Stella McCartney is partnering with Italian textile manufacturer ISA on a new lingerie and swim collection for Spring 2019, the designer’s first since she parted ways with longtime owner, Kering, in March.
The collection will comprise sustainable materials such as Econyl, a recycled yarn derived from abandoned fishing nets and other bits of discarded nylon waste. Proponents of the material have hailed it as a “circular textile” because it can purportedly be recycled many times over without a loss in quality.
The pieces, McCartney told Drapers, will combine classic, figure-flattering shapes with new prints and colors for a “refreshing approach to seasonal swim and lingerie.”
“I always want to encourage women to feel confident and comfortable about themselves and in what they are wearing, lingerie and swimwear are a big part of that,” McCartney said. “It’s quite a personal and intimate item to design.”
ISA, which has worked with the brand in past seasons, has agreed to align its production with Stella McCartney’s celebrated ethos of sustainability and ethics.
“Together our goal in this unique partnership is to support the brand DNA, core values and social responsibility beliefs thanks to a team that leverages our product know-how, luxury market knowledge and a dedicated sales strategy,” said Mila Zegna, CEO of ISA.
Spring 2019 won’t be the first time Stella McCartney will be using Econyl. The British luxury house employed the material in its Autumn 2017 line of Falabella Go bags, along with select pieces of outerwear.
Aquafil, the Italian company that produces Econyl, has worked with other Kering brands, too. In 2016, Volcom announced that it was incorporating the yarn into its swimwear as a natural extension of surf culture and the desire to keep the ocean clean. Outerknown, the men’s wear label founded by 11-time world champion surfer, Kelly Slater, also employs Econyl in its boardshorts and jackets.
Stella McCartney has pledged to phase out virgin nylon in favor of Econyl’s regenerated version by 2020. The company has also committed itself to using only recycled polyester, whether made out of post-consumer recycled plastic bottles or other polyester fabrics, by 2025.
“[The goal] is five years longer than our projection for recycled nylon simply because the technology we need to reach this point is not yet available to us in a sustainable and circular way,” McCartney has said.