When Romy Jackson, founder of SoSo Swim, was just nine years old, she already had a brand of hers named ‘SoSo Dog Boutique’. It was a small online store that sold eco-friendly shampoos and conditioners, nautical collars, and leads for dogs. She moved from dog accessories to swimwear over 10 years later but decided to ’SoSo’ in the name. She had the desire to have sustainable swimwear that actually looked good upon wearing. She wanted her customers to find it easy to transition to sustainable fashion without giving up the high quality and the timelessness of the design.
Challenges
At the start of the brand, Romy made sure that her team did proper research about the right fabrics and a good factory that would support her sustainability plan. She wanted to make sure that the products were good enough for the customers to treasure them forever.
She found it a bit difficult to understand how far in advance everything had to be done, and how the product lines needed to be ready almost 6 months in advance as there are many factors involved such as finding the right fabric, time to manufacture the product and to plan something in case something goes wrong, but she still held on despite not having any prior experience in the fashion industry.
A new wave
All the swimwear of the brand is manufactured in the UK. Talking to the Organic Magazine Romy says, “I work alongside a pattern designer to make up the shape of the swimsuits and get all the logistics, then this gets sampled by our factory and I am able to properly try on the products, and see how they fit. Once we have that ‘perfect’ fit, we move into manufacturing. At the moment we only have a handful of styles as we want to grow in a slow, sustainable manner. However, I hope by the end of the year we will have a few new styles to show off.”
Each of the swimsuits is made from Ghost Fishing nets, which are found in different seas across the world. The literal definition of Ghost Fishing nets means the fishing nets which have been lost or abandoned in the sea or ocean water. Fishermen either decide to throw these nets over their boats or they just can’t be hauled back in and get lost.
One may think this can’t be a huge issue but studies have found that 50% of waste in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch are ghost fishing nets and other gear, with 10% of all ocean waste consisting of these fishing nets which shows how much these things add to the already increasing pollution of the seawater.
Sustainability Progress
When asked about the Sustainability Progress of her company, Romy shares, “I am constantly researching new materials, fabrics, certifications, and how we can transparently show our supply chain to our customers. I would love to get the BCorp certification soon as this will allow us to show even more to our customers our commitment to sustainability.”
Since the swimsuits are made from the Ghost Fishnets, the fabric used is ECONYL. Since it’s a regenerated material made from discarded fishing nets that are mixed together with lycra, it becomes the perfect material for the sea.
The packaging is also all plastic-free. Instead of plastic, the brand uses sugarcane hygiene labels for the swimsuits as it is made of completely compostable material. And brown paper bags.
As all the manufacturing is in the UK itself, she can ensure that the swimwear are made ethically and can also reduce carbon footprint.
New shores
The brand is working well till now and the future looks bright. Romy is planning on having a ’23 summer launch in April which will include a restock of a few of the current colours and styles, and also an addition of a new swimsuit design which she is hopeful will be loved by the customers. But keeping in mind to not push overconsumption, the brand will put a bit more control on more designs without stopping the flow of the new stock.
