This new decade celebrates new winners of the Eluxe Awards 2020, the world’s first ever accolades for excellence in the sustainable luxury market. This growing platform has contributed to helping to bring exposure to brands that have been contributing to making the world more sustainable – with style!
This fourth edition of the Eluxe Awards has truly surpassed its predecessors in terms of brands having higher vegan standards. Judges, including Lady Charlotte Lynham, Founder of the Bespoke Black Book; Vanessa Rae, Television/Web Presenter; Kenny Jackson-Forrest, Style & Trashion Founder and Trashion Forward Author, deliberated long and hard to pick the winners of the 2020 Eluxe Awards, below.
People’s Choice Winner
After a brief social media campaign, the public has rewarded this Canadian label for being consciously multifaceted. The clean and vegan friendly cosmetics brand won praise for its ethically refillable cosmetic packaging, and the fact that its reasonable pricing ensures that their high quality, chemical free products are available to all people in all income brackets.
Comments from those who chose this brand as a winner included: “From being cruelty-free and vegan to truly caring for the environment and our society, Elate is setting an example to the beauty community.” And: “I love the fact that the brand is highly transparent and supports important causes through their work by donating 2% of sales to charitable causes each year through their Social and Environmental Impact program.”
Ethical Brand of the Year Winner
The founder of this London-based brand, Matilda Janosi, coalesced her interest in recyclable materials with her passion for fashion into a stylish womenswear label. She was first inspired to do so when she noticed an abundance of bicycle inner tubes being wasted in London. She realised that neither her expertise in upcycling nor these materials should go to waste, and she started making chic jewellery and accessories from them. Since then, she has expanded her offerings to include fashion made from upcycled and sustainable materials.
Our judges said: “This brand deserves to be the Ethical Brand of the Year for (her) imaginative use of upcycled materials, particularly the curtains sourced from Spencer House where Diana, Princess of Wales once lived.”
Best Menswear Winner
This isn’t a menswear brand per se; rather, it is an online marketplace for ethically and sustainably made men’s clothing. From hemp based trousers to upcycled hats, all the stylish offerings on this platform are ethically sourced and eco-friendly. What attests the reliability of EcoStylist is that only the brands that fit their rather strict criteria are accepted for sale – and they are absolutely gorgeous!
Our judges said: “Love this site. It gives me great ideas for gifts. It’s easy to navigate, offers loads of stuff, and is kind of like a sustainable Net A Porter for ethical and eco menswear!”Best Jewellery Brand Winner
This Icelandic haute jewellery label possesses high ethics, too. In fact, its values are shown in its name: AURUM is an acronym for Ambition, Understanding, Responsibility, Unity and Mindfulness. With these ideals as beacons, the brand has created stunning accessories since 1999, using recycled and refined gold, silver and precious gems to make them. Of course, each item is ethically handmade in Iceland, and is certified conflict-free, too.
Our judges said: “This is such a beautiful brand! Delicately crafted, ethical, sustainable…it really showcases the beauty buried in the depths of this Earth.”
Best Ethical Fashion Brand Winner
French style is pretty much synonymous with chic, so it doesn’t surprise that the winner of the Eluxe Award’s Best Fashion Brand for 2020 is the French label Olistic, which uses organic fibres to create exquisite hand embroidered pieces by women who are empowered in the process. This sophisticated luxury house — which was founded just two years ago— bases its pieces on biomimicry to further connect human beings with Mother Earth. The result is eco-friendly fashion design that glorifies femininity through timeless, minimalistic silhouettes and luxuriously natural textiles.
Our judges said: “Sophisticated French-girl chic gets a sustainable makeover – that’s why Olistic is my choice for the 2020 Eluxe Awards winner for Best Ethical Fashion Brand.”Best Fashion or Beauty Luxury Brand of the Year Winner
This sophisticated label, founded by award-winning designer Mateja Benedetti, truly embraces luxury fashion in a sustainable and animal-free way. Not only does the lush Italian brand use non-toxic, organic textiles to create its haute looks, but it also ensures social sustainability by hiring locally and preserving “Made in Italy” artisanal traditions with its ethical, transparent production practices. That’s Amore!
