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This statement has and will be my north star as we continue this new adventure.
I am so excited by the steps we have taken in 2023 and to continue to learn and improve how I do business. If you have any further specific questions, please send to [email protected], as I am happy to share more where I can.
We will share our initiatives as they are implemented - on our website and directly to our email subscribers. I will provide another formal update towards the end of 2024.
Kindest,
Dani Pearce - Founder
Progress Made
In 2024 I will continue to work closely with expert consultants to help guide us on this pathway, including our board member with extensive industry experience in the sustainability space, and a highly experienced chemical engineer in New Zealand to help navigate us with interpreting chemical testing results, and to understand the optimal compound mixes and viable alternatives.
Our packaging is now made from 80% recycled fiber and 20% FSC certified virgin (new) materials to give the strength we need to ship the boots (and it is fully recyclable).
Our shoe boxes and tissue are Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified as FSC mixed (recycled and mixed). This means that all the paper we use on and in our shoe boxes comes from paper that we can certify is from controlled FSC legislated plantations and from already recycled pulp. (If you are not familiar with FSC, you can read more about FSC here).
We currently use virgin (new) rubber for our Bobbi, Billie, Darcy and Bobbi Kids styles. We are in the process of testing 100% recycled rubber. Our new styles Tully and Fergie use FSC certified natural rubber in the uppers and 20% recycled rubber in outsoles. We undertake all our normal testing to ensure the products can still deliver on our design and performance expectations.
We currently use a virgin (new) neoprene for the lining of our product. We are also investigating other neoprene alternatives and they are currently in the testing phase.
We are currently using EVA (Ethylene-Vinyl Acetate) in our Bobbi, Billie, Darcy and Bobbi Kids styles. Our Tully and Fergie boots use a recycled PU (Polyurethane foam). We are testing and exploring options of recycled or sustainable materials that can also give an improved wearing experience.
In 2023, we donated 330 non-sellable but wearable products to Thread Together who distributed them to those affected by the Kimberley Floods in Western Australia. We continue to only order what we think we will sell and never discount our products and promote conscious shopping. We are investigating and testing other options to recycle the products our customers wear when they are finished wearing them. For now, if you are in Australia you can drop your worn boots to any Tread Lightly drop location https://treadlightly.asga.com.au/collection-locations/ to be recycled into flooring.
Our intentions are always to make quality, considered and useful products that can be wardrobe staples - never to produce gimmick fast disposable fashion. With each new product we add to our range we endeavor to use the best materials to offer performance with the least environmental impact.
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Goals for 2024 and beyond
- To understand our impact in greater detail we commenced a Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) of our Bobbi boot in late 2023. An LCA is a detailed process done by an authorised third party that looks into every process step of the product from raw material creation to end of life (when the customer is finished with the boots.) You can read more about an LCA here. We hope to have this completed by mid 2024.
- To communicate and inform our customers on the outcomes we wish to implement and the rationale behind our decision-making.
You may have noticed that I have not committed to any specific dates here. What I have found through this process is that meaningful progress takes significantly longer to investigate, analyze & test than initially anticipated.
I look forward to taking you on this journey with us and hope we can continue to grow as a brand that makes the world a merry place.
Kindest,
Dani x