We are very excited to launch Radical Transparency across all of our own products at Hund Hund. This means that for each and every product which we design and manufacture, we will break down the costs so that you know exactly what you are paying for and what our mark-up is on each piece.
TRANSPARENCY EMPOWERS US ALL TO MAKE MORE INFORMED BUYING DECISIONS
Why is this important? We live in a world which sometimes feels disconnected but the connections which we don't see can be very real to the people who make the things we consume. Your t-shirt might be cheap but that price might only be possible because someone is working under terrible working conditions for a below-living wage on the other side of the world. The environmental consequences of the t-shirt in terms of water and fuel consumption and chemical waste is invisible to all of us. Change begins with each individual and only happens in small steps, and we think that by being more aware and making conscious buying decisions which reflect one's values, each person can make a positive impact.
TRANSPARENCY REFLECTS OUR VALUES
At Hund Hund, we make it a focus to work with small-scale producers within Europe to ensure fair working conditions. Where we can possibly make the prices and quality work, we try to work with more environmentally sustainable materials. Firstly, we avoid synthetic fabrics such as polyester which are plastics made from fossil fuels which never bio-degrade. Our main leather is vegetable-tanned with bark which uses no chemicals. Our main jersey uses 67% Tencel which is a natural Eucalyptus-based fabric which consumes much less water than cotton and has a closed-loop process which minimises waste. We regard reducing our environmental impact as a long-term and challenging process but like our customers, by shifting more and more of our buying to more ethical suppliers we can play a small part in creating a better world.
From a design perspective, we try to keep it clean so that our clothes and accessories will live outside seasonal trends and hopefully provide a base for you and your dog's wardrobe as long as you need them. The average piece of fast fashion is worn less than five times and the environmental consequences of that are huge. For a t-shirt, that cotton must be grown, transported to a mill, woven, dyed, transported to a factory and then to the brand before it is delivered to you. This is a lot of water and fuel consumption and by keeping production local and the pieces more long-lasting we can together reduce our impact.
TRANSPARENCY MEANS WE CAN OFFER BETTER QUALITY AT A MUCH LOWER PRICE
Finally, we also are transparent because we believe that our model allows us to provide our customers real quality at a much lower price than most brands. Most independent brands mark-up the production price and then sell to a shop who marks it up another 2.5-3X to sell to you. This means you are paying 4-5X (or more) the production price for your purchase. We are completely transparent. We work out our costs and then sell it to you for roughly a 2X mark-up (our margin also pays for our office, designers, sampling & prototypes, marketing ect). Our model actually allows us to spend substantially more on materials and finishing than many brands which are selling for double the price.
At Hund Hund, we believe that you shouldn't have to choose between QUALITY, FAIRNESS & VALUE. We make it our mission that you don't have to.
