Slow Fashion: Go Wakimoto of Loop Apparel On Why They Are Embracing Slow Fashion and Renewable Consumption
An Interview With Dina Aletras
Be patient: If you’re looking to make a quick buck fast, then starting a slow fashion brand probably isn’t the right path for you. Changing consumers’ behaviors — especially around climate change and sustainability is going to take a while. I compare it to the story of “how to boil a frog.” As we all know, climate change is a slow and gradual process, and as humans we’re always going to care more about the problem immediately in front of us rather than a problem that we’ll face years and decades from now. On top of that, growing a brand from scratch is going to take time. You have to plant the seed and invest in growing the tree before you can harvest it.
As ‘slow fashion’ grows in popularity, more fashion companies are jumping on the bandwagon. Renewable consumption has been gaining popularity for a while, as people recognize its importance, and many fashion companies want to be a part of this change. In this interview series, we are talking to business leaders in the fashion industry to discuss why they are embracing slow fashion and renewable consumption. As a part of this series, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Go Wakimoto.
Go Wakimoto is an ex-Nike marketer turned entrepreneur with over two decades of experience in brand building and creative storytelling. He founded Loop Apparel, a circular kids apparel brand, in 2023 after becoming a father himself and seeing an opportunity for a more convenient and sustainable way for parents to get rid of their kids’ outgrown clothes.
Thank you for joining us! To start, can you share a bit about your early background and how it influenced your journey into slow fashion?
I was born and raised in Japan. And there’s a word in Japanese called “mottainai” (もったいない), which roughly translates to “don’t be wasteful.” It’s this sense of regret for throwing things away, and an appreciation for what we have. So when you’re raised in that type of culture and values, I think deep down inside it’s affected the way I look at things and the value of items — to try and get the most out of things versus just throwing it away after I get what I need out of it.
What inspired you to pursue a career in slow fashion, and can you share the story behind your decision?
The inspiration came from being caught in the perfect storm.
At the most macro level, we were all living through the pandemic at that time. And it really highlighted for me the gaps that continue to exist in our world, and how much work we still have to do as humans and as a society. I wanted to put more of my energy into doing things that left the world a better place than I found it. It really made me rethink my purpose in life.
And from a work perspective, I had been at my corporate job at Nike for about 10 years. As great as that was, I wasn’t convinced that was the best path for me to stay on if I truly wanted to live up to my new life purpose of trying to leave the world in a better place.
And lastly, at a personal level, my wife and I had just become first time parents. We quickly started accumulating piles of clothes that our kid outgrew. And there were no easy and sustainable ways for us to get rid of them. The first and obvious option was for us to just throw them away, but that felt wasteful (i.e. “mottainai”). The second option was to hold on to it until one of our friends had kids, but obviously a ton of stars need to align for that to happen. And the third was to sell it to a thrift store or drop it off at a donation center, but the more research I did, the more I realized that a lot of those items still end up in third-world marketplaces and landfills. I started to see an opportunity to create a circular kids apparel brand where parents can simply send back the outgrown clothes to where they bought it from to be resold or recycled properly. And that’s what we do at Loop Apparel.
Who is your fashion hero or heroine, and why do they inspire you?
I don’t have one particular person in mind, but I look up to a lot of the other founders and small business owners in this space who are trying to establish a circular, more sustainable fashion brand because I know how hard it is.
What’s the most intriguing or memorable experience you’ve had since starting your career in slow fashion?
The moment I actually launched the business, put it out into the world, and heard that first Shopify “cha-ching” sound is a moment I’ll never forget. Having a marketing background, you quickly learn that your own ideas are always great when they live inside your mind. And it’s not until you put it out into the world that you actually know if it’s any good or not. So that moment of launching Loop Apparel and putting it out for the world and receiving feedback was definitely memorable.
As a successful leader in the industry, which three character traits have been key to your success? Can you provide a story or example for each?
The first is “grit”. As an entrepreneur and small business owner, there are so many moments and days when you feel like it’s simply not working, and you question whether it’s worth continuing to dip into your savings to keep your idea and business going. And in those moments, it’s so important to have that grit to keep going and to take the next necessary step.
