Style

The best independent clothing stores in Manchester that match style with sustainability

We've curated this list of our favourite Manchester independent brands and stores that are prioritising sustainability alongside style.

Daisy Bradbury Daisy Bradbury - 10th September 2020
Native Youth

You don’t have to choose between being stylish or sustainable anymore. These Manchester-based clothing brands are both saving the planet and your wardrobe.

In recent years, being sustainable and eco-friendly has become more of a necessity than a choice for many fashion brands – with industry revealed as the second largest source of pollution worldwide.

Yet, in a climate still dominated by fast fashion and constantly changing trends, it can be a lot harder than it seems to support this movement and find ways to shop sustainably without the excessive price tag.

If you don’t know where to begin, we have curated this list of our favourite Manchester independent brands and stores that are prioritising sustainability alongside style.

Rock On Ruby

Rock On Ruby

This Bury-based sassy clothing brand aims to empower women and promote individuality through slogan t-shirts – with ROR garments sported by style icons such as Louisa Johnson and Little Mix’s Jade Thirlwall.

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The brand made the switch to fairwear clothing in 2016, so you can guarantee their range is ethically-made.

Rock On Ruby also holds a weekly sample sale on their Instagram every Wednesday with any products that may have minor faults or misprints; eliminating waste and giving customers the perfect chance to get their hands on some pieces.

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Visit the website here.

Native Youth

Native Youth

This contemporary unisex clothing brand is on a mission to prove that sustainable clothing doesn’t have to be plain or boring.

Based in the heart of Manchester, Native Youth is creating collections of modern, trend-led clothing that also have minimal impact on the earth.

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The brand is continuing to develop products from sustainable sources and have vowed that all future collections will be made using 100% organic cotton.

Check out the range online.

Beaumont Organic

Beaumont Organic

Beaumont Organic, which can be found in Manchester’s Northern Quarter, is paving the way for fashion to become more sustainable in the future.

The brand is focused on creating ‘contemporary conscious clothing’ that combines effortless styling with environmental caution.

Both organic cotton and linen produced from natural flax fibres are central to the collection.

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Check Beaumont Organic out online.

Private White V.C.

Private White V.C.

Private White V.C. commemorates Manchester’s roots as ‘Cottonopolis’ during the Industrial Revolution; handcrafting all garments in the original Manchester cotton mill that has been the brand’s home since 1932.

Private White is committed to locally sourced manufacturing and handcrafting garments to result in less waste and a smaller carbon footprint, whilst still creating some stylish, staple men’s pieces.

Learn more online.

McQueen Independent

McQueen Independent

After establishing two shops in South Manchester in 1994, McQueen Independent has been on the hunt for independent labels that share their love of vibrant colours and patterns.

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Sustainability is crucial when curating these eclectic and quirky looks, and McQueen constantly strive to work with independents who are ethical and support Fairtrade.

Visit the website here.

Jeneral Store

Jeneral Store

Jeneral Store is an emerging Manchester-based fashion brand focused on creating trendy and affordable vintage collections.

Although scrunchies are the speciality, Jeneral sell a variety of reimagined items in signature girly style and pastel colour palette.

All products are either vintage or from an ethical supplier, with every single element down to the swing tags and packaging sustainably sourced and biodegradable.

See what’s for sale online.

Style

Elle magazine hails Manchester as being ‘fashion capital’ of the year

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson Manchester has been named a 'fashion capital' in a recent issue of Elle magazine. Credit: The Manc Group

Manchester has been likened to Paris and New York by esteemed fashion magazine Elle, which has labelled us this year’s ‘fashion and creative capital’.

While our city has long been celebrated for its, ahem, grimier subcultures (from raves to Britpop to footie), things have grown a little more fancy in recent years.

The global spotlight really landed on the city when Chanel chose Thomas Street, of all places, to host its prestigious Métiers d’art last December.

The jokes came fast, the rumoured celebrity guest list went into overdrive, but at the end of the day, it was an impressive display of the city’s fashion credentials.

And now Elle magazine has singled our city out for its present day cultural icons as much as its celebrated past.

