How It Started
Tired of staring into a wardrobe brimming with clothes, with a sense of having nothing to wear, or throwing out clothes that fall apart after a few washes, designer and founder, Alicia Tsi quit her full time job and set out to pursue her passion in fashion and create quality classics that made women feel beautiful in them.
After delving deeper into fashion supply chains, she uncovered a system that trains us to adopt a ‘disposable’ mindset - as we buy more and more products of low quality, and an industry that turns a blind eye to the high environmental and social cost of its production.
Proving that there's a better way.
Over 15.1 million tons of textile waste was generated in 2013, and the number is increasing.
Esse was born out of a desire to redefine the way consumers approach fashion and interact with their garments by inspiring them to consider their garment’s purpose and lifecycle.
We do so by merging elevated classics and timeless designs with social responsibility and environmental awareness to create investment pieces that are thoughtfully-made, whilst building a progressive supply chain and business model that encourages longevity, reduces waste and champions transparency.
Considered Designs
Rather than chasing trends, we design our clothing with you, the wearer, in mind. We draw inspiration from classics, translating them into modern designs and sartorial staples that evoke effortless sophistication, innate beauty and confidence. Combining seasonless styles with inventive, sustainable fabrics and a refreshed colour palette, each of our styles are tested by time and are phased out or brought back accordingly.
Sustainable Materials
Textiles is now the second most polluting industry next to oil. To reduce our impact on the environment, we make our pieces from more sustainable materials like Tencel, Bamboo and 100% Organic Cotton, which use much less resources than conventional cotton and are less-polluting than oil-based fabrics to produce. The rest of the fabrics that we use to make our pieces are over-ordered fabrics from designers and fabric warehouses. This allows us to give second life to fabric that may be destined for the landfill.
Respected Makers
One in every six people in the world work in the apparel industry. But it’s an industry that is one of the largest employers of child and forced labour. Therefore, we select each of our supply chain partners through a stringent set of criteria emphasizing product integrity and good business practice. We make it a point to visit each partner personally to understand the production process and focus on building long term relationships.
Thoughtful Production
We are incessant about improving processes in each stage of our supply chain because we want to make the best product possible. From putting each of our garments through wash tests to understand how it will stand up against wear and tear to rigorous sample fittings, we’re continuously tweaking designs and fit based on customer feedback to ensure longevity of each piece.
Through creating a transparent supply chain and two-way dialogue, we want to create a community of people who care about every step of the process as much as we do.