Apparel April 2019 Apparel May 2019 issue | Page 81

BRAND PROFILE
country. Handloom weaving is all over Pollachi.
The famous Coimbatore cotton saris are made
in villages all around Pollachi. We wanted to do
something fashionable out of our heritage. We
wanted it to be something sustainable, local and
of the best quality. And that is how the whole idea
about establishing a brand that would span the
chain from farm to fashion arose.”
ESTABLISHING ETHICUS
The journey of growing Ecologic Cotton
with contract smallholder farmers in Kabini
Reservoir area started in 2005, when Mani and
Vijayalakshmi decided to work with farmers
to grow Ecologic Cotton there as an initiative
of Appachi Eco-Logic Cotton Private Limited,
founded in 1946 in Pollachi.
“In 2008, when our first lot of Ecologic Cotton
came into the market, the world was in recession.
It was a very bad time for textiles. We realised
that to make what we are doing sustainable,
we have to add value and keep making our
own products.”
The result was the establishment of Ethicus,
the in-house brand of Appachi to produce
handwoven saris, stoles, dupattas and yardage
with Ecologic Cotton, in 2009. The word ‘Ethicus’
derives from the words ‘ethics’ and ‘us’, thus
conveying that the brand stands for ethical
fashion and its underlying commitment was to
sustain farmers. “The philosophy of Ethicus is to
sustain centuries-old weaving techniques and use
them to make contemporary style saris and other
apparel, while sustaining farmers and instilling in
the weavers a sense of pride in their heritage and
remarkable skill.”
APPAREL
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