In a feature written by Manc Becky Burgum, she pointed out that the Chanel show, rain and all, may have pushed Manchester into an entirely new era – one that’s a bit less about our ‘male-focused past glories’.

The glowing endorsement for the city’s current and future cultural scene spreads several pages in the glossy fashion bible this month.

It states: “Often ignored, always underestimated, the country’s second-largest city is manifesting an explosion of talent.”

In it, Elle sings the praises of massive venues like Aviva Studios, Co-op Live and the Manchester Art Gallery, as well as glamorous newcomers like Fenix and Soho House.

But the magazine also speaks of the ‘less polished Salford outskirts’ which is home to venues including The White Hotel, Paradise Works and Hidden.

As for food and drink, Elle’s piece describing Manchester as a cultural capital singled out The Sparrows, Erst and Higher Ground, all Michelin-recommended spots with their roots planted in the north west.

Over in the ‘Chanel-approved Northern Quarter’, it was venues like Stray (a beautiful cocktail bar in a corner of Mackie Mayor’s building), Afflecks (Manchester’s iconic, eccentric shopping emporium), and Band On The Wall that got a mention.

Night and Day Cafe
Night and Day Cafe
Fenix in Manchester. Credit: The Manc Group
Fenix in Manchester. Credit: The Manc Group
Erst in Ancoats. Credit: The Manc Group
Erst in Ancoats. Credit: The Manc Group
The Edinburgh Castle. Credit: The Manc Group
The Edinburgh Castle. Credit: The Manc Group
Stray bar in the Northern Quarter. Credit: The Manc Group
Stray bar in the Northern Quarter. Credit: The Manc Group
The Sparrows. Credit: The Manc Group
The Sparrows. Credit: The Manc Group
Band on the Wall. Credit: The Manc Group
Band on the Wall. Credit: The Manc Group
Yayoi Kusama exhibit at Aviva Studios. Credit: The Manc Group
Yayoi Kusama exhibit at Aviva Studios. Credit: The Manc Group
The Chanel Metiers d'art show in Manchester caught the world's eye, Elle magazine said.
The Chanel Metiers d’art show in Manchester caught the world’s eye, Elle magazine said.
Highlights of Manchester singled out by Elle magazine

Then there’s the Edinburgh Castle (best Guinness in the city, apparently), the ‘boundary-smashing’ HOME, and the upcoming Treehouse Hotel, all having their praises sung in one of the country’s most famous magazines.

The piece says: “But our (male-focused) past glories aren’t what makes Manchester so special – it’s all about what’s happening right now.

“There is often a blinkered, London-centric outlook that maintains creativity can’t possibly exist outside the M25. But how wrong that is.”

But, it concludes, ‘don’t forget your umbrella – that’s the only stereotype that rings true’.

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Featured image: The Manc Group

Style

First-ever RHS Urban Show to take place in Manchester this month

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson The inaugural RHS Urban Show will take place at Depot Mayfield in Manchester. Credit: Supplied

A plant paradise will be created at Depot Mayfield in Manchester this month when the inaugural RHS Urban Show takes over. 

The huge event – the charity’s first large-scale indoor show – has been created to celebrate the growing urban gardening movement.

Whether you’re cramming a tropical jungle onto your balcony or trying to bring a little plant life into your home, the RHS Urban Show will have exhibits that will educate and inspire you. 

You can learn the secrets to growing happy houseplants, see vertical structures for awkward urban spaces, and explore a seven-garden vision for a greener city. 

There’ll even be a horticultural exhibit celebrating the heyday of Manchester’s Hacienda days. 

The RHS Urban Show wants to answer the question of ‘what is urban gardening’ through this huge event, which will run between Thursday 18 and Sunday 21 April. 

Major exhibits will be filling the gigantic industrial space at Depot Mayfield, like the RHS City Spaces: Cloudscape, by Manchester’s Cloud Gardener Jason Williams, which will challenge local authorities and developers to think and envision greener towns and cities. 

The inaugural RHS Urban Show in Manchester will be a plant-lover’s paradise

It will bring together four balconies, each facing north, south, east and west, plus a north-facing shaded patio, an urban farm, and a communal garden. 

