Skunkfunk reiterates eco-friendly message

By

Anaïs Lerévérend

Translated by
Nicola Mira

Published
Jun 23, 2016

Skunkfunk has found its rallying cry and intends to shout it from the rooftops. The brand was created by Mikel Feijoo in Bilbao, Spain, about twenty years ago, and has decided to advertise its distinctiveness on the women's fashion market all the more strongly. Ecology was one of the values the brand adopted in the last few years, but now it has unambiguously chosen a positioning consistent with sustainable development.

It is a global company policy, a certified engagement which involves choosing maritime transport or using biodegradable packaging, and it is also reflected in the product range. This year, Skunkfunk has launched two ad hoc lines: first, a range of accessories made of recyclable material, Tyvek, and secondly a 'Zero Waste' capsule collection, distinctive because it leaves no fabric scraps, thanks to patterns which use the fabric's entire width.

"We also reached the objective of a collection that is 50% manufactured using sustainable, GOTS-certified textiles, with the aim of reaching 80% by 2018," stated Ludovic Quinault, the Spanish label's General Manager.

This kind of pledge is something to be communicated inside the stores. Skunkfunk has therefore opened new stores in Spain and Portugal in 2015, to test its new concept, one that is "more organic, where wood is ever-present, and also pedagogic, providing the opportunity to explain the ecological features of our various lines," said Quinault.

The brand is now able to deploy this new concept, introducing it from this summer across its 25 directly-owned stores in Europe. The stores will turn into brand image and notoriety tools for Skunkfunk, useful to convince the brand's 800 multi-brand clients worldwide. It is an investment which Skunkfunk can now afford to make, after three profitable years in succession.

After going through a judicial settlement and a restructuring plan five years ago, the brand has in fact managed to turn profitable again, even if its revenue has decreased since the crisis, and now reaches €13 million.