KNOWN FORÂ
Ethical fun fashion for kids
ABOUT THE BRAND
The Extra Smile is a clothing brand you need to know about, and your kids will love. Its designs are comfortable, easy to wear, fun, and long-lasting. With collections for girls and boys, the brand works hard to ensure it doesn’t conform to gender stereotypes. It uses soft fabrics and great cuts that epitomise ethical chic.
Why is it called The Extra Smile? This is a brand that wants to bring happiness to everyone who touches its garments: from the farmer who harvests the cotton and the seamstress who sews the hem, to the children who wear them and the adults who wash and keep them in good condition. It’s keen to be a part of the #fashionrevolution, meaning it believes in business as a force for good, and making fashionable clothes for kids in a way that is fair to people and kind to our planet.
The founders also have grand plans for the future. By 2021 it aims to develop a platform that facilitates the purchase and sale of its second-hand clothes. It will also collaborate with a network of repair and second-hand shops in the areas where its customers live. And by 2025 it will have phased out all plastic and polyester.
VISION & MISSION
The fashion industry is the second most polluting industry and the largest employer of modern slaves globally. The Extra Smile is eager to make a difference. It is a passionate participant of the #FashionRevolution through making fashion for kids that is fair to people and kind to the planet.
WHY IT’S CONSCIOUS
It aims to improve the lives of workers in the fashion industry by creating decent workplaces for all of its employees. It does not tolerate forced labour, child labour or discrimination based on gender, sexual orientation, religion, race, disability or age.
It also goes to great lengths to find sustainable alternatives to traditional fashion practices and applies this approach to all aspects of its business. The Extra Smile produces small batches of each design to avoid overproduction and waste. It also uses organic GOTS-certified fabrics, avoids polyester and plastic and is creative with upcycled materials. It also uses compostable packaging when delivering products to clients.
The Extra Smile is also making a conscious effort to contribute towards the UN SDGs, in particular: no poverty (goal 1), gender equality (5), decent work and economic growth (8), reduced inequalities (10) and responsible consumption and production (12).
WHAT’S ITS FIGHTÂ
PROTECT THE PLANET:Â The Extra Smile always endeavours to find sustainable alternatives to traditional fashion practices. It actively encourages its customers to buy less, buy better, wear longer, and never throw away. It produces small-batch product lines to avoid overproduction and waste. It also uses only organic and GOTS-certified fabrics, avoid polyester and plastic and is creative with upcycled materials. It also delivers all products to customers in reusable or compostable packaging.
POWER TO THE PEOPLE: The global fashion industry is notorious for low pay. The Extra Smile only purchases GOTS-certified fabrics which guarantee fair working conditions across the supply chain. It also works with small workshops in Cambodia that ensure a safe working environment and pay a decent living wage. It does not tolerate forced labour, child labour or discrimination based on gender, sexual orientation, religion, race, disability or age.
MEET THE FOUNDERS
Heleen and Samantha are the powerhouses behind The Extra Smile. They met in Bangkok through their daughters, who were friends at Kindergarten. After incorporating the business at the beginning of 2018, and following just over a year of hard work, they launched The Extra Smile commercially in July 2019. Now living in Santiago de Chile, Heleen has worked in sustainability, behavioural change and managing complex international awareness-raising campaigns in Asia, Europe and Latin America. Throughout her career, Samantha has worked for French high-end fashion brands in sales, marketing and sourcing. She has degrees in Arts, Graphic Design and Vietnamese Literature.