Our judges said: “A beautifully constructed, imaginative brand on par with the big luxury houses – but much more sustainable” and “LOVE the fresh eye-catching styles and vibrant colours of the Benedetti line. Animals and the environment are celebrated in every pattern and the priorities of being an animal friendly and sustainable brand are clearly defined front and center on the home page for everyone to see. This is conscious, unique luxury fashion that stylishly stands out while making a positive statement. I appreciate the attention to detail, such as including a description of vegetable ivory buttons and the inclusion of their ecological certifications like GOTS. Benedetti feels young, fresh, fun, cool but still elegant.”Best Slow Fashion Brand Winner
The name says it all! The Morph Bag is a highly versatile vegan tote bag that’s completely reversible, meaning you get two colours in one bag, allowing you to mix and match the bag with different outfits and seasons. The fact that it comes in classic styles and changeable colours, and is made from a durable, tightly woven vegan fabric means that this slow fashion bag should last for decades in your wardrobe. This PETA certified, London based label is also 100% vegan friendly and is also ethically made.
Our judges said: “This is a really innovative concept, and really, it’s the only bag you need in your wardrobe!”
Best Vegan Beauty Brand Winner
This was a close shave! There was a tie between two brands, but in the end, Studio Botanic won it. Why? Judges loved their ‘key and tube’ system – the least wasteful (and quite an ancient) way to get their natural creams, soaps and balms out of their tubes. They also loved the fact that the brand boasts wonderful eco-cred.
Our judges said: “Nice website, easy to navigate and shop on, and there’s a basic – but excellent – selection of products.” And “Such a wonderfully clean brand. Shame it’s not more widely distributed, but I feel that will come soon.”Best Clean Beauty Brand Winner
Laloirelle is a luxurious organic skincare brand dedicated to providing effective and ethical products. Using the purest, most potent and ethically sourced ingredients, the brand combines traditional Chinese medicine with skincare technology to create complex formulations that provide real results.
It was launched after its founder realised the beauty industry often greenwashes when it comes to marketing ‘natural’ beauty products. As she was born and raised in a small town in South China, she had a deep knowledge of the benefits of herbs, and how they can affect our health, well-being and beauty. The result is effective formulations that help protect and repair skin.
Our judges said: “Their combination of traditional herbal medicine with scientifically proven results gives them my vote for Best Clean Beauty Brand for the 2020 Eluxe Awards.”Best Ethical Travel Experience Winner
This is an eco boutique hotel like on other, nestled in a heavenly place! Low-key and as sustainable as can be is the philosophy that characterises these five open-air Guest Rooms on this side of paradise. Set on one of the best beaches in Santa Teresa, Latitude 10 is a former private residence that has been transformed into an energy efficient hotel for guests who value being in nature above all other experiences. You’ll find lots of visitors here, from lizards and parrots to howler monkeys and raccoons!
Our judges said: “I love what Latitude 10 is doing: the resort bans the use of all single-use plastic, they support small-scale reforestation by planting trees that are local to their area and meant to be grown in the climate of Costa Rica, they source their food locally and all the furniture and products used in the hotel are also made locally, they offer bicycle rental service AND they support their local communities by volunteering with NGOs and supporting local environmental education. I would like to visit this stunning place myself one day!”Best Up and Coming Ethical Brand Winner
A young couple of centennials from Spain – Jorge and Tatiana – decided it was time to instil some ethics in the most popular fashion item amongst young men and women: sneakers. The result is a hip collection of unisex vegan footwear which is as eco as can be, due to the fact that their shoes are CO2 emissions free and made from recycled and sustainable materials.
Our judges said: “BeFlamboyant seems to be ticking all the points when it comes to ethics, which are in the core of the brand, being fully vegan and ethically made with a lot of transparency about the production process on their well-designed website. I highly appreciate the attention the young couple behind this brand to every detail- from being unisex, to using more eco-conscious materials. From using zero waste packaging made of recycled and recyclable cardboard and seed paper to shunning the use of any plastic. The brand also collaborates with the amazing NGO One Tree Planted, and donate 1 Euro from every pair of sneakers sold to plant a tree and support reforestation, which I highly appreciate.”Vegan Brand Of The Year Winner
Scandinavian elegance is intrinsic to this vegan bag brand. Not only are their accessories made from some eco-friendly materials like cork and plant based leathers, but they’re also versatile, too. For example, one of their backpacks turns into a shoulder bag with an adjustment of straps, meaning you get two styles with one purchase. Judges praised the fact that the bags come in a wide variety of hues, prints and textures, too.
Our judges said: “I love these classically simple but stylish vegan bags made from recycled and eco-friendly materials! It seems there’s a style for every occasion.”
