US Underwear Store
Buying garments from the US Underwear Store really means wearing “nature on your skin”.
US Underwear Store is a multi-brand store and e-commerce, offering clothing, underwear and loungewear from sustainable, certified and ethical brands. Opened in 2019 in Parma, Italy, the store is one of the physical spaces in Italy (still too few) where you can buy truly healthy, ecological and ethical garments. More recent is the opening of e-commerce which dates back to October 2020.
Unfortunately, most of the textile products on the market come from supply chains that exploit workers and natural resources, pollute and abuse of toxic and harmful chemicals. That’s why US Underwear Store makes a rigorous selection to protect the consumer and only truly virtuous and certified garments find space inside the store and e-commerce.
Buying garments from the US Underwear Store really means wearing “nature on your skin”.
Sustainable loungewear and underwear: healthy and also beautiful
Who would like to wear underwear or loungewear knowing that they have dangerous chemicals, that can be absorbed by the body? Of course, the answer is easy, none! But still most consumers do it because they are not aware of it or do not think about it. They don’t not know that fields poisoned by pesticides to obtain a higher yield, together with production processes that use toxic substances, can only create polluted products that are bad for people and the environment.
GOTS certified organic cotton, ethically made with ecological dyes, and even rompers and organic clothing able to protect even the sensitive skin of the little ones.
Special attention also goes to the aesthetics and variety of the selected items. To shape the female body, it is not easy to find girdles and bras made of ecological and certified fabrics: here they are, including clothes for maternity and new mothers! And for everything else, with simple and modern lines for men, women and children, refined details, soft fabrics, colors and patterns… there is really a lot of choice for all tastes.
Sustainability starts with the fabric
Among the products of US Underwear Store, there are also those made of warm organic wool, obtained from animals raised with sustainable practices, free to graze in organic soils, without coming into contact with chemical pesticides. Organic wool, particularly soft, resistant, breathable, warm and biodegradable, is not treated with chlorine, sulfur and other chemicals during its processing, thus leaving it in its natural state. The dyes are also natural and water based.
The guarantee of independent certifications
The products you will find at US Underwear Store are also certified by globally recognized third parties, so you can be sure of the sustainable and ethical nature of the garment you are about to buy.
Let’s start with perhaps the best known international certification: GOTS, Global Organic Textile Standard. Many of the products you find at US Underwear Store carry this certification which ensures the use of natural fibers from organic farming. A rigorous control checks all stages of production, from the cultivation of fibers to the various stages of textile manufacturing. Furthermore, the ethical aspect is also monitored, guaranteeing products made by workers who enjoy adequate working conditions and wages.
By relying on the GOTS certification, US Underwear Store knows exactly what it is selling to its consumers: ethical and sustainable products according to transparent criteria! And consumers can be trusted.
Another important certification is Fairtrade. This international organization aims to improve the conditions of workers in developing countries by helping and encouraging them to protect their environment. In particular, the products that you will find at US Underwear Store are part of the “Fairtrade cotton” program: introduced in 2014, this program supports farmers in the cotton fields in some of the poorest regions of the world.
Buying a Fairtrade garment protects the health of workers, their safety, and promotes sustainable farm management. Additionally, this standard prohibits the use of genetically modified chemicals and seeds. It also provides a minimum price for cotton, which will never fall below the market price.
Two other certifications, important to ensure virtuous products for their consumers, are FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) and “Peta – Approved Vegan”. The first, now well known above all because we find it on paper and cardboard products, identifies products containing wood from forests managed correctly and responsibly according to rigorous environmental, social and economic standards. The second, on the other hand, is appreciated by those consumers who choose products from companies that do not use materials of animal origin.
At this point, if you are lucky enough to live in the area, you just have to enter the US Underwear Store in Parma, where the owner, Valeria, will welcome you with great joy and competence! Are you far away and instead prefer to shop from the comfort of your home? Visit their e-commerce and among the many proposals, you will certainly find the right healthy, ethical and sustainable garment that best suits your needs!
