Raza Beig: Making a splash in sustainable fashion

From a single store in Sharjah that opened in 1993 to more than 200 now spread across the GCC, Middle East and India, Splash is today a name to reckon with in the fashion firmament. Started as a multi-brand concept that added value and offered something for everyone in the family, the brand quickly proved to be popular adding new lines and keeping up with the trends – very often even setting them..The man behind it all, Raza Beig, CEO of Splash, admits that evolution is the name of the game. "The last 25 years have been of constant change as the region has evolved with its retail landscape and retailers have grown from trading to a buying mindset," he said..Continuously upgrading and evolving the stores, processes, products not to mention training the staff, he is delighted that the brand is now "a household name and we have made a great impression and we are part of the fashion customers’ journey"..He is convinced that the people strategy "is also our biggest strength and achievement as we were awarded in the Top five places to work across all industries"..A very people’s person, one thing he enjoys is interacting with people. "I’m constantly on the move, I’m almost never in my office. I’m either in the boardroom or in people’s offices," he said, adding the pandemic had put a crimp on his meetings. That said he admits that in the virtual world, decisions are being taken faster and "while there are challenges, there are a lot of opportunities and new learnings"..One of the biggest opportunities that Splash grabbed was to make its presence in the sustainable fashion sector. And despite the challenges it has quickly aligned itself perfectly to make sustainable fashion more than just a buzzword in the market. Splash Fashions, says Raza, is not only focused on creating awareness about ecological conservation among its clientele, but wants to encourage them to follow a lifestyle that is not harmful towards nature..Splash Fashions, a major socially and environmentally responsible fashion retailer in the Middle East, has been at the forefront in raising awareness on sustainable development. The brand features clothes made with eco-friendly fabrics across several of its fashion lines, which are now more than 90 per cent sustainable..Splash is the largest user of recycled polyester in the region, recycling 28 million bottles per year. Compared to the traditional process of using new polyester, this process saves enough energy to power the UAE for 10 minutes..Using FSC paper since 2015 has also allowed Splash to reduce 200 metric tonnes of plastic waste in garment tags and packaging for over four years now. Highlighting the company’s environment-conscious ethos, Splash’s calendar focuses on raising awareness on the extinction of millions of species, the causes and devastating ecological consequences.. Splash picked up four awards from the Gulf Sustainable CSR Awards 2020 Image Credit: Supplied . Image Credit: Supplied . Image Credit: Supplied . Image Credit: Supplied View gallery as list .Last year, Splash launched an inspirational sustainability campaign, The Aquarium of Truth, to showcase the health of our ocean and the need to conserve..In an exclusive interview with Friday, Raza details how Splash has been pushing the move towards sustainable fashion..Excerpts:.How did you come up with the idea of creating sustainable fashion line; the challenges in setting it up; the years of research that has gone into it?.I was at a Premiere Vision Fair in Amsterdam some years ago when I attended a presentation on the impact of fashion on Mother Nature and the devastating effects of our actions. I came out thinking I should do my bit in every way possible and this journey commenced almost a decade ago. The ideology had to be inculcated in the minds of the internal teams as well as our customers on being conscious about Sustainable Fashion. A decade later, close to 90 per cent of the Splash products are made using sustainable source raw material and eco-friendly manufacturing practices. We have adopted a 360-degree approach towards sustainability, significant changes are done in every process in the supply chain and we are committed to move towards a 100 per cent sustainable business model. The process starts right from design and development, raw material selection, production facilities, warehousing and logistics, retailing and stores fittings to post-consumer waste management..What kind of impact has the trend made on the fashion industry and what has been the response from your clientele?.Advocating for the green fashion movement, Splash is committed to create awareness about sustainability among consumers and wants to encourage consumers to pursue living consciously and incorporate alternatives into their everyday lives. However small or big, being mindful and conscious is our way of preserving Mother Earth for the future generations. Our clients welcomed the sustainable solutions and new technology and appreciated the effort to decrease carbon footprint..Sustainable fashion has now become a buzzword with major fashion brands across the world as well. What do you foresee the future for this trend?.Sustainability is a way of life and today’s generation is extremely conscious about it. They feel responsible for their every action and its impact on the environment. In the future, sustainable business practice will become a norm governed by the demand from consumers and the government regulatory and statutory policies. This trend is here to stay, but will reinvent itself through the adoption of new technology for sustainable solutions. I am sure sustainability targets will be defined for every aspect of the business, making the initiative comprehensive and holistic..Tell us more about Splash’s sustainable fashion collection..Our sustainable fashion collection is based on one or more of our "Love the Planet". In addition, Splash always looks for ways to include new and innovative sustainability solution in our product and process – we are working on concepts like vegan leather or natural dye. We are very happy that 92 per cent of our manufacturing partners comply to intentionally recognised environmental and social compliance norms and we have consciously partnered with manufacturers who share our common goal of "Sustainability for a better tomorrow"..Splash has received 4 awards from Gulf Sustainable CSR Awards 2020.• Gold Award Winner "Sustainable Business Model’’ in the region.• Gold Award Winner "Environmental Sustainable Programs’’ large company.• Gold Award Winner "Overall Winner’’.• Silver Award Winner "Innovation in Sustainable Technologies" Large Companies.Splash’s sustainable fashion in action.• Splash is the largest user of recycled polyester in the region, recycling 28 million bottles in a year..• Use of FSC paper has allowed Splash to reduce 200 metric tonnes of plastic waste in garment tags and packaging.• Splash is the first brand in the Middle East to procure sustainably produced cotton for use in its clothing line..Read more. 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