Brand Spotlight – Nudie Jeans Co.
They are the O.G in responsible denim, you can spot them from a mile away with their signature orange stitching and back pocket embroidery. The worn in dry denim where you can see the long-lasting imprint of someone storing their mobile in their front pocket, It’s the look we know and love. Enter Nudie Jeans Co.
Amsterdam 2009, I was 21yrs old and on a 6month trip around the world with my best friend when I first walked into a Nudie store and experienced its minimalist / industrial interior paired with a bright orange backwards ‘N’ neon sign, the exact same vibe you’ll find in their stores today, worldwide. Little did I know fourteen years later I’d be their biggest fan and bringing all my friends along for the ride.
Born and raised in Sweden, Nudie Jeans Co. are always going against the grain, something we know a lot about here at BLAEK Store, their passion stems from a deep desire to always do the opposite. In 2001 raw, untreated fabric was out and the demand for 100% organic cotton was declining but this didn’t stop Nudie from flipping the narrative(1) . Thanks to their classic fits and authentic washes the world very quickly fell back in love with dry denim and Nudie
reintroduced organic cotton to the masses.
However, it’s not just about the fabric, year after year Nudie continue to evolve and grow leading the way in responsible denim manufacturing. Since 2012 all Nudie Jeans denim is made with 100% organic cotton 1 and in 2018, they transitioned from the traditional leather patch on their denim and replaced this with a Jacron patch. Jacron is a material made from FSC-Certified cellulose fibres and acrylic polymers made in Germany(2). As of 2021 they had offset their business’ full emissions through the UN Carbon Offset program and had reached a new level of Product transparency showing all tiers of the supply chain including CO2 emissions and water use(3).
It doesn’t stop there; Nudie have created a completely closed loop business model. This includes free repairs for life including dedicated repair shops and repair partners (Hint: BLAEK Store offers free repairs through the Nudie Jeans Co. repair program) and if you don’t live near a repair station you can opt for a free DIY repair kit. In 2021 all their repair locations together repaired a total of 42,500 pairs of jeans(3). By repairing this many jeans, instead of producing new ones, they have saved approximately 34,000kg of cotton and 14,6 million litres of water(4). In addition to repairing loved jeans, they launched their Reuse range a few years ago which involves washing and repairing old jeans that customers no longer want and selling them as a pre-loved item for a fraction of the price of a new pair, ready for their next chapter on a fresh pair of legs. The last link in their closed loop system is recycling. Recycling fabric is very complex and involves separating the different types of material in order to create new recycled yarn. In the last few years Nudie has produced tee shirts and denim garments made from recycled yarn derived from pre-loved Nudie jeans. Talk about inception!
We know that it’s not all about the fabric, a sustainable brand must also be ethically produced and this is something that is much harder to nail. In 2013 Nudie Jeans Co. started investing in their manufacturers and paying a living wage for their products made in India from the raw material stage and throughout the supply chain up to the finished product(5). Since implementing this support program, they have expanded this incentive to spinning mills, sewing facilities as well as the knitting and processing units(5). They continue to expand this program throughout their supplier list. Social audits and training are a big part of the Nudie Jeans Co. production model, they have been a member of the Fair Wear Foundation since 2009 and they actively work to improve the working conditions in their supply chain to make sure all suppliers and subcontractors comply with the eight standards of the Code of Labour Practices(6).
You’re probably wondering how the hell I know all this, well firstly, I’m big on research but most importantly, like any transparent company doing right by people and the planet, Nudie Jeans Co. provide a full sustainability report at the end of each year as well as complete transparency from every corner of the business that is available for anyone to download and read directly from their website.
The report also highlights areas which have room for improvement and contains a list of goals for the next 12 months. We know no brand will ever be truly sustainable (without sounding like a broken record, the most sustainable outfit is the one you already own or your birthday suit) but one of the most important aspects of transparency is recognising not only where your business needs to improve in terms of sustainability and efficacy but the clearly defined goals and actions that will help you reach these milestones.
Not only do Nudie Jeans Co. tick a lot of our responsible business boxes the team in AUS are the best of the best. A supportive, passionate, and fun crew that are dedicated to making a positive impact on people and planet. BLAEK Store are big fans and big advocates for the orange thread, next time you’re in the market for a new pair of jeans that you want to last a lifetime, check out Nudie Jeans Co.
