“Actions speak louder than words”: Andrew Levy on the purpose that powers Ateliers Verts

Firstly, can you give us an overview of the story behind Ateliers Verts, what it does and its purpose?
Back in 2018, it was becoming even more clear that the world was suffering a climate emergency. If we were going to help reverse global warming, we all needed to think differently about everything we bought and did. It was also apparent that there were hundreds of NGOs and charitable good causes that needed exposure, so that they could receive donations to fund projects to also help reverse climate change. So the purpose was to build a platform where you could buy a wide range of sustainable products – although we no longer use the word ‘sustainable’ as very few, if any, products are truly sustainable, so we use ‘eco-conscious’ – and along the way, learn about and support charities and good Causes.

Ateliers Verts has become the leading online department store for high-end, eco-conscious rated clothing and footwear, bags and luggage, accessories and jewellery, beauty and grooming, homewares, and food and drink. We promote over 150 good causes, segmented in Land, Air, Ocean, People and Animals. We are also members of 1% For The Planet. Our USP is that we rate every product for its eco-consciousness on a scale of 1 to 5 AV stars, we donate 1% of the turnover of every product sold on Ateliers Verts, and that we offer a wide range of products in multiple product categories.

What motivated you to launch Ateliers Verts?
As a keen advocate for nature and being a parent, I passionately felt that I had to do something to help the global climate crisis. The trigger point came in 2018 after a Licensing Awards dinner, when I was given a huge goodie bag stuffed with licensed plastic products that nobody wanted. That included my kids and the local charity shop! I decided that now was the time to go for it. It was a huge risk.

How are things going ? How many brands do you have on board now and what feedback are you getting from consumers?
It has taken years to get traction – we’ve changed and tweaked the business on several occasions. We’re in a great place now. As a retailer you have to be on your game 24/7. We’ve found some of our luxury eco brands for example, have opened stores on Amazon which forced us to become Amazon affiliates, so that we can be price competitive. We have over 400 brands on Ateliers Verts and thousands of SKUs. We measure feedback from customers by their re-purchase level. Actions speak louder than words – we are moving in a good direction.

How do you select which brands and products to work with? What’s the on boarding process?
A great question! It takes a huge amount of time to research and onboard every product. Literally hours. Before we even get to putting a product on our platform, it will have to have caught our eye in either physical or digital media and make some eco claim. That could be simply that it’s made from an organic material or that they support a particular charity with every sale.

“Design is everything – refreshing is essential.”

Then we look at their sustainability claims – more often than not, the products we choose publish an annual sustainability report which we digest. This will give us an idea of their material sourcing, manufacturing process, transportation, packaging, treatment of staff, overall ethos, altruistic efforts and importantly expose any misleading claims. If they don’t talk about a particular eco benefit it doesn’t get included – nothing is assumed. We then have a 15-step process to physically upload a product to the store. It’s pain-taking and laborious and can’t be done by AI, which also gives us another USP.

Can you highlight two or three products you have on the site and what you like about them?
Genuinely, because of the efforts we have made to put every product up, we like all of them! But for their sheer variety here are some recent additions…

This is the Waterford Mastercraft Pet Bowl Large With Cloche Lid. Made from crystal, it retails around £3,400. It’s a real conversation piece! It has taken eight hours to produce by hand and it’s built to last. Waterford is owned by the Fiskars Group. They use a new barium oxide formulation to make the crystal which reduces energy consumption and is recyclable unlike the old lead oxides.

Then there’s the Aspiga India Embroidered Dress. Made from organic cotton in India, it retails around £150. This dress is pretty, elegant and simple at the same time – quiet luxury. Aspiga are BCorp certified, the organic cotton is Oeko-Tex certified, it’s shipped to the UK by boat, and Aspiga support multiple good causes.

Finally, the 2018 Roebuck Estates Classic Cuvée. It retails for around £39. It’s produced in Sussex, England and because the topography is similar to that of Champagne in France, it’s an award-winner. Roebuck Estates have planted wildflower meadows, introduced beehive, bird houses and reptile habitats to further increase local biodiversity which has reduced their need for pesticides and fertilisers. They’ve also introduced sugar-derived neck foils on the bottles for a more recyclable product.

More generally thinking about sustainability, in what ways have you seen brands adapt their approach to product design and packaging?
It’s a huge question to answer and really depends on the product sector. I don’t like calling out brands in particular, but the cosmetics industry is appalling with single-use plastic still prevailing. We’ve had to dig deep to find eco-conscious brands in this sector. Overall, speaking in general terms, most brands are reducing their plastic content, and if they do use plastic, they try and use recycled plastic. Most outer cardboard is either recycled and or recyclable and paper is fsc-certified. Some footwear brands for example have become material specialists using only bio-sourced and recycled materials. So generally product design hasn’t changed but the materials used in the designs have become more eco-conscious.

How do you think the licensing industry is doing sustainability-wise? Are there some examples of good practice you could point to?
Manufacturers (licensees) make licensed products, which should face the same eco-conscious ambitions as their non-licensed products. Licensing is a marketing practice, so their licensed products are doing as well and their non-licensed products. What’s clear is that all manufactures need to maximise their eco-conscious efforts regardless of whether they become licensees.

I’ve consulted with some brands recently and they are insisting on licensing exclusively into eco materials. It’s encouraging. The rise of sales in the refurbished and preloved sectors is also encouraging and we’ve seen plenty of licensed products in those sectors. So good practice would be to make a licensed product that lasts and can be re-sold or re-used. It’s also important to recognise the role of the consumer in all this. If they demand eco materials, the retailers and manufacturers will have to follow through.

I know you are involved with the Groovy Chick brand, which is a wonderful example of a design-based brand that has performed well over the years. You recently worked with Primark on a Groovy Chick apparel range. Tell us more about this.
We’ve been working with Bang on The Door and their Groovy Chick for many years. We’re totally aligned in the fact that if we do anything licensed, is should only be into eco-conscious materials. We had considerable success working with Daisy Street to produce organic cotton Groovy Chick t-shirts for ASOS. Most recently we’ve been working closely with Aykroyds / TDP and developed an organic cotton and recycled fibre range of loungewear, nightwear, underwear and bags in Primark. They were marketed under the “Primark Cares” initiative and sold well. We’re delighted Primark customers have bought into Groovy Chick and simultaneously into the eco-conscious apparel sector.

From a design point of view, how do you think brand owners can keep their licensed brands fresh and contemporary?
Design is everything – refreshing is essential. No brand can be complacent and stand still. After all, retail and consumers change every season. So licensed product must be design-flexible and bang up to date on the latest trends. I’ve been helping a brand called Dready from the 90s. It’s essentially just a design but has international appeal – their online store is doing well. We’re working on new materials to incorporate the design to bring it up to date and to give it a wider appeal. Again, we’re only looking at eco-conscious materials such as hemp and organic cotton apparel and recycled cotton canvas record bags. We can draw out design elements from the brand which give it the flavour of Dready without being overtly Dready.

Finally, reflecting on 2024 was there a particular licensed product or range that caught your eye? What did you like about it?
2024 felt like licensed anniversary year! Many ranges caught my eye – you couldn’t avoid Miffy, Snoopy, Hello Kitty or Paddington Bear shouting from the shelves or from the London Eye at NYE!

But if I had to make choice I’d have to go for Smiley! Nick Loufrani and his team have done absolutely amazing licensing programmes around the world. Their Smiley Movement newsletter is so engaging and their charitable initiatives have been very impressive. Needless to say we have a few of their eco-conscious products on Ateliers Verts!

Great picks! Thanks Andrew.