Italian luxury house Salvatore Ferragamo has unveiled Icon-Up, a 300-piece upcycled capsule collection made from repurposed luxury materials.
According to research, the fashion industry produces over 92 million tonnes of waste per year worldwide, with the average consumer purchasing 60 per cent more pieces of clothing than they did 15 years ago.
Unfortunately, discarded materials eventually go into landfills, emitting methane and polluting the land and waters with chemicals during decomposition. With upcycling, they’re transformed into something new, giving them a second chance and preventing them from going to waste.
In this new collection, unsold silk fabrics are repurposed, shoes are recovered at the end of their life cycle, and belts are revived from production leftovers. Each item is crafted by Manovian artisans to maintain the brand’s heritage and local production.
For the shoes, the styles Vara and Varina have been re-imagined using leftover silk goods – with discarded foulards, ties, and pouchettes dissembled and reworked as bows. While unsold belts from the brand’s inventory are detailed using salvaged silk from pre-existing products.
The brand also extended sustainable elements to its packaging. For example, drawstring dust bags usually included in luxury purchases are made with refashioned fabric and leather cords from production leftovers.
In addition, boxes are created using Favini Remake Paper – a blend of 30 per cent post-consumer waste pulp and 25 per cent pre-consumer leather waste. The Favini brand also participates in sustainable initiatives such as protecting ancient woodlands and promoting responsible forest management.
“We believe that reducing the industry’s footprint has to be holistic, and we must seek out responsible raw materials and end of useful life solutions for collections and packaging alike,” the brand says on its website. “If sustainability is a forest, upcycling is a tall tree that grows steadily within its centre.”
The Salvatore Ferragamo Icon-Up collection is available exclusively on FarFetch as part of its Positively Conscious selection.
