NJAL Partners With AEG to Change the Meaning of Fabric Care

Ever since its foundation in 1887 in Germany, AEG has pioneered advanced electrical engineering in consumer products. Today, one of the world’s leading home appliance manufacturers is on a mission to slow down clothing consumption and activate consumers to care more for their clothing. With 90% of the clothes we buy thrown away long before they should be and one million tons of textiles ending up in landfill sites every year – it is clear that we have forgotten how to love and care for our clothes. NJAL has always believed that emerging design talent are the true craftsmen of contemporary fashion and it is up to individual designers to inspire consumers to invest in impeccable details, artisanal techniques, and beautiful products that we truly want to care for. 

NJAL and AEG have teamed up to inspire consumers to consider the ways in which we treat our clothes, and reconsider what fabric care means really means. Quality fabrics can be expertly crafted, however, they require consumers to treat them with love and care to ensure their longevity in your wardrobe. In an industry ruled by accelerationism and intense consumption, fashion is seen as fleeting, disposable and simply ephemeral – the topic of fabric care has been simply forgotten. NJAL and AEG are here to change that perception. 

If we can learn to love the fibres of our fabrics, return to investing in premium quality and outstanding craftsmanship – our sense of precious attachment and love for clothes will quickly follow. By slowing down, and simply buying less but spending more on better fashion, consumers can actually save money, reduce their personal impact on the environment and prolong the lifetime of their garments.

By simply employing the right care techniques to preserve the colours and fibres in our clothes, we will use them for longer and dispose of garments less. Extending the lifetime of our garments is a crucial step in reducing the environmental impact of fashion in general. While most of the conversation of sustainability in fashion focuses on the supply of chain in its manufacture, more than half of the impact from clothes actually comes from the aftercare stage, which lies solely with the consumer. 

Though it is an elemental step to begin questioning our habits when it comes to fashion consumption and our wider relationship to fast fashion, there are simple steps we can all take today towards sustainable solutions in our everyday life. Start by asking whether your clothes really need washing. By reducing the number of unnecessary washes we do, we’re all actively helping to reduce our collective impact on the environment and saving water resources too. If garments are only lightly soiled, wash at a lower temperature than you usually would. These are only some of the most simple steps we can take to reduce our impact, but these are all solutions we can adopt immediately, and without hesitation!

The topic of sustainability in fashion, though riveting, disconcerting and scary in all its scope seems to always be purposely removed from the consumer’s sphere of control. This week, NJAL's focus is dedicated to changing that perception. While it's true that tectonic change needs to topple down from the upper echelons of the industry, there is still plenty of conversation to be had about some of the simpler actions we can all take on to ignite change today and actually how much power, we as consumers have to drive significant change. 

That is exactly what NJAL’s partnership with AEG is about — highlighting the power and control you have, as a consumer to inspire positive change. Across the week, NJAL and AEG will be spotlighting these issues with inspiring essays around the future of fabric care, as well as scene-stealing spotlights on some of NJAL’s pioneering talents who design contemporary fashion to educate their customers about sustainability. NJAL will also be sitting down with some of the pivotal figures at the forefront of fashion and technology, to discuss how technological solutions might be the key to a sustainable future in fashion.