Apparel April 2019 Apparel May 2019 issue | Page 83

BRAND PROFILE
CONTEMPORARY DESIGN
“At Ethicus, we focus on creating saris for
today’s woman. So while our raw material is
local, processed locally, and woven by traditional
techniques, the look and feel of the saris is
very fashionable. This means that the texture of
the sari is very contemporary as are the colour
combinations and motifs,” says Vijayalakshmi.
She explains that she had women customers
saying that they prefer not to wear cotton saris
as they do not drape fluidly, and are difficult to
maintain as they require starching and ironing to
look good, and thus they prefer wearing chiffon
and georgette ones. Further, women would
say that cotton saris are typically not worn for
weddings, parties or as formal office wear.
Thinking about this response, Vijayalakshmi
and her team designed textured weaves that
resulted in very fine cotton saris that would drape
like chiffon and georgette and thus not require
the maintenance of cotton saris. Adding to this
facet are their contemporary designs and colour
combinations that result in the studio producing
very smart saris keeping in mind the requirements
and preferences of today’s women. And being of
cotton, these saris are very comfortable for the
Indian weather.
The result was that the ‘smart saris’ were
appreciated by customers, especially working
women from doctors to politicians, who found
that these could be worn for formal occasions
as well as weddings and to the office and for
television shows! Clients also requested for
customised saris, including cotton saris woven
with zari yarns that looked dressy. So, in addition
to the fact that the cotton for Ethicus’ saris is
ethically and locally grown and processed, the
saris themselves have an appeal for the fashion
statement they make.
MADE BY HAND
Since 2017, Ethicus has started an initiative called
‘Made by Hand’ wherein the team collaborates
with master artisans across the country and
sends them saris (woven at Pollachi) for further
value addition that in turn makes each sari one of
a kind. Today, they are working with four clusters
including Ajrakh and Bandhani artisans in Kutch,
Chikankari artisans in Lucknow, and kalamkari
artisans in Srikalahasti.
Ethicus believes in involving the interests of
all those—the farmer, ginner, spinner, designer,
weaver, retailer, and customer—who form the
chain from farm to fashion. “We want to offer
apparel with the best yarn, best colour and best
design for the Indian market. When you travel
abroad, you see wonderful products with a
Made in India tag. We wanted our products to
be the best and be predominantly for the Indian
market.” With the handloom industry being the
biggest employment provider after agriculture for
the rural population, the initiatives of Ethicus are
truly contributing to sustain the roots of the rural
economy while offering urban and international
clients apparel with a pure heart.
APPAREL
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May 2019
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