1 Nudie Jeans Co. “Philosophy” www.nudiejeans.com/this-is-nudiejeans/about/
Amsterdam 2009, I was 21yrs old and on a 6month trip around the world with my best friend when I first walked into a Nudie store and experienced its minimalist / industrial interior paired with a bright orange backwards ‘N’ neon sign, the exact same vibe you’ll find in their stores today, worldwide. Little did I know fourteen years later I’d be their biggest fan and bringing all my friends along for the ride.
Born and raised in Sweden, Nudie Jeans Co. are always going against the grain, something we know a lot about here at BLAEK Store, their passion stems from a deep desire to always do the opposite. In 2001 raw, untreated fabric was out and the demand for 100% organic cotton was declining but this didn’t stop Nudie from flipping the narrative(1) . Thanks to their classic fits and authentic washes the world very quickly fell back in love with dry denim and Nudie
reintroduced organic cotton to the masses.
However, it’s not just about the fabric, year after year Nudie continue to evolve and grow leading the way in responsible denim manufacturing. Since 2012 all Nudie Jeans denim is made with 100% organic cotton 1 and in 2018, they transitioned from the traditional leather patch on their denim and replaced this with a Jacron patch. Jacron is a material made from FSC-Certified cellulose fibres and acrylic polymers made in Germany(2). As of 2021 they had offset their business’ full emissions through the UN Carbon Offset program and had reached a new level of Product transparency showing all tiers of the supply chain including CO2 emissions and water use(3).
It doesn’t stop there; Nudie have created a completely closed loop business model. This includes free repairs for life including dedicated repair shops and repair partners (Hint: BLAEK Store offers free repairs through the Nudie Jeans Co. repair program) and if you don’t live near a repair station you can opt for a free DIY repair kit. In 2021 all their repair locations together repaired a total of 42,500 pairs of jeans(3). By repairing this many jeans, instead of producing new ones, they have saved approximately 34,000kg of cotton and 14,6 million litres of water(4). In addition to repairing loved jeans, they launched their Reuse range a few years ago which involves washing and repairing old jeans that customers no longer want and selling them as a pre-loved item for a fraction of the price of a new pair, ready for their next chapter on a fresh pair of legs. The last link in their closed loop system is recycling. Recycling fabric is very complex and involves separating the different types of material in order to create new recycled yarn. In the last few years Nudie has produced tee shirts and denim garments made from recycled yarn derived from pre-loved Nudie jeans. Talk about inception!
We know that it’s not all about the fabric, a sustainable brand must also be ethically produced and this is something that is much harder to nail. In 2013 Nudie Jeans Co. started investing in their manufacturers and paying a living wage for their products made in India from the raw material stage and throughout the supply chain up to the finished product(5). Since implementing this support program, they have expanded this incentive to spinning mills, sewing facilities as well as the knitting and processing units(5). They continue to expand this program throughout their supplier list. Social audits and training are a big part of the Nudie Jeans Co. production model, they have been a member of the Fair Wear Foundation since 2009 and they actively work to improve the working conditions in their supply chain to make sure all suppliers and subcontractors comply with the eight standards of the Code of Labour Practices(6).
You’re probably wondering how the hell I know all this, well firstly, I’m big on research but most importantly, like any transparent company doing right by people and the planet, Nudie Jeans Co. provide a full sustainability report at the end of each year as well as complete transparency from every corner of the business that is available for anyone to download and read directly from their website.
The report also highlights areas which have room for improvement and contains a list of goals for the next 12 months. We know no brand will ever be truly sustainable (without sounding like a broken record, the most sustainable outfit is the one you already own or your birthday suit) but one of the most important aspects of transparency is recognising not only where your business needs to improve in terms of sustainability and efficacy but the clearly defined goals and actions that will help you reach these milestones.
Not only do Nudie Jeans Co. tick a lot of our responsible business boxes the team in AUS are the best of the best. A supportive, passionate, and fun crew that are dedicated to making a positive impact on people and planet. BLAEK Store are big fans and big advocates for the orange thread, next time you’re in the market for a new pair of jeans that you want to last a lifetime, check out Nudie Jeans Co.