Top sustainable fashion designer Susan Woo insists green clothes can be stylish, sexy and sophisticated. She´s bet her business on it
Yes, Susan Woo grew up with fashion. When she was 4 years old, her uncle brought her a Christian Dior pink velour dress from Paris to wear for her nursery school portrait. But the story doesn´t stop there. Woo threw a tantrum when her mother forced her to wear the frock, resulting in a photo that captured her teary-eyed and runny-nosed, absolutely shattered at being told to wear something “so hideous”, she says.
Today, at 27, Woo has more than proven that she could never be coerced into doing–or wearing–anything. Her strong beliefs about fashion have translated into a clothing line that only uses eco-friendly fabrics.
Does the greening of fashion cause you to shudder as thoughts of hemp and recycled underwear cross your mind? Not to worry. Susan Woo–that is, her eponymous label–is proof that the right design can transform the usual sustainable fabrics like alpaca wool, vegetable-tanned leather, organic cotton jersey and sustainable silk crepe into clothes that make a woman look glamorous, sexy and in control.
Also striking is her commitment to fair trade. All her clothes are designed in a workshop in New York City, under her watchful eye. Born to Korean-immigrant parents, this Manhattan native says she always keeps the difficulties that immigrants face in perspective–doing so diminishes the challenges she faces in keeping her business alive. After all, tripling her first-year revenues in the face of a recession is no mean feat.
“Her clothes are beautiful and feminine, very relevant to women who want classic pieces in their wardrobe,” says Sharon Watrous, co-owner of Chalk boutique in Evanston, Ill., which showcases Susan Woo along with high-end names like Alberta Ferretti and Narciso Rodriguez.
ForbesWoman caught up with Woo at her New York showroom, where she´s wearing a self-designed, vegetable-tanned leather jacket. She talks about her competition (“So great for the eco-movement”), her motto (“You better be madly passionate about anything you spend your precious time on”) and how an uncompromising commitment to sustainability gave her a winning business idea.
Click here for the full ForbesWoman interview
The liveeco team
