We didn’t want to call this our sustainability page. The word “sustainability” has been used so much, we don’t know what it means anymore. 

So instead we decided to explain - in our language - the standards we set, the values we followed and the decisions we made that brought TwoThirtyTwo to life. Below we share how we think about making things well - and what “responsible” looks like to us. (Spoiler: it’s not about being perfect.)

And of course, this page will grow and evolve as we do.  

If anything is unclear, if you have any questions, or wish to see more, let us know at hello@twothirtytwo.com. 

Starting another brand

We went back and forth on this one for a while. Why start another brand? Isn’t there enough out there? Our answer was: yes, there is a lot out there and… most of the kids clothing options we found were using synthetic materials, were very gendered, were heavily seasonal, and had sizing that demanded one would need to upsize every few months. We didn’t want any of this. We also preferred a cool, more adult, timeless style of kids clothing which we didn’t find so easily.

So, when we decided to go ahead and start a new brand, we knew we needed to do it responsibly or not do it at all. The first person we brought on board was Jodi Everding, an ex-fabric developer who pivoted her career in the fashion industry into sustainability.  We knew we needed someone who was an expert in materials and product development - and someone who shared our values and would know how to execute them in building our supply chain. She has been integral in helping us understand what “sustainability” truly means. 

Materials matter 

The main materials of our garments (all that touches the skin) are made from natural fibers. 

We prioritize regenerative cotton over organic. And, because we found it hard in our first two collections to find a regenerative woven material, we decided to go straight to the regenerative farms and figure out a solution - more on that to come. Details on our fabrics can be found here. 

We do not use elastane in our fabrics, but when we need elasticated waistbands, we use recycled elastane

Longevity over volume

We design clothing to last - through growth spurts, hand-me-downs, and memories.

How do we do that?

  • Offer simplified sizing 
  • Each garment is intentionally designed to fit through growth spurts - to look cool (and not drag) when a child is at the start of a size and to look equally as cool when a child is “growing out” of the piece 
  • Our clothes are genderless to make it easier to share between kids
  • We choose thicker interlocks to provide more durability to our jersey pieces 
  • We opted for recycled polyester labels and embroideries instead of cotton (we tried) because these were the more durable options

Getting creative with our waste

Most new ventures will create waste - samples that didn’t fit right, stationery being delivered with a typo… we are getting creative with what we do with it all. 

We will be launching up-cycled events for kids - teaching them how to remake old clothes into new styles. Our old samples will be the base of these classes. 

We were inspired by one of our favorite brands, Paynter, with ideas of what to do with our sample fabrics we decided not to produce. The founders turned their scrap fabrics into beautiful curtains by using the Korean patchworking technique called Jogakbo. 

And, for the stationery? We are still thinking about what to do! Any ideas?

Keeping the end in mind

Although our intention is for our garments to be worn for a while and passed on over and over again, we are avid readers about all of the exciting evolutions happening in textile recycling (and also of the horrors of growing textile waste in landfills). So we decided to build each garment with the end in mind. That’s why we steer clear of complicated fabric blends and excess hardware - choices that make recycling harder and eventual waste more likely.

Transparency matters

We’ve all heard about some of the horrors out of this industry - opaque supply chains, not knowing where things are made and thus, not knowing the labor standards behind our garments. 

The only way we knew how to combat this reality? Choose to manufacture close to where we live (5.5 hours drive to be precise!) and go visit often. We have met the people making our clothes, we even met some of their dogs (shout out to the Frenchie at Miguel Sousa). 

Even with this proximity, we have asked our partners all of our questions - working hours, breaks, how they get to work, if they’re certified - and have looked into their last independent audits and management structure. 

We saw the water recycling processes and solar panel installations. We discussed all of their continued plans to keep reducing carbon emissions. 

And for the things we cannot witness with our own eyes -  like chemical use - we implemented a restricted substance list (RSL) that each partner has signed, confirming that there were no restricted substances in our products. Our RSL aligns with AFIRM, which is today the most respected standard for chemical use in textile production. 

Even with these defined standards, this topic is extremely complex. So we’ve brought on a second advisor, Lisa Fimreite, to work with who is an expert in chemical safety and compliance.

It’s all about tradeoffs

Like all things in life, there are tradeoffs in most decisions we make. We have been humbled by this reality and so take each decision with attention and care. This is why we promise to keep sharing. When we first started to dive into all of this, we defined strict good/bad standards. But, as we’ve gotten more into the weeds we’ve come to understand how rare a black or white approach is. 

One funny anecdote that captures tradeoffs well: When we were choosing our transit packaging (intended to protect our clothes, especially from moisture, while in transit), it was obvious to us that we wouldn’t want to use plastic sleeves. Of course - plastic is the enemy. Or is it?

Originally we jumped on the opportunity to use a biodegradable sleeve - it sounded like the more sustainable, better alternative.

But then we learned that most biodegradable plastic actually only biodegrades under very specific  conditions and - worse- because it looks like "regular" plastic, it usually gets sorted with the plastic recycling, causing problems with sorting because it cannot actually be recycled. So it made more sense for us to use recycled plastic sleeves that could be sorted with plastic and recycled again instead of introducing a new material that is not compatible with current recycling infrastructure. 

We’re Learning As We Go

Once you know better, do better.

We don’t have all the answers. And we’re not here to pretend we do.

What we do have is a deep commitment to doing better - with every choice, every collection, every conversation. We ask questions. We listen. We learn. And we evolve.

Some of our standards are firmly in place. Others are still taking shape. We’re constantly refining - materials, processes, partnerships, timelines - because responsibility isn’t a fixed destination. It’s a practice.

This means:

  • We stay open to new information and better ways of doing things
  • We’re transparent about where we are today (even if it’s not perfect) and aim to measure our impacts and track our progress
  • We hold space for growth - without greenwashing, guilt, or performance