Sustainability and Social Responsibility
With the fashion industry being one of the biggest producers of global pollution, it is of vital importance the industry comes together to change their ways. It is important for consumers to demand better practices from their favorite brands.
At Karu Atelier, our entire identity is build around the concept of sustainability.
From the use of non-toxic, natural materials and made-to-order production line, to our lifelong repair warranty: All choices we make is built around making the world a better place.
Continue reading to learn more about what we do to make this world a better place: 1 bag at a time.
Leather
We strictly use local, organic, full-grain vegetable tanned leather from our chosen artisanal tannery. This tannery is one of the remaining 5% of tanneries in the world, that strictly use vegetable tanning methods to produce their leather. Their process is certified non-toxic and organic. They exclusively source their hides as a by-product from their local free range agricultural industry, and no animal is used just for its hide. The tannery has been given the STANDARD 100 by OEKO-TEX® Certificate, which guarantees that the tannery is entirely organic, and free of heavy metals as well as any substance that could be harmful to the environment or when in contact with human skin.
Materials (and origin)
All the hardware and materials we use are produced inside the EU, ensuring the highest environmental standards and fair working wages. Our edge paints are ecological, non-toxic and water based. By sourcing all of our materials within the EU (and locally where possible) we reduce the amount of Co2 emissions required to make our products, and contribute to local and EU economies.
Materials (and origin)
All the hardware and materials we use are produced inside the EU, ensuring the highest environmental standards and fair working wages. Our edge paints are ecological, non-toxic and water based. By sourcing all of our materials within the EU (and locally where possible) we reduce the amount of Co2 emissions required to make our products, and contribute to local and EU economies.
Craftsmanship
We craft all of our bags and accessories in our privately run atelier in Valencia, Spain. By keeping the craftsmanship entirely into our own hands we can make sure our production line is as sustainable as possible. We mainly use traditional tools and techniques, and make minimal use of machinery, keeping our Co2 footprint low.
Made to order
Unlike many other brands, who make use of external manufacturing companies for their bags and other leather goods, we run our own atelier, which allows us to operate on a ´made-to-order` basis. By making everything to order we ensure that we never order too much stock, or colors that turn out to be unwanted by our customers. One of the biggest environmental issues facing the fashion industry, is the amount of products ending up in a landfill. By maintaining a made-to-order business model we never have to throw any unwanted product away.
Lifelong repair warranty
At Karu Atelier we believe that if something is broken, you should fix it. All of our products are handcrafted from very durable leather using high quality hardware, making them last a lifetime and longer if you look after them properly. If something does happen to break, we will always fix it, free of charge (only postage is paid by customer). This way you buy something for life. Just as our made-to-order business model, this saves our products from ending up in a landfill.
Packaging
Making your packaging sustainable is always a big challenge, as the most important step of the order process is getting your bag safely to your door. At Karu Atelier we never use any plastics in our packaging (or any other part of our products), and only use the necessary amount of packaging that is needed for the product to safely arrive at its destination. We use locally sourced recycled carton boomerang boxes, which means that the box can be easily reused. We limit the amount of branding on our boxes specifically for the purpose that customers can then reuse the boxes.