Prince Charles says consumers need to help change the culture of fast fashion. Photo / Getty Images
Prince Charles says consumers need to help change the culture of fast fashion. Photo / Getty Images
Prince Charles might not be the first name to come to mind when you think of royal style icons - but now he's made it into British Vogue.
"I thought I was like a stopped clock – I'm right twice every 24 hours. But . . . I'm very glad you think it has style," he told editor of British Vogue Edward Enninful for the latest issue of the magazine.
And the Prince of Wales added, "I'm lucky because I can find marvellous people who are brilliant makers of the things that I appreciate, and because of that, I try to keep them going for longer."
He spoke to Enninful, who also worked with his daughter-in-law Meghan Markle for her summer 2019 Vogue issue, to highlight the need for sustainable fashion.
Turns out Charles is a fan of sustainable clothing, already having a reputation for repairing his leather shoes and handmade suits.
"I happen to be one of those people who'd get shoes – or any item of clothing – repaired if I can, rather than just throw it away. And that's why I think, from an economic point of view, there are huge opportunities for people to set up small businesses involved with repair, maintenance and reuse," he tells the December issue of Vogue.
"When I was a child, we used to take our shoes down to the cobbler in Scotland and would watch with fascination as he ripped the soles off and then put new soles on," he says.
His Prince's Foundation has set up a training programme called The Modern Artisan Project, whose students are set to launch a collection based on commercially viable sustainability.
"The British fashion textile sector is of enormous importance. But the trouble is, it requires constant investment in young people and in the development of real skills," Charles says.
"And a lot of the students we train here are snapped up by local firms – the ones that are left in the textile sector. But it seems to me there are huge opportunities, particularly now, within the whole sustainable fashion sector, to counter this extraordinary trend of throw-away clothing – or throw away everything, frankly."
Charles has been an environmental advocate for decades and says consumers can help change the throwaway culture of fast fashion.
Charles launched a sustainable clothing capsule collection last year. Photo / Getty Images
"The consumer has immense power in deciding where to buy from, and the best companies will lead the way, we hope, in demonstrating that if you follow the right principles of operation, not only are you moving more and more towards net-zero but also you're removing pollution from supply chains."
Charles says when awarding Royal Warrants to his household suppliers, he and his staff always check that the companies are environmentally friendly.
"There were howls of protest and anguish and gnashing of teeth and they all said, 'It'll ruin our businesses.' I said, 'Sorry, we have to do it.' So of course, they went away, looked at their supply chains, looked at the way they did things. Lo and behold, they came back and said, 'Well, actually, it's saved us money to do it in a better way,'."
