ecoSkin: Chic and Green
Fashion-forward and environmentally friendly, newcomer ecoSkin is designed by industry veteran Sandy Skinner and produced in Los Angeles. Formerly, Skinner was an intimate-apparel buyer for Federated Inc.; a senior vice president of divisional merchandising for Rampage Retailing; and the founder of SJS Consulting, whose clients included JD Fine’s Tart Collections. Skinner became president of all divisions for Tart in December 2006.
Inspired by contemporary sportswear and her extensive industry experience, Skinner started ecoSkin in July 2007 and launched the line with a collection for Spring 2008.
Designed for the fashion-savvy woman who also cares about the environment, the line is designed to be stylish and comfortable, with easy-to-wear silhouettes. Using bamboo/Tencel/spandex knits and hemp/silk, Skinner employs off-the-shoulder necklines, asymmetrical hems, flowing sleeves and tiered ruffles in the stylish contemporary line.
The target ecoSkin customer “still wants to be sophisticated and hip in what she wears, and she appreciates quality and the control of domestic production,” Skinner said.
Dubbed as “eco-chic, eco-smart and eco-sexy,” the Fall 2008 collection was inspired by “the deep-green grasses, vibrant blue skies and red amber leaves of the rolling farmlands of Vermont in the fall.”
Top-selling styles from Spring 2008 include the “Peridot” dress, the “Sardonyx” dress, the “Jade” top and a hooded long dress. The hooded dress is being offered as is for the Fall ’08 collection, but the “Peridot” dress has been modified with sleeves. The twist-front knit dress has also been carried over. According to Skinner, the hemp/silk combination was a huge hit at the Fashion Coterie show in New York in February and the “Dashden” dress was the most popular style sold.
In its second season, ecoSkin has experienced a modest evolution, with dresses becoming a more important aspect of the line, as well as printed fabrics and wovens being added to the already popular knits. “I think the fact that I carry wovens gives the retailers another reason to pick up the line and some new/different styles, but the knit is still 65 percent of the business,” Skinner said.
The new collection also marks the addition of hemp/silk fabrication, which the designer said gives a more structured look to the dresses. Because it is illegal to grow hemp in the United States, Skinner buys imported fabric from Eco Source Inc. For Fall ’08, the hemp/silk blend is used in nearly 50 percent of her collection and will help grow the line to the next level. “Hemp is one of the longest, strongest sustainable fibers in the market,” the designer explained. “It is grown naturally without pesticides. It is a rotation crop, which is excellent for the environment. It puts nutrients back into the soil with each rotation.”
Wholesale prices for the Fall collection range from $78 to $124.
For more information, contact the Sway LA Showroom at (213) 624-7611. —Dena Smolek
