At the end of March 2017, we at Arture found ourselves surrounded by like-minded people, and born of them - their ideas which took form on the same genetic code as Arture. People who believed that fashion did not have to come at the price of a life.

The Eco Fashion Week (March 31st to 2nd April) one of the world's largest sustainable fashion event held in Vancouver, Canada, was a huge hug to us and felt like the right place to be in. It not only applauded our presence but also encouraged our being. We met up with many others like ourselves and seeing people share in the same ethics and the vision towards nurturing nature, brought to us immense bouts of joy. We found family away from family.

Not to mention, EFW was also special as this was one of our first international milestones. This beautiful city of Vancouver, known to many as the eco heaven was just what we needed to kickstart our international journey. Our little popup here amazed the partakers. They had all kinds of questions and were taken by awe on seeing how cork morphed so elegantly into accessories.  It was really exciting to see that we were one of the most searched brand at the event. People were curious to know more about the “cork brand” and came searching for us. Friends brought friends and family to show these soft, light weight accessories. With these many new brand ambassadors, it was overwhelmingly wonderful!

The joy of being part of this movement with other movers and shakers of the industry just felt right. Never did we imagine that this journey that we started with Arture has far more reach, need and impact on the environment and in the society.  It was just mind blowing to see the steps taken by each of those other brands presenting their collections. Be it upcycling old clothes that were donated or recycling old bed sheets from hotel rooms to make clothes, we saw fashion with a whole different eye.

To conclude, something we never tire of talking about, and something we learned of a lot in the EFW - Sustainability is endless. Just as we morph cork into your accessories, we saw bed sheets morphed into garments, old pants can morph into hip jackets and blouses, you name it!

Sustainability is simple. It's kind, it's compassionate. (And because we're in a music mood) It's how Coldplay sings, "I'd rather be a comma than a full stop." 

(:

The world needs more compassionate people. This is the start and we know that as the journey continues, we will have lot more people in it with us.