Yuki.Buttons AND SUSTAINABILITY
Yuki.Buttons is strongly committed to sustainability and preserving the planet as much as possible every step of the way.
Fabrics and trims
We only use natural fiber fabrics, such as linen, organic cotton, linen/cotton blends, and hemp, that will biodegrade naturally within a few weeks.
We favor linen because it’s one of the most biodegradable fabrics in the world, with natural properties like moth resistance, antibacterial properties, sturdy yet breathable. It comes from the flax plant, a very resilient one that needs very little water, it can grow on poor soil, and nothing is wasted from the plant during the manufacturing process.
As a small independent studio, we sometimes don’t have access to a great variety of fabrics with higher MOQ’s, but as we grow we strive to make new additions to our catalog of sustainable fabrics.
We currently use poly threads but are working towards using 100% cotton threads.
When buttons are required, we purchase sustainably sourced olive wood buttons from a local vendor in the US.
Any future trims we may add, will strictly follow our sustainability principles.
Our Process
Our manufacturing process of Made-to-order garments and small-batch production allows us to avoid unnecessary clothing production. Customized pieces also fit our customers better, making them less likely to discard them. We stand for our craftsmanship, and all our seams are meant to be durable if worn with care.
Yuki.Buttons is also a zero-waste business, and we accomplish that by offering scrap bundles and scrunchies and using up the tiniest pieces for pouf stuffing.
We launch only a few designs every year, and all our designs are available year-round. Our designs are timeless and minimal so that they can be timeless. And we encourage buying only pieces that fit your style, not the other way around.
Shipping
Our shipping materials are all home-compostable (FSC paper, 100% cotton twine), and our mailers are reusable too. We try to ship with tissue paper wrapping as much as possible to avoid shipping unnecessary air and creating a bigger CO2 footprint.
The safety pins we use to attach our tags to some tops are nickel free and locally sourced. And they are meant to be sturdy to be reused. So don’t throw them away! Keep them because you never know when they might save you!
The only plastic present in our whole operation is our freebie vinyl stickers, which you can use on your water bottles or any surface (even snowboards) and are dishwasher safe.
Our Business Model
As of 2022, we are selling directly to consumers. This decision responds mainly to our desire to make sustainable clothes a little more approachable and accessible by giving our customers a lower price than we would if we had to account for the wholesalers’ cut.
It is also the reason why we don’t do sales very often, and when we do, they are no bigger than 20%. This only means you are getting quite a fair price all year round!
It also allows us more freedom in terms of stock and agility if we need to pivot on styles and colors.
We don’t know if giving up this part of the business is a good business decision or if it’s a naive utopia yet, but we will continue to do so as long as our customers keep supporting us.
We are not perfect but we try to do our best within our possibilities. That is why we define ourselves as a ‘sustainable business in progress’. Because we are always learning and we are always improving.
