Hello, Good Guys friends,
Welcome to The Good Guys Notes #7
Today, I will talk about our collaboration with the Skall sisters, Julie and Marie, from Copenhagen-based ethical company SKALL STUDIO.
Julie, Marie, and I (Marion) met many years ago when Skall Studio started carrying our Vegan shoes to their store in Copenhagen. We have always shared the same values of sustainability, and both our companies began with that concept in mind, using cruelty-free materials to introduce a more conscious fashion.
Their clothing line is vegan and is a perfect match with our collections.
JOAN loafers in Beige and Black vegan suede
I personally appreciate the timeless spirit of their brand, the hand-drawn logo of a shell. Skall means shell. There's also a vintage 'vibe' to their designs, making me want to live in the countryside with clothes that don't clash visually with the nature around me but blend perfectly and subtly into it.
Now that winter is coming to an end (barely:), and right before we can feel springtime arriving, we are launching an exclusive and limited edition of vegan loafers made in Portugal. The JONA is a soft loafer on a bouncy crepe sole. The upper material is our favorite high-quality microfiber made in Italy, 100% vegan, and with non-toxic materials.
I interviewed Julie and Marie to understand their creative process, and if you are not familiar yet with their beautiful work, I invite you to read the interview below and follow the link to their website.
Good Guys - I have known and worked with Julie and Marie Skall for quite a while now. I loved your timeless and pure designs right away. My question is, when did it all start for you? And what made you opt for "conscious clothing"?
Skall Studio- "Thank you – we are happy to hear and likewise. We have both lived and worked in India before founding Skall Studio. In India, we worked for design brands where the goal was to crate as much as possible as cheap as possible. At the same time, we could see how much India had to offer in terms of craftsmanship and know-how, and we both felt a great need to make fashion in a better way."
Julie and Marie Skall
GG-How is it to work together daily as sisters? I know it can be an asset and a challenge to work with your own family? Do you complete each other?
S-"We could not have done it without each other. It is a great privilege to look at each other and know what the other one is thinking. Skall Studio is built on strong family values, and recently, our mother has also become part of the company as she is now responsible for CSR and sustainability, just like our kids are often in our studio."
GG-I know you produce your different collections in India and Denmark, and you have many lines like knitwear, the classic line, and the home line. Which process is for you the most exciting or rewarding?
S-"Of course, it makes us happy to see our Skall Studio styles in the streets or to see our home collection in a private home. However, we feel extremely proud when discovering one of our first outerwear pieces or shirts in the streets. We make clothes made to last so to see that our customers feel the same way about our styles makes us proud. Also, we are happy when people hand in their old Skall Studio styles for repair. At Skall Studio we offer free repair on our styles – and all repairs are done in our design apartment."
GG-What made you choose Good Guys to collaborate on this project and create the JOAN loafer together? How did you hear about us in the first place?
S-"We are both vegans and never use fur and leather in our collections, so we have always been looking for the perfect vegan shoes, and suddenly Good Guys came up. We love what your brand stands for."
GG-You are developing a new collection for home now, which is beautiful. Do you have any other projects in the making? What are your plans for the future?
S-"We have many new initiatives coming up which we are not ready to reveal yet. However, we can say that the focus on craftsmanship and animal welfare will be some of the topics that we will dive even more into."
Thank you !
Marion
Founder and designer of Good Guys Don't Wear Leather