Cheap Monday is setting a new standard of sustainability in fast fashion denim. The Fall/Winter 2018 collection marks a turning point for the brand as all jeans in the line will be made of organic or recycled cotton, and all garments will be labeled sustainable.
For Cheap Monday to label a garment as sustainable it must contain a minimum of 50 percent sustainable materials. However, the company said the majority of the garments will contain closer to 100 percent sustainable materials. The materials are certified by an independent certification body.
Cheap Monday has been increasing the amount of sustainable materials used in its collections since Spring/Summer 2017, when 72 percent of denim, 51 percent of menswear and 34 percent of womenswear were labeled sustainable. Along with organic cotton and recycled cotton, the company has adopted more eco-friendly materials like Tencel, recycled polyester and recycled wool.
In 2016, the brand installed collection bins in its stores where consumers can leave unwanted garments and textiles and launched C/O Cheap Monday Capsule Collection, a limited-edition collection that highlighted how used textiles can be repurposed.
The F/W ’18 collection is inspired by “movement-makers standing up in extraordinary times,” the brand described. Denim fabrics are course and rigid, while washes are tinted and dirty with a natural worn out feel or evenly washed out for a normcore look.
Upsized jackets, boxy jackets and a puffer Trucker are among the key unisex items in the collection. Women’s jeans include the slim straight fit Revive and the Donna, a mom jean inspired by the ’80s and ’90s. Key men’s styles are the tapered cropped leg In Law and the loose fit Bez. Barricade-inspired tape is repeated on jeans and jackets, and patches on jean jackets have messages that highlight a call for action.