Urbanic is a global fashion company headquartered in London, committed to balancing creativity and sustainability through the use of advanced technology. It believes in empowering consumers with topnotch fashion that blends innovation and responsibility. The internet first company, offering multi-category fashion apparel for women was founded in 2018 by James Wellwood. After spending over a decade and gaining valuable experience in the investment industry, James Wellwood pivoted to fashion and became a founding member at Urbanic. With the help of robust supply chain technology and design creativity, he envisioned building a premium fashion brand of this age. Urbanic’s vision is to bring creativity and technology to emerging market consumers with the best fashion by creating new rules, breaking stereotypes, and challenging the status quo.
The company is more than just a fashion brand. It is a community that celebrates individuality and empowers consumers to embrace their uniqueness. Urbanic understands that dressing up is a creative act and it aims to the consumer’s partner with its thoughtfully curated range of premium yet affordable fashion. Urbanic’s philosophy is simple – ‘You breathe, you feel, you think, and you create. But above all else, you are’. Its mission is to create a ‘no filter’ zone in the world of fashion, where people can confidently express their true self and without any constraints and shine.
Waste Management
With the aid of technology such as Al, machine learning, and data analytics, Urbanic has digitised its supply chain to minimise inventory waste and dead stock. Wherever possible, the company strives to use biodegradable and recycled materials for packaging.
New technologies and solutions are being developed to assist factories in avoiding excessive waste and improving resource and energy efficiency in production.
Company Commitment: More than Just Fashion
Urbanic prioritises inclusivity and has a mindful approach to fashion. The company believes in making cool, accessible, and well-made clothing for everyone, while also encouraging its customers to shop consciously.
Its customers are at the heart of everything Urbanic does, and their feedback drives the company’s constant improvement. Today’s consumers are conscious of their purchases and seek affordable, quality designs that can be worn for more than just a season. In response, Urbanic’s garments are trendy, but not fleeting. The company focuses on creating versatile pieces that can be styled in countless ways before their end-of-life. Its mission is to establish systems that facilitate donation or recycling when a piece is no longer wanted or needed, ensuring responsible disposal.
Urbanic is exploring opportunities in operations and the supply chain to minimise harm to the environment. The company is committed to measuring and quantifying these actions across the life cycle of its products and is taking steps such as:
- improving resource efficiency
- reducing energy and water consumption
- expanding recycling programs to reduce resources
- implementing a clothes recycling program
Wherever possible, the company sources recycled materials like polyester and cotton. Over 66% of its cotton is certified organic and it is also exploring alternatives like regenerative, in-conversion, and recycled cotton, which offer reduced chemical usage, water consumption, and emissions compared to the conventional kind.
Community-Based Brand
Urbanic is a community-based brand and by community, they mean the people and the planet. It is conscious of its practices and impact and strongly believes in giving back to the community in every way possible.
The company has been actively involved in small initiatives that have been impact-driven and are a standing testament to its commitment towards its community. Some of its initiatives include:
Urbanic Paathshaala: Urbanic partnered with EarthAngels Welfare Foundation to empower underprivileged kids by providing them with the right education via digital learning. The school is located in Govandi, Eastern Mumbai, one of the largest slum dwellings in the city. The company saw an opportunity to create an impact by teaching children basic English as well as imparting essential communication skills with strong hands-on digital literacy. The objective is to make every child feel empowered and grow into self-reliant adults so they can navigate through life.
Urbanic X ClothesBoxFoundation: In order to achieve its sustainability goals, Urbanic has collaborated with ClothesBoxFoundation as part of its ‘repURpose’ initiative wherein it pledges to upcycle garments by diverting them from landfills and bringing them back to life. Urbanic makes monthly donations of garments which will further be upcycled and reused instead of ending up as waste in landfills. With such a small yet effective step, the company intends to build a better and more sustainable environment for its community.
Urbanic Oasis: With the intent to becoming more environmentally conscious, Urbanic collaborated with NGO Florestas Inteligentes to practice reforestation and conserve the planet’s ecosystem. The rate at which rainforests in Brazil are depleting is alarming. This, in turn, is immensely affecting climate change. With its eƦ ort, Urbanic aims to restore the ‘Lungs of Earth’, the biodiversity of Brazil (Amazon rainforests), help combat increasing deforestation and also conserve the natural heritage of Brazil.
Compliance and Ethics
For Urbanic, community means its people (employees). The company believes in the power of collective eƦ ort and team spirit to achieve its milestones. Its commitment extends towards its people regardless of hierarchical stature. From top management to employees working in facilities/factories, Urbanic makes sure it creates a safe workplace and ensures fair wages. The company indulges in regular audits and has the support of SEDEX which assists it in staying abreast of its compliance and ethical supply chain practices, keeping laws and regulations in check.