The second is “knowing my why”. It’s closely related to grit, but I constantly come back to why I’m doing this, which as I mentioned before is to leave the world in a better place than I found it. When I have that north star for myself, it makes it easier to keep doing what I’m doing.
And the third is “curiosity”. I’ve always been inspired by this idea of being a “learn-it-all” rather than a “know-it-all”, and there’s so much out there that I don’t know. Whether it’s in the world of entrepreneurship or in the world of sustainability and circularity. And being ok with not knowing, but staying curious so that I can continue to learn and grow has been tremendously humbling and helpful.
How does your company embody and implement the principles of slow fashion, and what motivated you to adopt this approach?
Circularity is at the core of our business model. So not only are the products made sustainably and ethically because we use 100% organic cotton and work with certified partners, but we have a trade-in program that allows and incentivizes parents to send back and trade-in any Loop Apparel item(s) that their kids have outgrown. If the outgrown item that we receive back is in good condition, we refresh them and resell them back on our site. If the item we get back is too damaged, we have a textile recycling partner here in Denver who helps us recycle it responsibly so that our clothes don’t end up filling landfills. We also have an option for parents to subscribe to our products to automate the above process, give them a bigger discount, and simplify the circular process for them even more! Ultimately, our business model is set up to keep our apparel in the loop and out of landfills.
What measures does your company take to ensure the sustainability and ethical integrity of your supply chain and production processes?
We work with partners who have third party certifications such as GOTS, WRAP and BSCI to ensure that we’re not just making our products with sustainable materials, but partnering with manufacturers who treat their employees fairly and ethically.
Can you tell us about the materials you use in your products and how you ensure they are sourced sustainably?
All of our products are made with 100% organic cotton, and we receive certifications from the factories that we work with to ensure that the materials being used are in fact organic.
Could you share some examples of how your company’s practices have benefited local communities or the environment?
Yes, for the manufacturing of our Loop Tees, we had the following impact:
Energy: We conserved 718 kWh of energy, which translates to approximately 24 days’ worth of energy a typical US household uses.
Water: 22,420 gallons of water were conserved. Which is approximately 500 bathtubs worth of water.
Emissions: We avoided 184 kgCO2e from being emitted, which equates to about 1,000 miles of driving.
Pesticides: Avoided 267.75 g of pesticides from being used.
Fair Wage Work: We were able to provide 134 hours of fair-wage work.
What initiatives are you undertaking to educate consumers about the significance of slow fashion and sustainable consumption?
The two main channels we use to educate consumers about the significance or slow fashion are through our social media channels (@wearloop.co on Instagram) and our blog section on our site (https://wearloop.co/blogs/news).
What are three essential things everyone should understand about slow fashion?
Look for garments made of lower-impact materials. Whenever possible, choose organic natural fabrics such as cotton or wool over synthetic ones like polyester and nylon. Because synthetic fabrics are made from plastic, they end up shedding microplastics into the environment as it’s made, worn and washed. Synthetic fabrics can also take up to 500 years to decompose if/when they do end up in a landfill. And choosing organic or recycled natural materials over conventional natural materials are even better for the planet, farmers, and the end user. We at Loop Apparel chose to make our products with 100% organic cotton because it uses 90% less water compared to conventional cotton, and completely avoids the use of pesticides, GMOs and other harmful chemicals to grow.
Seek out quality over quantity. Buy garments that are made well. Items that are of high quality and will last a long time. Items that are timeless rather than trendy. It’s tempting to casually buy stuff when it’s cheap, but it’s cheap for a reason…it’s cheap because it’s made of lower quality materials; it’s cheap because it’s not well crafted; it’s cheap because the labor force used to make the products probably weren’t paid fair wage.
Which leads me to my third thing. Which is that slow fashion goods are going to cost more. But that’s because the items are made of better/higher quality materials and methods. It’s because the people making those garments are working in better conditions and getting paid a fair wage. And ultimately, that quality and timeless piece of clothing will mean that you get more value out of it compared to a cheap item that you’ll only wear a few times before it starts tearing or goes out of fashion.
Thank you for all that insight. Now, let’s dive into the core of our interview: What are the “5 Key Elements to Leading a Successful Slow Fashion Brand”? Please provide a story or example for each.
