Verve chatted to the founders of La Lune Sleepwear – Brenna and Angela – about their journey, sleepwear as daywear and ethical production.
La Lune Sleepwear was started after you got bored of the endless search for sleepwear. What was it that you were looking for and couldn’t find?
We were in our early 40’s with young kids and realised we were sleeping in ratty sleepwear and needed an upgrade. All the sleepwear we found seemed to be either polyester slinky slips or flowery flannel and nothing was made in NZ.
We were looking for sleepwear that didn’t look like sleepwear, so you didn’t feel caught out in your dressing gown on a Saturday morning. A lot of our customers tell us they wear La Lune all the time as daywear. We love that you can wear it however you choose.
Did you and your Business Partner, Angela, come from Fashion/Design Backgrounds?
Brenna – I have a film background and got very good at organising and just helping out wherever I could and being thrown in the deep end.
Angela – I have a Fashion Design and Technology Diploma from Wellington Polytechnic. I’ve been working in the Fashion Industry for 20+ years. My main love is pattern making which I have spent the past 16 years working for NZ fashion designers, both in house and contracting. Because of this I have a great knowledge of the industry works and have picked up a lot of great contacts along the way
With Angela based in the Wairarapa and yourself in the Waikato, how do you work collaboratively on the design of your garments?
A lot of phone calls!!
We brainstorm each season about design and colours we like and then Angela will make the patterns and the long sampling process begins.
We are really proud of easy it has been to split the workload – Angela is so good with the entire design process (from patterns, trims and cutting) and Brenna does sales, marketing and accounts.
How are you committed to ethical production choices?
Our organic cotton is sourced in India with Fair trade and Australian organic certifications. We know that organic cotton crops use much less water and we love there are no chemicals involved in the farming, which means it is safer for the farmers and factory workers.
Organic cotton is also a biodegradable fabric so it doesn’t add to landfill.
We also believe it is so important to ensure our machinists have safe and fair working conditions including a fair wage. We visit our manufacturers in Auckland and stay in touch on a regular basis.
What do you love most about this brand and the garments you have created together?
We love that our sleepwear is made in New Zealand. There is no doubt it is more challenging to make clothes here but there is such a wealth of talent and knowledge in the industry.
We love wearing La Lune and knowing it is ethically sourced fabric that fits well and is the most comfortable clothing we have ever worn.
We definitely think we filled our brief of looking good and feeling good first thing in the morning!
Visit lalunesleepwear.co.nz
