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Designed in Paris
“Our responsibility is to ensure that our clothes are 100% organic and products of Fair Trade,” says Johanna Riplinger. “But we refuse to sacrifice style to achieve this. It is essential that the client likes our clothes, and that our garments respect the wearer and reflect the true beauty of each woman.”
Parisian designer Johanna Riplinger joined Ethos in 2006. Officially she was appointed to relook the Ethos collection but in reality her mission was to transform Ethos into a highly competitive Paris fashion house, a brand recognized for its style and quality while remaining true to its commitments to sustainable fashion.
Social & Environmental Responsibility
Defining “sustainable fashion” has been the challenge of pioneer companies like Ethos. For us, it means socially responsible and environmentally friendly fashion, and it belongs to the larger “ethical fashion” movement that is gathering momentum around the world. According to public opinion polls, ethical fashion is not a short-term trend but a new market force that is here to stay. A growing number of fashion designers are joining the cause by adopting “ecological” materials and employing Fair Trade practices in clothing production.
Ethical fashion provides consumers with an easy and pleasurable way to contribute to sustainable development through responsible purchasing. Paris Ethos does not expect its customers to purchase clothes simply out of conscience. Rather, we offer people stylish quality clothing that is made with Fair Trade practices.
(Parisian Style, Inspired by Nature, Convincing Style & Quality)
Competitive Edge
Fashion apparel is a multibillion-dollar industry, one that crosses national boundaries and involves designers, retailers and consumers around the world. Fashion trends are global news and receive attention in the mainstream press alongside other newsworthy events. Each season brings new creative designer expressions, new styles and color palettes. Turnover is swift and the market is highly competitive.
With four years of fashion experience under her belt, Ann Leroux knew that if the company was going to flourish in the increasingly competitive marketplace and change the industry’s relationship with developing countries, Paris Ethos would have to enter the world of fashion through the same channels. The challenge was enormous: to develop clothing collections that competed in style, quality and versatility with those proposed by the industry. Ethos needed an edge.
Parisian Style, International Flair
The challenge was accepted by Johanna who brought to Ethos an insider’s knowledge of cutting-edge Paris fashion, a keen eye for developing trends, superb design skills and a refreshingly original yet natural style. Prior to heading our design team, Johanna worked for Guy Laroche and designed collections for such leading European chains as H&M and Kookaï. This experience combined with a profound love of nature made Johanna the ideal designer to create a full-blown fashion line made from ecologically sound materials.
Inspired by Nature
“My inspiration comes from nature. It is my resource,” explains Johanna. “In nature there is an abundance of forms. Every leaf is different. If you are inspired by nature, inspiration is enduring.”
Johanna’s deep respect for the environment and her interest in organic materials stem from her formative years spent at the Rudolph Steiner alternative school. She would later express this commitment to nature in her 100% organic collection at the end of her studies at l’Ecole Supérieure des Arts et Techniques de la Mode (ESMOD), a Parisian fashion school in Munich.
Convincing Style & Quality
“We position ourselves as a fashion house but Ethos does not make dictator fashion,” says Johanna. “We create fashionable, comfortable garments that respect women and contribute to their well being. It is important to emphasize beauty in our creations. Our job is to convince the client through the style, fit, quality and originality of our garments.”
Another of Johanna’s key beliefs is to create fashion that reflects the diversity of women. “This involves creating fashion for women instead of finding women to fit the creation,” she says. It is for this reason that she designs her collections around four different “attitudes” or themes: chic, trendy, classic and green. Each has its own unique style but garments from the various attitudes can be mixed to express the individual style of the wearer.
Johanna’s stunning results speak for themselves. Within a year of revitalizing the collections with sparkling new designs and fresh seasonal colour palettes, Paris Ethos was awarded the Ethical Fashion Prize by La Redoute. The following year, Johanna launched the startling Botanic Impressions collection, naturally colored with 100% herbal dyes sourced from organic and ayurvedic plants.
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Paris Fashion with a Conscience
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