We aim to reduce our impact, use our voice, raise awareness and generate change.
We’re always learning how to be more sustainable in both our products + practice. In 2020, we partnered with a “green team,” to audit our materials and supply chain over the last 10 years. The results? A few sexy stats we can get behind. You can now find the stats behind each of our products.
Our Materials
Before Vitamin A, Amahlia worked on a design project with Patagonia founder and environmentalist Yvon Chouinard whose company’s use of recycled plastic bottles in their technical fabrics inspired her to attempt something similar in the swimwear space.
However, when Amahlia began to research the options, she was told by fabric suppliers that there was “no market” for swimwear made from recycled fibers — so she decided to design the fabric herself, working with the top mills in Italy, Canada and California to create EcoLux™ — the first premium swim fabric made from recycled nylon fibers.
Since then, the company has incorporated several more sustainable high-performance fabrics along with eco-conscious textiles like organic cotton, linen, recycled cotton and Tencel®. All materials are certified to meet the global Oeko-Tex standard for safe textiles.
Our Factories
Producing products locally dramatically reduces our emissions for shipping and transporting raw materials. It also allows us to take the time to get to know the people who make our goods.
We are proud to know firsthand that our manufacturing teams maintain the highest standards of workplace ethics and environmental responsibility. We work, whenever possible, with vertically integrated facilities where everything from dyeing to knitting is done in one location, further reducing our products’ carbon footprint. And since we produce and do business in California, which has the strictest environmental laws in the nation, we are held to the highest possible standards.
For some of our products that cannot be made in California, we partner globally with fair trade artisans to produce our materials ethically, providing women with fair-wage jobs in safe working conditions. We also visit these factories and remain in constant contact with our partners to ensure that they are meeting these same high standards.
Operating Guidelines
Our production process is geared to reduce waste and energy use wherever possible. We strive to ensure all workers receive fair treatment and compensation.
Factory Visits
We have close relationships with all the factories we work with and visit them regularly to ensure employees are being treated and paid fairly and the working conditions are clean and safe.
Engineered Digital Prints
We use digital printing for the majority of our prints. Compared with traditional wet printing, this process reduces water use (since it requires less wash and rinse cycles) and fabric waste (since we can adjust a print to fit a garment]. There are also no screens or colorant baths that need cleaning.
Manufactured in the USA
All of our swimwear is made in the United States and the majority is crafted locally in California. Domestic production not only supports the economy and ensures employees are protected under USA labor laws, it also contributes to far less carbon emissions and pollution than companies who rely on an international supply chain.
Our Distribution
Vitamin A is committed to sustainability in every aspect of operations. We’ve implemented a variety of measures at our headquarters and warehouse to reduce our overall environmental footprint.
- Every lightbulb has been replaced with LEDs, reducing our electricity demand by as much as 90%.
- Every individual office has its own Nest thermostat to provide intelligent heating and cooling based on occupancy.
- Solar cooling fans in the warehouse provide off-grid cooling when the sun is shining and internal temperatures are above 80 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Smart weather-controlled irrigation based on actual ET (evapotranspiration) of the plants, weather and soil type.
- All water fixtures, including toilets and faucets, are low-flow.
- Occupancy sensor lights are placed wherever possible to reduce energy usage.
- We provide no disposable eating products for onsite lunches — only reusable glass, flatware, and dishes.
- All paper products are made of 100% recycled post-consumer waste.
- All appliances are Energy Star rated.
- We provide filtered water produced onsite to eliminate disposable plastic water bottle usage.
- We utilize a heat reclamation system from our server room in the winter to heat the office space.
- We support our team working from home instead of commuting when possible — creating less congestion and pollution.
Our Packaging
We are as vigilant about our packaging as we are about our garments themselves. We research and source the most sustainable materials we can find and we never use more than needed, especially when shipping.
Mailers
Our mailers are 100% recycled, recyclable, and biodegradable. Made in the USA.
Bags
Each of our garments comes in a flap and seal bag that’s 100% biodegradable, recyclable, and backyard compostable. Here today, gone in a few.
Our Community
At Vitamin A, we partner with organizations and people that protect the environment. This means both donating a portion of our sales and using our voice to mobilize our community and support of their cause.
As a swimwear company, it makes sense we want to keep the oceans healthy. We proudly donate a portion of sales to environmental organizations working to protect our oceans.