A MOMENT WITH MATTHEW
A MOMENT WITH
MATTHEW BENJAMIN
BY : LEISA GRACE WILSON
How much consideration do you give to the uniforms students wear to school ? Do you consider how they are sourced ? Have you ever stopped to wonder if they are sustainable or if the production of the uniforms students wear negatively impacts the environment ?
Fashion accounts for 10 % of global emissions , 80 % of all clothing ends up in landfills or incinerated , and school uniforms play a part in this . School uniforms are typically made from plastic derived from fossil fuels ; they release microplastics when worn and washed ; they are destined for landfills and get there even quicker because children grow so fast then they take hundreds of years to decompose .
Kapes , a uniform brand , is focused on contributing to reducing global emissions by making school uniforms more sustainable . The brand was born out of a need to find a way to fight the climate crisis and revolutionise school uniforms at the same time . They place sustainability at the heart of everything they do .
In this edition of ‘ A Moment With ’, we meet Matthew Benjamin , the Founder & CEO of Kapes . We delve into his past , learn what motivates him , and discover more about Kapes .
Mathew was born and raised in South West London to Caribbean parents . His father was born in Guyana , and his mother was born in the UK of Jamaican parentage . He grew up in a disciplined household , where cricket was the religion , and through cricket , he learnt a great deal about life . It gave him structure , discipline , and strength of character . It also kept him out of any trouble .
Matthew spent most of his childhood playing cricket – for his school , club district , region , and county . Some of his fondest memories include scoring his first century and the many holidays that his parents were able to take them on . Please continue reading to discover more about Matthew and what makes him tick .
What were you like at school ?
I was very talkative at school . My school reports always said , “ Matthew
48 Term 3 Apr - Jun 2022 After the Bell