In episode 195, Kestrel welcomes Umberto De Marco, the founder of sustainable footwear brand, YATAY, to the show. In addition to his work building sneaker brand YATAY, Umberto is the president of eco-leather giant and family business Coronet.
“What I’ve been doing since I started working in the family company — I had a mission: trying to change a material that has always been just a simple, cheap alternative of leather — trying to evolve this material in a more sustainable and durable one.”On this week’s show, Umberto shares more on how he grew up in the leather alternatives industry, with his father being a pioneer in ‘eco-leathers’. When he joined the family business, Umberto was focused on finding more sustainable alternatives to the poly-based leathers they were offering.
Also, Umberto shares more on his own company YATAY, and how they are working to further close the loop in their manufacturing, so eventually, every component of the shoe can be recycled and put back into future shoes.
Being that YATAY and Coronet are based in Milan, Italy, Umberto shares more on how COVID-19 has impacted his work and what he thinks lies ahead for the fashion industry-at-large.
The below thoughts, ideas + organizations were brought up in this chat:
70% of the electricity used for the production at Coronet’s facilities comes from solar panels.
At Coronet, they started an incentive program for their workers, where all the money that is saved from their efforts in reducing waste in the manufacturing process is given back to the workers at the end of each year.
YATAY’s shoe box converts into a backgammon board game, as a way to reduce the waste that comes with packaging. Also, they include a little bag made from excess bio-based leather, complete with checkers inside.
YATAY Forest, on the back of each pair of shoes, there is a code — when a shopper enters it on the website, they can select what type of tree they’d like to plant in YATAY’s “forest” in Kenya, and then they can monitor their tree and stay up to date on how it’s growing and how much CO2 it absorbs. Also, the shopper will be advised on when their tree has absorbed enough CO2 to offset the production of their shoes.
More on the materials in YATAY’s shoes >S05 Episode 242 | Questioning the meaning behind *regenerative fashion* and building new fashion systems with Christy Dawn & Oshadi Collective
S05 Episode 241 | Reimagining waste as a resource, creativity's battle against commerce & the importance of welcoming financial sustainability into the larger conversation
S05 Episode 240 | Maxine Bédat on why circularity won't save us, how the origin of business was not to maximize profit & what that context tells us about the current fashion system
S05 Episode 239 | Ganni on the importance of action over labels & their 44 responsibility gameplan goals
S05 Episode 238 | Best friends Jazmine (@thatcurlytop) & Gabby (@gabrielasage) on reclaiming "influence" & finding balance as content creators and sustainable fashion advocates
S05 Episode 237 | OEKO-TEX®, green chemistry & navigating the nuances of product labels
S05 Episode 236 | Educator Emi Ito and Gina Stovall of Two Days Off on collaborating to honor a legacy & getting creative to infuse fashion with more accessibility, generosity and inclusivity
S05 Episode 235 | Mikaela Clark of Hansel on balance in partnerships, welcoming the evolution of your creativity, and inclusivity in upcycling
S05 Episode 234 | Rethinking upcycling, questioning trends & reimagining what "seasons" mean
S05 Episode 233 | Katherine Theobalds of Zou Xou on sensible shoes and resisting mindless consumption & markdowns
S05 Episode 232 | Kara Fabella on the nuances of "influence" today, splashing color across ethical fashion + her Living In COLOR(ISM) series
S05 Episode 231 | GOODS & SERVICES ON MODERN SHOE REPAIR + REFRAMING OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE SNEAKER LIFESPAN — AKA SNEAKER REPAIR IS POSSIBLE!
S05 Episode 230 | KIANA KAZEMI ON THE OPPRESSIVE HISTORY OF ENGINEERING + TECH, THE NEED TO REFRAME THE "PROBLEMS" ENGINEERS ARE TRYING TO FIX, AND WHAT THIS HAS TO DO WITH FASHION
S05 Episode 229 | DANI DES ROCHES OF PICNICWEAR ON STATEMENT PIECES + FUTURE VINTAGE OVER FUTURE GARBAGE
S05 Episode 228 | CATHERINE MCKINLEY, AUTHOR OF THE AFRICAN LOOKBOOK, ON THE DEEP MEANING CONNECTED TO CLOTH, THE POWER OF THE CAMERA AND SEWING MACHINE + RECLAIMING VISUAL NARRATIVES
S05 Episode 227 | YESSENIA FUNES OF ATMOS ON RACE AND THE ENVIRONMENT + CENTERING FRONTLINE ORGANIZERS AS THE WRITERS OF THEIR OWN STORIES
S05 Episode 226 | MATT HICKEY OF BE KIND VIBES ON KINDNESS + PLANTING THE EARLY SEEDS FOR CONSCIOUS CHATTER
S05 Episode 225 | URBAN NATIVE ERA, "YOU ARE ON NATIVE LAND" + LEADING WITH STORYTELLING
S05 Episode 224 | TWO DAYS OFF, APPROACHING FASHION THROUGH AN ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE LENS + HOW EVERYTHING IS INTERCONNECTED
S05 Episode 223 | MAGGIE MARILYN ON TRANSPARENCY, RESPONSIBILITY AND ACCOUNTABILITY + THE NEED TO ALIGN VALUES WITH BUSINESS MODELS
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