About Anowi
Anowi Surfwear is an independent, woman-owned brand that was founded for active ladies that want swimwear that fits like a second skin, moves with you, covers but flatters a grown woman’s body and does it all with deep respect for the planet.
Sustainability starts with creating supply chain of local vendors to limit the environmental footprint related to shipping. All our materials and trims come from domestic suppliers, few of them get their product from China-bra cups and zippers, and Japan- elastics. Currently, we were not able to find suppliers that make these trims in location closer to us. However, everything else, from our fabric to packaging and marketing materials is made domestically.
We use upcycled fabric that we make from REPREVE® polyester fibres combined with spandex. This recycled fiber is made in North Carolina out of post consumer plastic bottles. The quality is the same as that of virgin polyester and it has the same chemical structure. Production of REPREVE® reduces energy consumption by 45%, water consumption by 20% and emission of green house gas by over 30% in comparison to that of virgin polyester. The fibres are sent to a mill in Los Angeles where the fabric is made.
Anowi Surfwear uses digital printing house located in Virginia- a water-less method- for solid colors as well as our prints. It is significantly more expensive to print fabric digitally, especially when it is done domestically. However, traditional methods of printing and dying fabric require polluting significant amounts of water. Considering the fact that fashion industry is one of the biggest water polluter in the world, it is good to choose a different route. Our fabric is tested for washability and fading so quality is always ensured.
Our swimwear is produced in the heart of historic Garment District, NYC. A place that once used to be the biggest apparel production center in the country.
Many factories went out of business after most of the retailers moved their production overseas in the early nineties. Despite the odds, there is still a good number of highly skilled manufacturers that survived this exodus by working with high-end labels that have smaller production runs and prefer to keep their production local.
We are working close with a manufacturer that specializes in swim and active wear. Thanks to keeping production local, we know every person involved in our production and we can ensure high quality workmanship that customers compliment us on.
We work with Colorado based packaging company that makes high-quality packaging out of recycled materials. We chose their 100% recycled packaging materials and all of them, from the poly mailer to the sticker are also fully recyclable.
Anowi Surfwear ambassadors share our values. We only work with like-minded women who’s lifestyle is designed around the passion for water sports and who care about preserving their playground. Most are water sports instructors, competitors and yogis. This makes them perfect testers for our swimwear and gives us the opportunity to show our product in action.
@leoniemeyer
@nadiaredel
@gogogooutside
@yoharuela
We are also working on creating a full lifecycle solutions for our product. The production fabric scraps are currently being used to make reversible, non-medical 3-layered face masks, we offer free of charge repairs for your Anowis and we are planning on implementing a program so our swimwear that is no longer usable, can be sent back to us and recycled into other products like hair accessories and surf board bags. Sign up for our email and stay tuned!
@anowi_aicpak