And Then a Fashion Hero Comes Along

“Brands like ours need to create ethical clothing, so consumers become aware that it’s possible, on demand.”

“It’s really important that we live cohesively with the world, and I’m really passionate about sustainability,” said fashion designer and entrepreneur Joshua Scacheri, moments before winning the Resort Challenge—and the opportunity to have his winning design available for purchase via Amazon Fashion—on a recent episode of Amazon Prime’s Making the Cut.

On July 21, Scacheri celebrated the launch of LOVE HERO, the London-based fashion label he co-founded “to amplify the message of sustainability, allowing people to really see other industry disruptors on how they are making change to their industry.” With a vision of bringing together brilliant imagery inspired by natural elements and landscapes with a fundamental philosophy of introducing biodegradable fabrics, eco-conscious production processes, and waste-free sales modeling to consumers, LOVE HERO turned to Creazioni Digitali and its Kornit Digital on-demand production capabilities to fulfill the brand’s creations. All fabrics are traceable and certified via their blockchain platform, Retraced, to minimize their eco footprint. Cut-and-sew operations take place in Portugal.

I recently had the opportunity to speak with Scacheri and learn more about his mission of bridging beauty and conscience in the fashion world.

“Brands like ours need to create ethical clothing, so consumers become aware that that it’s possible, on demand,” Joshua says, before noting that adopting an on-demand model makes good business sense in today’s increasingly web-based, conscientious sales landscape.

“Producing on demand takes a lot of the risk out of what will or won’t sell,” he says. “The big brands see larger margins, and it’s not exactly an unprecedented sales model. Back in the day, people went to tailors for bespoke apparel, and digitized production on demand means we’re reverting to that. Selling made-to-order lifestyle apparel is very likely the way of the future.”

In the wake of a “retail apocalypse” and e-commerce, fashion trends rely less on the 18-month purchasing cycle and more on the Tweets, Instagram posts, and endorsements of online “influencers.” To wit, in a true meeting of the online moguls, Amazon Fashion’s visibility was raised considerably via collaboration with Kendall and Kylie Jenner’s joint apparel brand; more recently, it was a panel of influencers who provided Scacheri with his margin of victory on Making the Cut—thus bringing his designs to Amazon Fashion.

Kornit Digital’s Head of Retail Transformation, Scott Walton, joined LOVE HERO’s launch event to discuss “industry disruptors,” and cited Joshua as one of many designers who have been receptive to Kornit’s message of digitizing production to accommodate unlimited expression on demand, without waste or compromise.

“Designers like Joshua stand to educate consumers about responsible production and how it’s now compatible with custom design,” says Walton. “They demonstrate the possibilities for luxury, high street fashion on demand, and empowering designers to see their sketches digitized, printed, and shipped from an efficient microfactory production site, like the one ASOS and Fashion-Enter are using to support the ‘Make It British’ initiative—which, incidentally, led us to Joshua in the first place.”

Adds Walton, “We, in turn, educate the designers, and we’re creating a proximity production ecosystem through Kornit^X so they can find a Kornit-enabled print shop nearby to create samples of their designs, and have their collections fulfilled within two weeks.”

LOVE HERO is currently engaged with Kornit on the mechanics of imprinting silk, biodegradable nylon, and other diverse materials to support Joshua’s brand vision. One such application involves two-sided fabrics—nylon on top, with cotton on the reverse.

“Designers want to use technical fabrics, and we intend to use Kornit’s technology exclusively,” he says. “We want to teach the marketplace about the innovations that are out there, ready to transform fashion, and see what others will make of it. With creations inspired by our environment, and the versatile, environmentally conscious production practices this digital, on-demand capability offers, we’re empowering ordinary people living extraordinary lives.”

Shop LOVE HERO’s collection today.

Watch Kornit Digital Europe President Chris Govier and Shirt Monkey Founder Nic Simons discuss that challenges of making fashion more sustainable at our recent K.DAYS customer event.

Read about how Kornit Digital commits to enabling a cleaner, more responsible textile industry.