Mainio

Mainio is a Helsinki based brand creating modern kids clothes in rich earthy shades. When they launched in 2014, they wanted to design clothes that could be lived in and loved for years. They size in 2 year increments and intentionally design garments to fit well both oversized or fitted. They strive to use ethical and durable materials as good for humans as they are the planet.

They incorporate bold abstract prints made more subtle with the selected color palate and fabrics. Their prints could easily be translated to adult garments. They also have a more playful print series with grumpy animals that is unique within the market. Not to mention, cleverly designed elements made to spark extra joy with children, like pockets made with dividers to be able to separate rocks and sticks.

SUSTAINABILITY

☑︎ ORGANIC COTTON
☑︎ NATURAL MATERIALS
☑︎ ECO-FRIENDLY DYE
☑︎ UPCYCLING/RECYCLED REMNANTS
☐ LOCAL PRODUCTION
☑︎ ETHICAL PRODUCTION
☐ RESPONSIBLE PACKAGING
☑︎ CERTIFICATIONS:
GOTS | SA8000

They use all natural materials, including high-quality organic cotton and merino wool, with their primary material being a GOTS certified organic cotton jersey. For Mainio, certifications are a key element to ensuring their brand is producing responsibly. Most of the factories they work with are both GOTS certified and several are SA8000 certified to ensure ethical working environments and eco-friendly practices, like recycling the water used in the dye process. They recently launched Mainio x Pure Waste, made with 100% recycled materials and a note about how many liters of water are saved per item.

All quotes in this article are excerpts from our interview with Mainio.
THE PRODUCT
They use all eco-friendly materials. They use GOTS organic cotton, mulesing-free merino wool and recycled cotton and materials. Their dyes are all GOTS certified, and all of their materials are either from India or Europe.

MATERIALS
Their main material is GOTS-certified organic cotton. All the cotton they use is either recycled or organic GOTS-certified. They also have a 100% recycled material collection, Mainio x Pure Waste, that is made of textile waste and recycled polyester.
"In our new Mainio x Pure Waste collection we use 100 % recycled materials (zippers, snap buttons and sewing thread excluded). Mainio x Pure Waste collection is 100 % made of pre-consumer organic cotton waste clips from clothing industry and recycled polyester from PET bottles."

DYE PROCESS
All textile dyes are GOTS certified, and their two main factories recycle the water used in dyeing process. They sometimes use undyed organic cotton slub in their collections. Their Mainio x Pure Waste collection is recycled and not re-dyed. The color of the cotton waste clips they use are sorted by color and that is the color of final product.

ORIGIN
The fabrics they use come from the manufacturers they work with. The organic cotton they use in India, is from India and the organic cotton used in Lithuania originates from Turkey.

THE PEOPLE
They monitor all parts of their supply chain. Each season 80% of production is always in India (30%), Lithuania (20-30%) and Ukraine (20-30%) and all three factories are GOTS certified. Two of the facilities are also SA800 certified and 1 is a BCSI member. They work with two other factories in Europe for their accessories. Winter is produced in Finland and summer in Estonia. Both factories have under 35 employees and are within 300 miles of the Mainio main office.

SUPPLY CHAIN OVERSIGHT
The founders have long standing relationships with most of the factories. They have worked with the Indian factory for two decades. They are within 300 miles of several of the factories and they visit all factories regularly.

LABOR
GOTS and SA8000 certifications guarantees ethical working conditions and living wages. The factories located in Europe also must comply with EU standards.
Their Lithuanian factory is a member of Greenpeace's Detox My Fashion Campaign.
THE PLANET
The factories they work with recycle the water used in the dyeing process. Four of the factories are located within Europe to reduce carbon footprint. Scraps are recycled and they optimize production to minimize waste.
Packages go to consumers in recycled and recyclable materials. They do use recycled polybags for individual items but are looking into alternative options. They try to use the most ecological options for shipping.

UPCYCLING & RECYCLING
They are careful during their production to only produce the quantity of fabric needed and minimize waste within their cutting layout. The cutting waste is collection and utilized as raw material in other industries. Imperfect product isn't thrown away and instead sold as factory seconds or donated.

PACKAGING
They use plastic bags for individual items only for those retailers that require. They are investigating alternative materials to use. They use either cardboard boxes or paper mailers for most orders but are looking into biodegradable bags.

TRANSPARENCY
Mainio answered all our questions about company practices and were easy to reach for follow up.
Their website has an incredible amount of information, not just on the materials they use, but also complete transparencies about the factories they work with, their histories and certifications.

FROM THE DESIGNER
"The idea from the brand's very beginning was to choose ethical and ecological materials and to only work with partners who take responsibility for the well-being of their employees and our planet. That vision became Mainio's core. We know our partners well, and will always stand for openness and transparency." - Mainio

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GOOD TO KNOW

They ship worldwide. Shipping from their website is free for orders over 150 euros within Europe. Shipping to the US is $15 and to almost everywhere else is 29 euros. They sell to over 15 countries. The website can be viewed in either EURO or USD.

Where to Buy ⬈

VISIT MAINIO

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