1. Be patient: If you’re looking to make a quick buck fast, then starting a slow fashion brand probably isn’t the right path for you. Changing consumers’ behaviors — especially around climate change and sustainability is going to take a while. I compare it to the story of “how to boil a frog.” As we all know, climate change is a slow and gradual process, and as humans we’re always going to care more about the problem immediately in front of us rather than a problem that we’ll face years and decades from now. On top of that, growing a brand from scratch is going to take time. You have to plant the seed and invest in growing the tree before you can harvest it.
2. Test and learn: One objective I had early in the journey of Loop Apparel was to raise brand awareness. So I set up a Google Ads campaign to try and do just that. But after a few months, although traffic to my site went up, conversion was low, and the traffic that I was getting to the site were at very odd hours of the day. I eventually turned it off because I couldn’t justify the CAC (customer acquisition cost) from that channel, but that’s something that I wouldn’t have concluded if I hadn’t tried it out and learned from that experience.
3. Be a learn-it-all vs a know-it-all: My work experience has mostly been in the marketing space. So when I decided to start Loop Apparel, I had a lot of growing up and learning to do…from how to design apparel, to understanding supply chain stages, to finding the right manufacturing partner, to setting up a store on Shopify. I had to embrace this idea of being a learn-it-all, be humble that I don’t have all the answers, and tap into my network of friends and ex-colleagues and ask for help.
4. Find like-minded partners: As I mentioned earlier, growing your brand from scratch is a tough thing to do. What’s helped me in my journey is partnering with like-minded businesses and founders and finding ways to collaborate and help each other out. And obviously what’s important in those partnerships is that you both have similar values and priorities. Recently, we partnered with a local kids boutique shop that has a focus on quality kids accessories and clothes which helped us raise awareness in the local community.
5. Take the next necessary step: It can be overwhelming at times as an entrepreneur. There are so many things you want to do and so many tools and levers that you want and can pull. But I think it’s important to know your priorities, know what game you want to play, and take steps that make sense for you and your business. For example, TikTok is obviously a huge media channel, but I’ve consciously stayed away from opening a shop there because that meant I need to put resources to create content for that channel in order to grow a community on that platform, and although you hear a lot of shopping activity that happens there, a lot of it are driven by sales, low prices, and impulse buys…it’s really not about selling premium, quality products on that platform. At this point, it’s not a game that I want to or have the resources to play in.
Do you have a favorite quote that has influenced your life? Can you share a story that illustrates its relevance to you?
One I always come back to is the serenity prayer: “…grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference.” Leaving my previous job at Nike was one of those moments for me. It had always been my dream as a marketer to work at one of the most famous and prestigious brands in the world. But near the end of my time there, I saw that the company was heading in a direction that wasn’t aligned with why I joined it in the first place. Although I wasn’t in a position to change the overall direction of the company, I was in a position to bet on myself and change the career path that I wanted to continue to walk down.
With your considerable influence, if you could start a movement to make a significant positive impact, what would it be?
It would be to get people to seek out quality over quantity. I feel like the world in general is in this race to the bottom where it’s all about more. When in my humble opinion the race should be about better. How do we make better content, not more. Better food, not more. Better clothes, not more. I’d love to get that balance back where we start to prioritize better things in life, and things of better quality rather than more.
How can our readers stay updated with your work online?
Here are some links where your readers and stay updated on our work and brand:
Store: wearloop.co
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wearloop.co
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/loop-apparel or https://www.linkedin.com/in/go-wakimoto-70bb405/
Thank you for sharing these fantastic insights. We appreciate your time and wish you continued success.
About the Interviewer: Dina Aletras boasts over 20 years of expertise in the corporate media industry. She possesses an in-depth understanding of growth, strategy, and leadership, having held significant roles at some of the UK’s largest media organizations. At Reach PLC, the UK’s largest tabloid publisher, she served in various director capacities. Additionally, she held leadership roles at The Independent Magazine Group and DMGT. Her extensive knowledge spans editorial, digital, revenue, sales, and advertising.
Upon relocating to Switzerland, Dina took on the responsibility of managing and promoting the international section of Corriere del Ticino — CdT.ch pioneering the English page “onthespot.” She also was the Co-Editor of Southern Switzerland’s first official Italian and English bilingual magazine.