Money, Fashion, Power:
we talk about the themes of Fashion Revolution Week 2022 with Valeria Cremisi, founder of US Underwear Store
On the occasion of Fashion Revolution Week 2022 we spoke with the representatives of some brands included in our directory to reflect together on the main themes of this edition – Money, Fashion, Power – and on how the interactions between these variables affect the fashion system. The result is an article that brings together a number of voices, including that of Valeria, founder of the US Underwear Store. The US Underwear Store was founded as a physical store in Parma, where you can find underwear and nightwear from many different brands, but all made of natural, sustainable and certified fibres. A shop where anyone can find something suitable for themselves and natural, perfect to wear in contact with the skin, regardless of age, gender and size. Over time, the US Underwear Store has also developed an e-shop, whose founding values have remained the same.
You have the power to push the fashion system towards the path of sustainability: how do you convey the value of sustainable and ethical garments to consumers?
We believe that the main value is the possibility of combining sustainability with comfort, style and wallet in a winning way. Dressing responsibly is not only good for the planet but also for those who wear that garment, without necessarily having to spend exorbitant amounts.
Timeless staples over trends: how do you define the aesthetics of your brand? Quality over quantity: which materials characterize your collections?
Our collections are mainly made of organic cotton, with some lines in Tencel, cotton and linen, wool and silk, but also recycled polyester (Waste2Wear) and Ecovero (eco-friendly viscose). We are constantly looking for new brands that offer different sustainable materials, with an eye also to price. Our garments are by definition “beyond fashion” and our customers, men and women, appreciate it very much. Of course we allow ourselves some trendy colors, but we are not afraid to re-stock it and propose it again for more than a season, if our costumers liked it.
Price tags do not convey the real value of a product: how much does it affect production? How important are the social and environmental costs? In the traditional fashion sector, still too little. The costs related to the image and positioning of the brand and the share allocated to profits have a greater impact. How are your prices made up instead, as a sustainable and ethical business? Is part of the earnings reinvested in virtuous projects?
As we know, the world of textiles is one of the most polluting sectors, also due to the search for the lowest possible price, which does not safeguard either the quality of the garment or the environment. Today, after the pandemic, costs are rising in every sector: this is also true for the price of cotton, in particular organic cotton, and it also seems that there are supply problems.
The costs must be such as to make the product “good” in terms of quality, but affordable, which does not mean cheap, but accessible. People need to realize that behind the cost of the tag price there is, in addition, the research into low-impact raw materials, and someone who produces it physically. The workforce must be paid fairly, fair trade is a very important issue for us. Producing in India or Turkey is fine, if you do it with respect for local workers; Made in Italy is fine, but it is not necessarily a guarantee of respect for work.
At the moment we only work with sustainable European and Italian brands, with the only exception of the “corsetry” sector, inserted to cover wider fit needs (for example for bras with cups up to G, where cotton does not guarantee sufficient support). We are new to the market, we are still trying to balance the various investments, in order to continue this fascinating journey: it is not an easy thing, but we certainly have many ideas to put into practice!
What prompted you to open a store mainly of underwear in Parma?
We opened in September 2019. Before Covid there was a trend towards the return of the physical store in the neighbourhood, obviously then abruptly interrupted by the pandemic. For this reason, we decided not to exhist only (or mainly) online, like other well-known and important already existing and consolidated platforms. The opportunity to try, see, touch is very important for us, even today after the launch of our new e-commerce site. This is especially true when you propose something new and unknown.
We have chosen the underwear sector, with night and relax wear, because they are the garments in closer contact with the skin, where the organic product also becomes the most “healthy” and enjoyable (returning to the concept of comfort). It also allows us to limit the dynamics of seasonality that all clothing stores are obliged to. We decided to focus on mostly continuous lines, beyond fashions, which you can always find if you like them: it is impossible in other contexts, especially in fast fashion, where today you buy something but already tomorrow you cannot find it anymore. It is something I have always hated as a customer: if I like something, I’ll buy it again several times over time, but not finding it after only six months is frustrating.
The power you have to choose your suppliers and therefore the power to direct your customers to sustainable and ethical products… do you feel you are making a difference?
I would say yes: with our customers we often discuss sustainability issues. We are also very attentive to the selection of products, we consider new brands, national and not, we keep an eye on the market and we welcome the news. We like to look at Europe as well as Italy, also looking for a bit of originality and new styles, because even the eye wants its part!
US Underwear Store
PARMA
Piazza Piersanti Mattarella 5C, 43123, Parma, Italy
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