Remake is a brand initiated by Stockholms Stadsmission, a non-profit organization based in Stockholm, Sweden, which specializes in second-hand stores selling donated items, as well as training people to prepare them for jobs. They also run the charity to help homeless people. Remake is a project that integrates the up-cycling of donated items as well as involving people in the workshop for training. I was honored to invite Maria Gimner working here to discuss about it.

Annie@Petite&Minimal:
Hi Maria, can you tell us about the Remake brand at Stockholms Stadsmission?

Maria@Stockholms Stadsmission:
The idea behind Remake is to produce sustainable products with recycled materials. Our works focus primarily on excess garments and materials such as denim and shirts, which serve as the foundation to our concept and collections.

We also aim at long-term thinking and sustainability. Sustainable thinking is applied in choosing of materials as well as who work in the production. Our stores and studios are social enterprises which create job opportunities through job training and internships, supporting people to make their next step possible in their career.

Annie@Petite&Minimal:
Where do the materials for those clothes come from? What process is involved?

Maria@Stockholms Stadsmission:
All materials are donated and collected in our second hand stores, which have several locations in town. Then they are transported to our studios, given a new form, then they become new products made by our production team. Then they’re sold or rented through our stores.

Annie@Petite&Minimal:
Who work in the studios to make those clothes?

Maria@Stockholms Stadsmission:
The designs and our collections are produced locally in Stockholm by our in-house design professionals and people in job training. At Remake we work together as a team to reach our full potential as individuals, and as a brand we want to reach out to more people that appreciate sustainable fashion. We want to inspire people to become users, rather than being only consumers, so they can make conscious decision when it comes to fashion choice.

Annie@Petite&Minimal:
I noticed now that you also have a renting service. Can you tell us more about it?

Maria@Stockholms Stadsmission:
We want to make it possible for our users to wear our garments for a short period of time, if the product is not a long-term garment for them. We want to value the possibility to share garments, something we could do both between friends and users of the same brand.

Annie@Petite&Minimal:
Do you have a particular idea when you design the clothes, or simply design with random styles? What positive effect can this project bring to its community?

Maria@Stockholms Stadsmission:
We believe that materials and people are worth much more than one chance. We want our work to focus on social responsibility by supporting the people and we want to contribute to influencing the fashion industry to focus on environmental and social sustainability. We are also thinking differently about fashion, for instance, we aren’t using labels for gender and size, our garment are “suitable size”, which means you will find something that fits you and wear it how you like. Our style aims to be timeless, and we try to eliminate fads, trends and seasons in our works.

Annie@Petite&Minimal:
What contributed to the project's success, in your opinion?

Maria@Stockholms Stadsmission:
We are a small but unique operation that puts people and sustainability in all our decisions. We are working with work integration and slow fashion. It has its challenges and takes time, but we take it easy. We also share our knowledge with other people through workshops and lectures.

All pictures come from their official site.