Hatch and Make: collaborating to close the loop
The Hatch and Make team from left to right: Kirri-Mae, Nigel and Dave. Hatch and Make partners with fashion designers and brands in the design, development and manufacturing of woollen and cotton knitwear products which include jumpers, scarfs, blankets, and beanies. Partner consultation includes consideration of fibre choices, design components, how the garment will be used, and its end of life processes. Hatch and Make incorporate systems where waste is eliminated, resources are circulated, and nature is regenerated.
Hatch and Make garment production utilises efficient design and manufacturing principles. Production processes involve the creation of pieces knitted precisely to size using German-engineered knitting machinery. This process eliminates textile offcuts and produces almost no factory waste, saving up to 15% of material over traditional cut and sew processes.
The flexibility of this process benefits brands by allowing for small production runs with short lead times, enabling orders to be filled quickly. This also means brands do not have to hold large stock quantities or rely on long-term trend predictions. And they can quickly replace fast-selling garments – all of which minimise the likelihood of quantities of unsold product.
All products produced by Hatch and Make are designed and made to be worn and enjoyed for a long time. Each garment is also made with end of life processes in mind. Materials used are fully compostable, so when the garment has reached the end of its useful life, it can return to the earth, supporting – rather than negating – environmental regeneration.
Challenges
Hatch and Make made the difficult decision to create garments using only grown natural fibres, such as cotton and wool, which has restricted the range of garments they can produce. However, they hope through supporting the production of fibres grown using regenerative agricultural practices, more commercial pathways in Australia will open up, enabling the sector to grow.
Because low grade polyester textiles made from the down-cycling of plastic bottles still find their way into landfill, Hatch and Make have also made the choice to not use recycled synthetic fibres. And this does limit their range of textile choices.
An additional challenge faced has been the lack of knowledge and skills in Australia regarding the latest manufacturing technologies that support efficient and sustainable fashion and textile production. They believe therefore, that investment in education and increased workforce experience is needed to build skills for the future.
Insights and tips for businesses
The solution seeking occurring within the industry around waste elimination is good, and important. But Hatch and Make believe that it’s equally important to ensure sustainability challenges that exist throughout the textile manufacturing process are considered at the very beginning. For example, ensuring fashion and textile products are designed and created with their end of life processes in mind.
Additionally, a close relationship between designers and makers is critical for the fashion and textile industry – because the challenges that exist at one point in the supply chain impacts every business throughout the sector. Collaboration is how we will tackle the ethical and sustainability transformation needed in building an economically sustainable industry.
Gallery
Learn more
Hatch and Make would love to connect with anyone interested in learning more about their approach and processes. They are also keen to keep learning and would love to engage with anyone who can help and support them on their journey to an Australian circular economy.To learn more, visit www.hatchandmake.com.au