Sustainability at Pitti: Connor McKnight

Sustainability at Pitti:
Connor McKnight

Editorial

Edition 100

15.07.2021

Connor McKnight Is Only Just Getting Started

Sustainability at Pitti is a series of interviews that celebrate fashion’s climate-conscious innovators. By providing a platform for the designers that put sustainability at the core of their brand, we hope to inspire and lead a wave of change within our industry, helping us all to push for a better future together.

The hype surrounding Connor McKnight is tangible. It’s also deserved. The Bode and Kith alum’s eponymous label is still in its nascent stages, and while he says that he “never took the idea of starting [his] own brand too seriously,” it’s clear from the quality of his work that going it alone would only ever be a matter of time.

“I’ve been interested in fashion in some capacity [for] as long as I can remember,” says the Brooklyn-based designer, “whether it was admiring things my brothers bought when I was a kid, or tailoring second-hand items from the Value Village in my neighborhood. In our social circles, it was one of our primary forms of expression, so dressing a certain way gave us a sense of community and friendship.”

Although some may say that starting a brand during the pandemic is risky business, for McKnight it proved serendipitous. “It never felt like the right time, and without an extended period of time to focus on development, it just felt somewhat unrealistic. You could say the pandemic is what made it possible.” That growth, his website states, was driven by reflections on justice, specifically by a feeling of “unrest due to the continued violence against the Black community.”

McKnight tells us, “Feeling driven by my peers pushing narratives of inclusion for Blacks in our society is what made me feel like I had to do something. I’m not sure how important any of this is, but it’s the area that I felt I could offer the most insight and help affect change. For a Black twenty-something, sometimes just your presence is radical.”

Keep reading to dive deeper into McKnight’s brand and his thoughts on how we can all work together to push for a better industry.

You launched your brand during the pandemic. What has the experience been like so far?

I’ve been amazed at the reception, [so I’m] just working as hard as I can to continue to remain a part of the conversation. So many talented designers have collections that deserve to be seen and talked about, so even to be able to think about a second collection has been a dream.
What many people don’t talk about, aside from the clothes, is the amount of time you spend running the business. I have been answering questions about clothing for some time, but you find yourself answering a lot of questions that are more macro and in some ways more difficult. I’m interested in taking my time to figure out how I feel I can be a positive influence in an industry that is so competitive and consequently so difficult. It’s humbling but also incredibly exciting.

Talk us through the collection you’re showing at Pitti. What’s the story there?

The collection that I’m showing at Pitti is a continuation of the story that I started with the first collection. Since it’s still just the beginning of my brand, I’ve continued to hone in on the ideas that I feel resonate the closest with the narratives I’ve followed. There are definitely some new things, but they may change before my next full collection for Spring/Summer 22. I like to think that nothing is ever truly finished, so I’m always considering how I can improve my old work as I’m coming up with new ideas.

You use the words “ordinary,” “mundane,” and talk of exploring the relationship between normality and luxury. What do these terms mean to you?

I believe that these two words for me are the relationship that is my main focus. The ideas that are most inspiring to me tend to be a combination of things that most don’t think go together. Where there is tension, there is often something new and exciting in between. Luxury inherently contrasts the mundane because it implies something greater than the latter. We all experience some form of mundane in our lives, but we often like to focus on the silver linings. I tend to be a slow thinker, so I find myself captivated by the things that take up more time and may lead to something rather than the pinnacle itself.

Where do you source your textiles? What’s important to you when deciding to work with a particular supplier?

I started out my first collection sourcing strictly from independent sellers of dead stock textiles during the pandemic because I thought these folks would be the most likely to ship and [that] small independent businesses needed the most help. As some of my larger suppliers began to reopen I placed orders but for the most part, I kept sourcing domestic, in the US. I like the idea of keeping things close so I can have a bit more control and visibility on where things are coming from. Unless you have the means to travel, there is a lot of trust involved in picking suppliers that you feel are responsible.
I’m excited going into my second and third collections because I’m spending quite a bit of time [eliminating] any fabrics that I used previously that were not at least partially sustainable. It’s difficult when you’re operating at a small scale to have access to all of these things but I believe that as long as the intention remains, I’ll get there.

Can you talk us through your production process?

Production is one of the most detailed processes in this industry so I’ll try to paraphrase! For my first season, since I did so much development on my own, there was a seamless transition into production. Almost all of my factories were located in the tri-state area so it involves a lot of driving, one-on-one meetings, and coordinating local deliveries. [As] my collection is made to order, I split between larger quantities and one-offs, which is one way I cut down on wastage. The hope is that at the end of each season I have one of each piece for archive but no other leftover inventory. I’m still working out how to continue this as I scale because the bigger the orders, the more difficult it will be to maintain that close personal connection with each one that I receive.

How do you pair your awareness about the fashion industry’s climate impact with designing and creating new products?

This is something I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about but I try not to think about it at all! Once I’ve sourced responsibly and set up strong relationships with incredible factories, I just like to focus on designing the clothing that I enjoy. I think a common misconception about sustainability is that it involves some sort of sacrifice of aesthetic or should somehow be a part of the aesthetic itself but I think the future should be the total opposite. I would like to see an industry where people operate sustainably because that is the bar, but the clothes continue to reflect people’s own personal perspectives, whether that’s involved or not.

What are the biggest obstacles you face as a designer in regards to creating responsible collections?

Minimum order quantities. Everybody has access to fabrics that aren’t sustainable because they sell them in every local fabric store, and most vendors offer sample yardage. The problem is that vendors that have a focus on sustainability are still in the minority, so your choices when it comes to placing orders are limited, and finding one that allows sample orders is even more limited. It’s a tremendous barrier to entry that I’m sure alienates many folks from sourcing from these companies. As it becomes more widely available, there may be more options for smaller companies to operate in this way because, as it is, it’s almost easier for big businesses to do so.

How do you feel about seasonal showcases? Do you think we still need to present collections in such a way?

I’ve been trying to figure out the answer to this question since I began earlier this year, and [I’m] still not sure. Since wholesalers often still operate on the seasonal calendar, if you plan on selling to stores it’s difficult to completely avoid the calendar. That being said, anybody working in fashion has felt burnt out by the timelines that often seem impossible to maintain. It’s also extremely difficult to operate so quickly and let your ideas simmer and develop organically. I would love to find a way to spend as much time as possible on each collection in order to ensure I’m always doing something that excites me. The more you’re driven by the calendar, the less time you have to focus on creating the best possible product.

How do you feel about the industry’s current sustainability efforts? What change do you hope to see?

I touched on this in one of my previous answers, but I feel that sustainability should become the standard. If you aren’t following suit, then I’m not interested. It has to be this way, or people will always treat it as a specialty or niche idea. If it’s more of a requirement, it becomes more inevitable, and I think that’s how we change the industry in a permanent way.

Do you have any top tips or words of advice for brands and designers looking to be more responsible in their work?

Slow down! Finding the right suppliers, vendors, and factories takes so much time, and I think [that] might be a reason people skip it. Also, I think that slowing down generally helps with overproduction. There are way too many clothes being made on a yearly basis, and if [something is] made somebody will be there to consume. As a business, we are responsible when you keep too much inventory, and something doesn’t get used. It’s important that we all take an initiative to push these boundaries to improve our overall. Our collections will get better if we spend more time designing and curating.