Created in collaboration with Manchester Metropolitan University’s Rise programme and Notcutts Garden Centre, RHS City Spaces: Cloudscape will showcase how to bring plants into your space, regardless of needs, microclimate, or budget. 

Williams said: “The concept as a whole is an ambitious blueprint of how we can bring a city together. These are not show gardens, they are learning exhibits designed to teach residents, local authorities, retail and developers how we can all improve to make our towns and cities greener.”

Four-time RHS Chelsea Flower Show medal-winners GrowTropicals will be explaining which houseplants – including rare and exotic ones – are best suited to which home environment. 

Visitors to the RHS Urban Show will be able to learn the secrets to growing happy houseplants
Visitors to the RHS Urban Show will be able to learn the secrets to growing happy houseplants
There'll be exhibitions, talks, shopping opportunities and more at the RHS Urban Show in Manchester
There’ll be exhibitions, talks, shopping opportunities and more at the RHS Urban Show in Manchester

They’ll group dozens of plants together, from shade-loving plants who’ll be happy in north-facing rooms, to those who love a bit of humidity, to the sun-worshippers begging for a sunny windowsill. 

Midlands-based designer Amanda Grimes’ exhibit Pop Culture Planting: Punk Rockery, the New Wave and 24-Hour Party Planting, will be a two-part installation set over three years, showing a design at the time of planting, one year on and two years on. 

Her aim is to give new and inexperienced gardeners the confidence and inspiration to ‘just go for it’ by showing visitors what they can expect as a garden develops naturally over time, even with poor soil or rubble.

She said: “Punk Rockery hits Manchester in the same way the Sex Pistols did in June 1976, though possibly with less swearing and a bigger audience. 

“That now-legendary gig was the spark that lit the touch paper of the whole Manchester New Wave music scene which included the Buzzcocks, Joy Division/New Order, The Fall, Magazine, The Smiths and Factory Records, and went on to inspire so many more. 

“The installation is named in honour of all that creativity which was, and still is, uniquely Mancunian.

“24-Hour Party Planting is a celebration of Manchester’s thriving nightlife, restaurant and entertainment scene. 

Garden designer Tom Wilkes-Rios dusts between leaves of succulents on his balcony garden 'The Blue Garden', during build-up of the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2022, Thursday May 19, 2022. The show returns for the first time in spring for three years and opens to the public May 24...RHS / Luke MacGregor
Garden designer Tom Wilkes-Rios dusts between leaves of succulents on his balcony garden ‘The Blue Garden’. Credit: RHS / Luke MacGregor

“It references the Happy Mondays’ track of the same name, and with it the hedonistic days of the Hacienda. It traces that legacy through to 2024 and the incredibly diverse, vibrant and endlessly creative energy of the Gay Village, Northern Quarter, Salford and beyond.”

The RHS Urban Show, sponsored by Mad About Land, also debuts ‘content cubes’ for gardeners with small spaces.

That includes RHS Flower Show Tatton Park 2023’s People’s Choice and gold medal-winner Conal McGuire’s Urban Shade, which utilises modular ‘grow frames’ offering a flexible solution for growing in awkward urban spaces.

As well as all the exhibits to explore, there’ll be a programme of talks that will run through everything from cut flowers to juggling plant life with work and family life. 

RHS-run workshops where you can make your own terrarium will be taking place, and you can join a free guided tour of the neighbouring Mayfield Park. 

And you can browse through a variety of indoor and outdoor plants that you can take home with you, with pots, macrame, and even a new clothing range by Mad About Land for sale too. 

Lex Falleyn, show manager for the RHS Urban Show, said: “Urban Gardening is diverse and dynamic and the inaugural RHS Urban Show is an exciting opportunity to explore the important role gardening plays in greening up cities.

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“We’ve chosen to work with a wide range of gardeners, from award-winning designers to community groups to enthusiasts who juggle gardening with day-to-day life. We hope this will bring a balance of relevant yet realistic advice to get people growing.”

The RHS Urban Show will take place at Depot Mayfield between Thursday 18 and Sunday 21 April. You can buy tickets here. 

Read more

Featured image: Supplied

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