INTERVIEW #148 HEIDI SILTALA

Name: Heidi Siltala

Based in: London

Occupation: E-commerce business owner 

Gets inspired by: Nature and especially flowers 

Instagram: @Slowisblack 

Heidi! Welcome to A Sustainable Closet! We are so happy to have you here, tell us about yourself?

Hi, thank you for inviting me and most definitely glad to be here! My name is Heidi, and I’m an e-commerce business owner and self-claimed slow fashion enthusiast. I love pretty and girly things and on my Instagram, I love to share my daily life in London and one too many pictures of my puppy.

We are so curious about your career and how did you reach the point where you are today?

I have always loved fashion and decided to study fashion marketing at university. After completing that degree, I was working in fashion but began to question the whole industry, especially fast fashion. I feel like many things didn’t make sense to me, such as how we treat clothing as disposable items and encourage mindless consumption. During covid, I continued my studies and completed a master's degree in luxury business management, where I focused on researching luxury fashion and sustainability in the industry. This is how the idea for my start up SAINT OSTOS started, and I wrote the business plan as my final project at university. I started SAINT OSTOS because I wanted to make sustainable fashion more accessible and appear more fun, desirable and girly - that's why all the branding is very much pink and flowers. Less than a year after graduating I opened the business. Essentially SAINT OSTOS is an e-commerce store specialising in sustainable and ethical womenswear made by small and independent designers who are based in the UK. As the last sentence shows, it’s a very niche market so recently I have started to focus more on luxury vintage items. This is something that excites me a lot, as I'm very passionate about slow and high-end fashion and this combines them both.

How would you describe your style and where do you find your daily outfit inspiration?

I would say that it’s quite simple yet girly - I’m not a big fan of jeans and you will rarely catch me wearing a hoodie unless I’m exercising. I love skirts, dresses, blazers and ballerinas. I get a lot of inspiration from people in central London and I’m always prepared to make notes on my phone if I see an outfit I like. Overall, I would say I don’t follow trends but I like to take inspiration from other people and make it work with my style and wardrobe. 

What is your relationship with clothes, how do you consume your clothes?

My relationship has changed drastically in the past five years and I see them very differently than before. I no longer shop for fashion a lot, simply because I don’t think I or anyone else needs a lot of clothes. This is why sometimes for me it’s difficult to justify running an e-commerce store because I don’t want people to buy stuff they don’t need.

If I buy clothes, I usually buy second-hand or high-quality items I have been thinking about for a long time. Quality over quantity is my mantra! I’m trying to curate a more premium-label wardrobe with some luxury elements, but I’m taking it slow and focusing on preloved items. At the moment I’m focusing on using the clothes I already have so I’m happy to confess I’m an outfit repeater. 

What’s your favourite stores and brands to shop from?

Vinted is an obvious one, and I like to buy preloved Reiss as their clothes fit me well. The slow fashion labels I like are Poesie by Julie and Alli Atelier, as their style is very feminine.

What about your favourite material to wear?

Bamboo silk is very nice!

You are based in beautiful London, would you say Londoners are getting more conscious about fashion or what is the mindset over there? 

Yes, definitely! I think the mindset has shifted a lot within people, and shopping preloved is more desirable and admirable than ever. Overall, especially younger people are becoming increasingly aware of the impact that fast fashion causes and now they are looking for alternatives - which is a great thing but also increases greenwashing so people should be wary of that.

Describe what fashion is for you, in three words:

Expression, beauty and values.