her to be on both continents and continue to be curious about the world,” adds Fordham. But more importantly, she sought out to develop a brand which become part of whichever community she decided to work out of and employed locals, who in turn would become involved in the development of the product itself. The end result was Tales of Thread, which produces ethically made sleepwear in small, local workshops in Ghana, run by women. The products, which include pyjamas, cover ups and robes for men and women, are made using certified organic cotton and silk, EU approved chemical dyes and incorporate local handicrafts, such as Batik printing, to ensure that they are not only beautiful but sustainable as well.

“I did feel there was a gap in the market for making really good quality sleepwear, but also with an ethical story. People aren’t really doing that. And so much of ethics is not just about people’s rights but also about engaging people.” One way Fordham hopes her brand will engage with consumers is through its use of batik printing, a local Ghanaian technique which uses wax resist printing via stamp to create patterns or prints. “I’ve done everything myself the first time around, I created all the prints and patterns, since I wanted the first collection to draw on Ghanaian textiles, which has a huge history.” Although this technique meant that there were some restrictions concerning the design process, it lead to some simple and beautiful prints, which each tell an individual story. “We have a little fern one, which is a traditional Ghanaian symbol for protector, which has been popular,” explains Fordham.

Although Fordham did start Tales of Thread on her own, she did initially try to seek out a partner to work with. However, due to the amount of research which needed to be done, and the number of potential backers asking to see samples before thinking about jumping on her bandwagon, Fordham decided to launch the brand alone. “It was a vision I needed to make happen before people were willing to commit.” Unsurprisingly, since the brand launched its debut collection, she has been contacted by a number of people looking to partner with her. However, even though Fordham would not be closed to seeking external funding for her brand in the future, she is happy where it is now. “Running a company on your own is difficult, but I suppose you can hold onto to it more.”

Tales of Thread guarantees a transparent supply chain

She admits that she has never worked harder in her life than when founding Tales of Thread, but that the results have been worth it all. “It’s been a pretty steep learning curve - just want goes into it all, the weaving of the fabric, the fitting and shipping of goods. And even when you have the finished product, you have to keep going.” As a small fashion start up, it was not easy for Fordham to find factories which adhered to her standards and were also willing to carry out smaller orders. However, a local agency, Ethical Apparel Africa, helped put her in touch with the Cadling factory and Edwina Assan from MD Edtex Batiks in Accra, Ghana which produce the first collection. The factory, which employs 60 employees, works to empower them all by paying them more than the going market wage and ultimately aims to give them all equity in the factory.

“Making clothes is hugely complex, with many different parts to the puzzle and I have seen first hand what unfair wages and unfair working conditions do to people,” says Fordham. “It’s not nice. When you see a child not going to school, or not having his parents home or lacking any type of stability, that is something I feel like we all have a responsibility for.” She visited the factories in person last October, not only to ensure they were up to standard but also to meet the workers in person. “It was important to me to meet the workers and have that connection with them, as they do feed into the design and fit process and what works and what doesn’t.” For example, when testing the fit of the trousers one of the main pet peeves Fordham heard was that the legs rolled up at night. Therefore she worked with the team to create a tapered trouser leg for the pyjama bottom which does not roll up.

“I think people are beginning to care more about where their clothing comes from. If the customers care then everyone starts pushing. It’s funny - everyone is concerned with where their food comes from right now, but weirdly less so when it comes to their clothes, even though there is a human cost involved. But I see that changing.” Fordham hopes that Tales of Thread can be a part of that change, by offering fun, thoughtful sleepwear.