When feminist ideals meet environmental goals, beautiful things can blossom. I believe this season’s gorgeous Mother Earth collection is the ultimate proof of that. But how did we make it happen?

Don’t get me wrong; I am passionate about gorgeous lingerie. But that wasn’t the main reason I was keen to start working with Marlies Dekkers, nearly 20 years ago. What did it for me was her mission: to empower women. In Marlies, I recognized a kindred soul, someone determined to make the world a better, more beautiful place. And by combining our feminist and environmental ideals, I knew that Marlies and I could make that happen. Soon, in my role as Head of Product and Design, I became the ‘green conscience’ of the company, making sure that every step we took contributed to our ideal: making beautiful products with an empowering message in a way that does not harm people or the environment. With a project group consisting of a member from each department, we started focusing on sustainable solutions. From embracing digital printing – which is saving 40 billion liters of water worldwide annually! – to officially committing to transparency in our supply chain; in a relatively short time, we managed to move mountains. To me, this season’s gorgeous Mother Earth collections are the perfect wearable manifestation of our company’s green heart and feminist ideals. Recently, I was appointed Chief Sustainability Officer (I love how that sounds!) but my crowning achievement is the fact that for everybody working at Marlies Dekkers, green thinking has become second nature. I proudly present our sustainability goals, divided over four key ambitions.

‘Dare to dream, dare to grow, dare to be’ – Marlies Dek kers’ motto perfectly encompasses the core mission of our brand: female empowerment. It’s in the confidence-boosting designs and the superior quality of the products but extends into many other platforms, including the hugely popular ‘Unlock your Potential’ seminars and the inspiring Self-Love Show series on Instagram Live. To also support and encourage the women working in our factories in Asia, we have created the Bringing Females Forward (B.F.F.) Foundation. Through a special training program, developed in tandem with partners such as the Rainbow Collection agency and a local NGO, we offer our valued employees the opportunity to develop themselves on a personal and professional level. Mother Earth shows us that nothing is isolated and that we are all interconnected; every little action can have a great effect. With our acts of kindness and empowerment, we hope to have some positive inf luence on the lives of the women across our value chain. You know what they say: empowered women empower women!

To us, being fair and equal stands for creating fair jobs while promoting equal treatment. It means that we will do everything we can to make sure that human rights are respected within the company and across our supply chain, and that our employees make a decent living in a safe and healthy environment. Being passionate about this, we regularly check our sewing facilities and practices in Asia, and we have become a member of Amfori-BSCI, an independent organization that verifies that our partners operate in an ethical and socially responsible way. On top of that, in 2018 we signed the Dutch Agreement on Sustainable Garments and Textile, a beautiful initiative by the Dutch government to stimulate transparency in textile supply chains and safeguard human rights, worker health and safety. By ensuring that everyone who works in our partners’ factories earns a living wage or income, we aim to raise living standards. We truly believe that this benefits not only the employees, but also their families and communities. It’s only ‘ fair’, isn’t it?

We are deeply committed to using our expertise to create and find sustainable innovations in cooperation with other experts in the industry. Designing a durable product and advancing the use of responsible and ethically produced materials are some of the main priorities in reducing our environmental footprint, and the areas where we can make the biggest difference. One of our goals is to find sustainable solutions for all material we use, and we have been making great progress lately. Did you know that digital textile printing saved over 40 billion liters of water worldwide in 2018? And that it uses much less energy than traditional screen printing? Needless to say, we have embraced this technology wholeheartedly. When it comes to packaging, we choose recycled and recyclable alternatives whenever possible. All the materials we use, such as our eco-friendly poly bags, are certified and verified by third-party standards. Fun, sustainable fact: in 2019 we replaced the plastic cones that keep our bras safe during transport with paper pulp versions.

“marlies|dekkers is my all-time favorite brand. The fit is perfect, the quality is astonishing. I bought my first MD about ten years ago, still wearing it today, good as new!” – Katia, Canada. “I’ve been wearing this brand for over 15 years. Even when you have a bigger size, you can still feel young and feminine thanks to the beautiful design, the ideal fit and superb quality. I still own bras that I’ve had for over 10 years; that’s how good they are!” – Sarah Verhoeven, the Netherlands. Outstanding designs, a perfect fit and excellent quality have been our unique selling points from day one. Together with our partners, we strive to make high-quality and durable products, putting lots of love and effort into the process to make sure our lingerie and swimwear meet our customers’ expectations. The testimonials above attest to the fact that we regularly even exceed these expectations! When looked after properly, our products can be worn for years, even decades. Online and in person, we gladly advise our customers on the best ways to wash, dry, repair and care for their pieces, making sure that the love can last.