INTERVIEW #23 JONATHAN NYBORG
“A sustainable closet is very much about high quality clothes that make you want to keep and use them for a long time. Each garment should be consciously considered for your optimal use.”
Jonathan got interested in fashion at a young age and have been working closely with the fashion industry since then . For someone who has followed the industry closely and have a personal interest in style and clothing, it’s inspiring to listen to his perspectives how to enjoy fashion in a more sustainable way. He also tells us about the major errors of the fashion industry today but also gives us hope for the future.
Occupation:
Brand Director at Patriksson
What’s your relationship with clothes?
My father has been working in the industry for a very long time,so my interest must have been sparked already as a child. I guess clothing was assigned importance early on as something to be knowledgeable and opinionated about. You can almost say I was born into the industry and I’ve been working in it, in some capacity ever since. Working with fashion has allowed me to follow trends and changes from within the industry. My interest has kept on growing through out the years, and on a personal level I see clothes as an important way of expressing myself.
How would you describe your style?
“ I’m very conscious about the choice of materials, colours and silhouettes.”
Slowly dynamic, if that makes sense? Looking back, I can clearly see that I have changed, with several favourite looks suddenly feeling outdated. At the same time, I’m not the one to suddenly jump on the latest trend with some piece of clothing that does not fit with my staple wardrobe in colour or silhouette. I’m very conscious about the choice of materials, colours and silhouettes. My style in day-to-day life is very much casual-chic, while I also love to dress up, incorporating more formal elements in the informal or vice versa, aiming for some sort of modern timelessness.
How would you describe your closet?
“I guess you can say that the story often becomes a purchase criteria for me – without a story, I’m more likely to think twice before buying something I don’t really need.”
I guess I would describe it as categorized according to colours. I often get comments that my style looks colour coded, that my clothes are matched tone in tone, mostly limited to earthy nuances of blue, beige, brown and green. However, my actual wardrobe is a mess. The clothes are categorised according to usage, but never neatly folded or coordinated. My closet has its own organic life. It’s big and overloaded and I’m currently going through a lengthy process of decreasing its content. It takes me time, because I believe there is new life to be found in a garment throughout fashion cycles. I’ve always enjoyed wearing clothes that carry design elements with reference to a story – old work wear or military references being the most common. With a story, it makes it harder to get rid of a garment. I recently had to let go of a shirt with custom made cuffs and collar that had originally appeared in an old James Bond movie. If I hadn’t outgrown it, I probably would have kept the shirt forever. I guess you can say that the story often becomes a purchase criteria for me – without a story, I’m more likely to think twice before buying something I don’t really need. And there is plenty of clothing I could have done (you can do) without, believe me.
What is a sustainable closet for you?
A sustainable closet is very much about high quality clothes that make you want to keep and use them for a long time. Each garment should be consciously considered for your optimal use. For me, that has been a good way to maximise how I use the clothes I already have,by staying within certain colour schemes. If I buy something new,I not only know that it works with my current wardrobe, but the new garment also gives new life to the old. It goes without saying that except for colours, Ialso think about the style of the clothes. Because I want longevity I choose to pay more for quality garments and go for a more classic look with a twist. Quality might be the best form for sustainability we have in fashion right now, but it will be interesting to see how this will change, as the range of materials continues to evolve, and consumers become increasingly aware. With more choices, and increased transparency, we have better and better opportunities to create a more sustainable closet from the outset.
What do you think about the fashion industry?
“There are so many issues! But innovation and creativity are the best traits for driving change in the long run.”
I’m a little bit ambivalent. For the past few years, I’ve been involved in the Fashion Week Stockholm, a platform with the main purpose of highlighting the positive aspects of the industry. So, on one hand I’ve seen so many positive aspects: creativity and innovation to name a few. On the other hand, the fashion industry has such a high negative impact on the environment, globally. There are so many issues! But innovation and creativity are the best traits for driving change in the long run. And I’ve also seen how well equipped the Swedish fashion industry is to contribute there, especially since we in Sweden has made sustainability an integral part of the way we do business, a long time ago. When the pandemic hit, the fashion industry saw sales drop up to 90% overnight and this inevitably sparked discussions of a need to reset the industry. And after the pandemic, to rethink and rebuild for a smarter and more sustainable system. There are so many brands and people interested in creating change on a wider basis. But it has to be commercially driven to work, of course.
What do you believe needs to change?
“There are many things that have to change, a main issue being the fashion calendar. The way fashion is presented in big, extravagant shows 6 months prior the collection drops in stores hasn’t changed for 50 years.”
There are many things that have to change, a main issue being the fashion calendar. The way fashion is presented in big, extravagant shows 6 months prior the collection drops in stores hasn’t changed for 50 years. This way of working has been very lucrative for fast fashion brands, enabling them to copy and launch their collections before the original designers. In addition, with the instant visibility the collection receives from the runway, through digital and social media, there is a risk that the consumer is already tired of the style by the time it hits the store. I believe the experience needs to be closer to consumption and while we’re at it, why not reduce the amount of shows per brand and season (i.e. combined men’s and women’s)?
Another issue is the consumers’ expectations on sales! Before the season has ended clothes are expected to be on sale several times, which of course decreases the margins and in the end favours a less sustainable business model and product. The process needs to slow down so people can think twice before they buy anything new. Behaviour needs to change so we don’t buy things we only use once and throw away (unless a garment is created in a material that makes this possible?). In my book, good quality costs and if high quality clothing is more expensive you’ll ask yourself if you really need it or whether it’s “too cheap to be true”.
What can one do that seeks to create a more sustainable closet?
· Take measures to alternate what you wear. For instance, don’t wear the same garments two days in a row. The more you alternate the longer you can use your favourite clothing before they break – this especially goes for shoes…
· Give your clothes longer life, by separating your closet depending on build and material, into a spring/summer edition and a fall/winter edition and store it away. It might sound banal, but it gives the illusion of new life for the piece of clothing you forgot you had over summer or vice versa.
· Stick to second-hand if you can. There is an increasing amount of options out there. Find a store or a place that resonates with your personal style.
· Be a conscious consumer and ask about the material, how the product is produced and where it comes from. Invest in quality and if it’s too cheap, maybe it’s too “good” to be true?