Sustainable Style: Neem London Pop Up Store in London

Neem London are displaying their sustainability credentials at a pop up store in Piccadilly Arcade London until Christmas, giving us the opportunity to see their wares at first hand.

I've talked a lot about Neem here on the blog. In a menswear world corrupted by greenwashing, inaccurate claims about ethical and environmental credentials, Neem is a brand that does its best to minimise the adverse aspects of clothing production. 

Wearing a Neem London Recycled Italian Sky Dobby Popover Shirt

Neem uses recycled materials, regenerative cotton and ethically produced merino wool in a range of comfortable and stylish shirts and accessories ideal for casual and smart wear. Furthermore, you can send your unworn clothes for recycling in return for credit to spend at Neem.

The pop up store is a curation of ten brands alongside Neem London, all with the emphasis on sustainability. One brand is Vyn Switzerland a Swiss brand who make sneakers in Italy that have components that can be exchanged when worn, so extending the life of the shoe.

The Neem + pop up store at 7 Piccadilly Arcade until Christmas

Visit the Neem London pop up at 7, Piccadilly Arcade, London SW1Y 6NH for the ten weeks up to Christmas. See Neem London for more information on the store and the brand.

This is a sponsored post.

Sustainable Style18: Neem London - An Update

I featured a then new brand called Neem London in August 2020 and reported on their sustainability credentials. It's always interesting to follow up new businesses after a short while to see how they're doing. I met founder, Nick Reed, to catch up and to hear how he has been pursuing his aim of heading up an environmentally viable menswear brand (links below).

Wearing a Neem Light Grey Flannel Overshirt

GF: Nick, we last featured Neem here on the blog over 21 months ago - remind us please what Neem represents and what the brands' values and aims are.

NR: We are firmly focused on three things:

Firstly, to try and create the lowest emitting men's shirt in the world, we use a 50% recycled cotton blend with a 50% organic cradle to gate assessment on that product and we know that it emits about 50% less than a normal cotton shirt.

Secondly, we want to create a product with little waste as possible both in the design, production and post-consumer phase. We use technology to facilitate this and once the consumer has worn out a product we can recycle it through the supply chain that we've built both here in the UK and in the EU. In this way we are actually a textile waste collector and we will take back and recycle any men's brand clothing in any condition.

Thirdly, we want to create a style that is smart, elegant, mature yet extremely comfortable - a post pandemic style that can be worn to the office and looks elegant whilst retaining a strong environmental ethos.

We track a product right back to spinner and in some cases even farm and this allows us to run full life cycle assessments on the product, so we know exactly the emissions of what we're producing. We're of course carbon neutral.

You don't have to sacrifice style to be sustainable, we come from a position that if we all make better choices from the moment you wake up for the moment we go to bed we can reduce our overall emissions.

Wearing Neem Recycled Sky Dobby Popover Shirt

GF: Are you offering an identifiable style? What market are you appealing to?

NR: We're appealing to 40 plus year olds who want to be smart yet elegant but care about the impact that having on the climate.

For example, our ZQ Merino has been tested for biodegradation, we use recycled thread, fusing, buttons, and recycled labels

The market is the work market that is now prepared to dress down. whilst being smart and comfortable.

GF: In a market where many brands are claiming sustainable credentials, often with dubious credibility, how do you stand out and show what the brand offers in these terms?

NR: We've gone quite deep; we’re using a recycled cotton blend of 50% which is extremely high.

We’ve run cradle to grave lifecycle assessments on our products (so we are carbon neutral), we're in touch with the maker, the weaver, the spinner and look for end of run exclusive weaves and knit constructions. Our ZQ Merino I believe is the world's most ethical world it's grown under regenerative farming practices and can be traced back to farms in New Zealand

GF: What products have you developed since we last covered the brand?

NR: We’re focused on tops, shirts and T shirts and we'll support that with jackets within the next few months. We’re also selling our neck scarves rather well and will be adding some recycled cotton baseball caps (it amazes me how many are polyester) in June.

GF: What is coming in the future for Neem?

NR: We're launching a pop up in October and you'll see more jackets and outerwear come into the collection for next winter. Our core products are the T shirt and overshirt.

For more information see Neem London.

