Our inhouse experience and skills within shoemaking is, and has always been, our compass and best tool in the close cooperation with our suppliers. For further support and continuous development, we are continuously looking for fruitful collaborations within the industry. Focusing on sustainability for leather, the Leather Working Group is today one of the most well-known and well-regarded not-for-profit membership organizations for stakeholders across the leather supply chain. As members we get access to valuable learnings about best practices in the industry and the latest innovations. By being part of this group of stakeholders that strive for structural and systematic improvements in the leather industry, we are hopeful to further improve the environmental efforts together with our suppliers.

As of today (2020), more than 60% of our leather materials are from LWG rated tanneries. We aim for all our leather suppliers to be LWG rated by 2022 at the latest.

Last out were the stores in Moscow and St Petersburg and the response has been very positive from day one. “We are so pleased that we can now offer this project in all stores” says Anna Fahle Björcke, Head of Communications at Vagabond. “With Shoe Bring Back we want to set light on the importance of reuse and recycling. Most of our shoes are not sold through our concept stores, but by developing this service in our own channels we want to encourage and invite to talk about, and act to close the loop”.

Starting 2019, we introduce Tencel™ in our collections as an alternative to the GOTS cotton and as one of the actions to reduce our water footprint. The Tencel™ Lyocell fibers originate from wood derived from responsible forestry. Tencel production is a closed loop process that significantly reduces the need of water, energy and chemicals in the manufacturing of the material. “We introduce Tencel™ as an alternative to the organic GOTS-certified cotton. Not only is this good for the planet, but the material also has the gentle feel against the skin and is moist-absorbing which makes it a suitable material for the inside of our shoes. We are happy with how it has turned out” says Ulrika Simonsson, Sustainability Manager at Vagabond.