Juleselin's Green Line
For this up-and-coming coat designer, it’s eco all the way
While Julia Burnbaum was working as an assistant buyer for Macy’s, she knew her passion was for design—coats in particular. Two years ago, the 27-year-old largely self-taught owner and designer of Novato, Calif.–based Juleselin took the plunge and has been impressing retailers, consumers and environmentalists ever since. In the coming months, Juleselin’s fall line will be featured in more than 25 stores in California, Colorado, Washington, Idaho and Wisconsin and on green shopping Web sites such as Living Green Marketplace (www.livinggreenmarketplace.com).
“When I began designing, I knew where I wanted to start,” Burnbaum says. “I have a thing for jackets, and I wanted to make a line of coats that could be dressed up or down to be both a coverup and a fashion statement. And they had to be breathable, comfortable and moveable—I wanted to make jackets you could live in.”
This set Burnbaum on a quest for the perfect material, which sparked a desire to create an eco-friendly line. Juleselin coats are made of organic cotton and manufactured in San Francisco in a sweatshop-free environment.
Launching a business and an original line is difficult enough for a largely untrained newcomer, but Burnbaum studied judiciously, sought out advice from business-savvy advisors and took things one step at a time.
“From the beginning, it was my intention to use sustainable, eco-friendly fabrics and fair-wage/fair-trade practices, but it’s not easy to do,” Burnbaum says. “This is an incredibly competitive industry, and it’s difficult to balance your standards with survival.”
Competitive is right. The NPD Group Inc., a consumer-tracking service, puts last year’s sales for women’s outerwear at just over $168 billion, down 16.7 percent from the previous year.
At first, finding consistent product was a challenge for Burnbaum. But as the demand for eco-friendly fabric has exploded in the past few years, the supply has begun to catch up. “I am always looking for great product,” she says. “There is more on the market all the time. I love the supplier I have nowshy;—it is great-quality organic cotton with an incredibly soft feel.”
Once she secured a supplier, she began searching for a manufacturer. “I was determined to find a local manufacturer for many reasons, primarily because I intended to be very hands-on,” Burnbaum says. “I found a San Francisco company with good working conditions, where the employees were treated and paid fairly.”
Burnbaum considers this a non-negotiable business expense. “Consumers are beginning to take notice,” she says. “People are starting to realize how prices translate in human and environmental terms.”
Hannah DuVon, co-founder of San Marcos, Calif.–based Living Green Marketplace, readily agrees. DuVon discovered Juleselin at a trade show. “I couldn’t have been more impressed with Julia’s coats,” DuVon says. “When I first saw one, I thought, ’This is something I’d find in Paris, would pay a ton of money for and love it.’”
Living Green Marketplace is not only an online outlet for eco-friendly products; the founders are also astute screeners of all products touted as green. “We test everything ourselves before featuring it on our site,” says DuVon, who refers to her Juleselin coat as her “favorite wardrobe item.” This is saying a lot because the fashion-forward DuVon spent several years in Paris during the past decade. “I get compliments every time I wear it, and my co-founder wants one in every color,” she notes.
DuVon says she has machine-washed her coat more than 10 times. “I don’t think Julia would recommend it, but I’ve washed it repeatedly, and it still looks fantastic.”
“Julia has worked very hard to figure out the green processes and the overall environmental impact of each detail,” DuVon says. “It is complicated, but this is a company that is determined to tread lightly on the Earth, and she’s using innovation, creativity and design to do it.”
Burnbaum is quick to point out that going green is not an easy or instantaneous process. “There are so many levels, and you want to do your best, but sometimes it’s just not possible—yet.” She notes that she hasn’t found a truly eco-friendly option for the fabric lining in her coats, but she continues to search.
Burnbaum also learned how going green affects many business elements. “I have recycled office furniture and am continuously searching for eco-friendly packing and shipping materials, including hang-tags, ribbons, tissue paper and poly bags. But some things you have to do in steps.” To view the Juleselin line, go to www.juleselinfall08.site.shutterfly.com or call (858) 401-3999.