Read other features in my Sustainable Style series here.

Sustainable Style: Neem London Regenerative Cotton - Sponsored Feature

As consumers we've been warned recently about the perils of 'greenwashing', where brands make unrealistic or simply untrue claims about the sustainability of their products. It's always a relief to find brands that seem to take these issues seriously. One menswear company that is making genuine efforts to be open and honest about these issues is Neem London, a company that I've featured here several times before.

Wearing Neem London Cotton Shirt (Image @limityourexposuree)

Neem London Regenerative Sky Modern Button Down shirt

Neem go to great lengths to explain how they go about making their products green; such a level of detail is usually lacking from clothing brands' information. Their range of Regenerative Cotton shirts is an example in point. The cotton is grown using revolutionary methods that minimise water & fertilisation usage to help achieve a healthier ecosystem. The cotton is all traceable back to the farm that produced it. It's made into the shirts using recycled thread, fusing and buttons and its manufacture produces an extremely soft and breathable cloth.

The shirts are very wearable, comfortable and soft, bordering that line between casual and formal. I've worn them for both and they've become a key part of my wardrobe.

For more information here on the blog about Neem London - click here.

Neem London Regenerative Cotton Khaki Shirt Jacket

This is a sponsored post.

Sustainable Style 10: Neem London "Anti-Waste Comfort Menswear"

Neem London (link below) is a menswear brand due to launch later this year. I decided to include it in my Sustainable Style series after meeting the founder, Nick, and hearing about his plans for a sustainable menswear business based on comfort and style. 

I tried samples of three shirts and a blazer, all made from recycled polyester and other sustainable materials. All were comfortable and stylish. The long-sleeve shirts have an open weave finish, a bit like Aertex and all drape well with some stretch. The stone hopsack blazer is soft, unstructured and half-lined. All display suitable casual elan. Although not specifically sold as such, they would make good travel clothes.

Wearing Neem London stone hopsack blazer & recycled polyester smock shirt (blazer is a sample and not quite my size)

I spoke to Nick recently about his new business and his desire to eliminate the wasteful aspects of menswear production:

GF: Nick, please tell me about the upcoming launch.

NL: We believe in being smart yet comfortable. We are built on three key values:

Firstly, we use materials that create a low impact on the environment, we are still new to this so will be very clear and transparent on the yarns, fabrics and ways in which and where we manufacture. We believe this is a new way for menswear. Recycled yarn, organic cotton, ZQ merino along with minimal packaging and threads, labels all made using recycled yarns. We’re aiming for a closed loop menswear system.

Secondly, we believe in comfort, using innovative spinning systems, sustainable stretch produced by synthesis that biodegrades. Away from the menswear textile science, what matters is being smart, yet supremely comfortable. Whether you are wearing menswear at home or to a meeting we believe in a smooth transition, this is comfort tailoring.

Thirdly, we believe that tailoring should be soft with minimal additions - the fabric cut and sculpted in a way so it's lightweight.

GF:  Tell me something about the style of the products.

NL: We believe in soft menswear tailoring, soft to the touch but made with a finesse down to the the finest detail. Working with some of the best mills and makers we can find, who produce tailoring that is cared about. The fabrics, trims and labelling must all be recycled and or biodegradable, this has not been straightforward.

Wearing Neem London shirts

GF:  I know that sustainability is important to you - please tell me about this.

NL: We are disillusioned with the way in which there has been an over-consumption in the menswear industry over the last 20-30 years and that the knowledge of the product of how and where it's made is not made clear or even known by the retailers. We are aiming for a closed loop system, we are not there yet. 

That means full transparency down the supply chain including fabric, trims and packaging that is recycled or natural and biodegradable. This is not easy.

GF: How do you plan that the brand will develop after launch and into the future?

NL: We want to offer a full product range built around the knitwear and shirts. The main thing is that people feel happy, honest and comfortable in our products.

GF: Anything else to mention about building a sustainable business?

NL: The more we grow the easier this becomes, mills and makers are not built for this yet - bad polyester, viscose and lycra still dominate the market.

For more information see Neem London.

Read other features in my Sustainable Style series here.

The clothes shown here are samples borrowed for the photographs. This is an unsponsored feature.