10 Genderless Slow Fashion Brands Leading the Way to a More Inclusive Fashion Future
By Stella Hertantyo
Degendered fashion is not a singular aesthetic, but rather an acknowledgement that gender is more expansive than the binary — and so clothing should be too.
There are many different words used to express this affirmation. To name a few: gender-fluid, gender-expansive, genderless, and non-binary fashion. All of these terms speak to the need for clothing to transcend the gender binary and the restrictive ways of presenting that society has assigned to those binaries.
What is Genderless Fashion?
It is important to note that, degendering fashion speaks to the process of reimagining and reinterpreting all clothing – regardless of silhouette, color, or fit – as genderless. With that in mind, these ten genderless slow fashion brands are stepping away from the gender binary and reminding us that clothing is meant for anybody that feels called to wear it.
These brands also recognize that sustainable fashion and genderless fashion are twin imperatives, because they both epitomize a more just fashion future - for the planet, for the people that make our clothes, and for everyone that wears clothes too.
Some Genderless Fashion Brands to Browse:
Salt
Salt is a brand that balances comfort and style through their reimagined workwear that balances on simplicity and durability. The brand was started in a Brooklyn apartment in 2017 by filmmaker and jewelry and textile artist, Jessie Levandov, and high-end streetwear designer, Auston Bjorkman.
Looking at their garments that are designed for all genders, such as their bomber jacket and tank jumpsuit, it is clear that their clothing focuses on thoughtful production and sculptural silhouettes in their versatile workwear.
Each garment is made-to-order and produced and sourced from start to finish in New York City. Salt is dedicated to reducing waste, working with small woman-owned manufacturing businesses, uplifting and serving the diverse queer community that they are a part of, and disrupting the extractive and exploitative status quo of the fashion industry.
Country: United States
I AND ME
Jessica Gebhart started I AND ME after working as a denim buyer for a high street brand and becoming disillusioned by the state of fashion’s waste crisis and the culture of disposability. I AND ME is part of a different fashion narrative – one that is slower, care-filled, and centers people and the planet.
This slow fashion brand focuses on creating high-quality gender-neutral denim and knitwear that encourage a seasonless approach to style. Instead of prioritizing gender in the design process, I AND ME instead see fabric and style as the starting point of each garment.
I AND ME use ethically-sourced natural fabrics and circular design processes to minimize waste and environmental impact. Since fabric is one of their main focuses, they are committed to supporting textile craftsmanship by collaborating with mills, manufacturers, and artisans from across the globe who champion traditional methods.
On their website, you can find a garment care guide that talks you through how to extend the lifespan of your garment. And, they also offer a complimentary repair service for their denim garments, to make sure that you get the most wear out of your favorite pair of jeans.
Country: United Kingdom
Official Rebrand
Official Rebrand is a radical, queer, gender-free, anti-waste fashion brand. The brand was created by MI Leggett, who is a New York-based artist with a prior history as a food justice advocate and a background in sustainable agriculture, video art, and painting.
Working with “waste”, Official Rebrand reimagines fashion’s discards through a process of rebranding, as can be seen on their ENDLESS UNREST Tweed Blazer and BETWEEN US Denim Tank. Their clothing is essentially wearable art and is made from unwanted materials and discarded clothing that is embellished through painting and other alterations. This process of care-filled, artistic rebranding is a tangible reimagining of these garments into clothing that is free from the arbitrary social constraints – such as gender – and separates it from the wasteful fashion industry.
Official Rebrand plays with the boundaries of fashion and art and challenges us to consider how a gender-free approach to fashion, and the embracing of fluidity, will result in greater freedom for everyone.
Country: United States
Ijji
Ijji is a genderless, minimalist brand creating garments that could fill the capsule closet of your dreams, focusing on natural fibers, beautiful colors, and interesting silhouettes. Created by Nick Sugihara and Maryam Shamlou, the name of the brand comes from a Japanese word, イージーパンツ, meaning any loose-fitting drawstring pant.
On their website, instead of gender, clothing is separated into colors and fabrics. You can choose from a range of colors and fabrics that include twill, canvas, wool, lyocell. Their clothing offering includes a range of seasonless items, such as their Wool Overshirt and Creased Trousers, and their simplicity allows them to be styled in several different ways.
IJJI manufactures their garments in California, as close to their studio as possible, so that they can stay involved in every step of the process and maintain a high level of supply chain transparency. Their clothing follows the ethos of ‘fewer, better things’ and they encourage people to see their garments as investments.
Country: United States
AMESH
Sri Lankan fashion designer Amesh Wijesekera’s eponymous clothing brand, AMESH, is best known for its vibrant colors, dazzling patterns, and a combination of deadstock and handwoven textiles, as can be seen in the Ruched Candy Tie Top and Long Trousers.
Artisanal collaboration is at the core of this brand. Handloom fabric is a Sri Lankan heritage craft that is not often showcased on international runways, and AMESH aims to share this heritage craft with the world. Amesh sees this as an opportunity to create a sustainable and ethical collaboration with the artisan weavers, knitters, crocheters, and printers, by paying fair wages and involving them in as much of the design process as possible.
Since a lot of the Global North’s textile waste ends up in Sri Lanka, Amesh also uses waste, specifically from countries that have discarded excess materials in the Global South to create the brand’s iconic designs.
AMESH’s designs are created to be worn by anyone – regardless of gender – and they also aim to challenge Western ideals of beauty. They are truly intended for anyone who feels called to wear them.
Country: Sri Lanka
LP Mode
Founded by Alyssa Pichardo, LP Mode makes zero-waste clothes without gender in Portland, Oregon. The ‘LP’ in the brand's name stands for ‘long-playing’, meaning that their clothing is made from waste and built to last.
“I’ve been making clothes for genderqueer and non-binary friends and myself for years. I believe our bodies deserve bright and rich colors, high-quality fabrics, three-dimensional textures, and fitted silhouettes that aren’t hourglasses or triangular. There is more to gender-free clothing than creating flat, neutral blobs floating through space in Ponte knit,” says Alyssa.
Their garments are made from textile waste and deadstock and they have ready-to-wear, as well as made-to-order options, which allows waste to be kept to a minimum. LP Mode’s clothing is designed with long-lasting wide seam allowances, double topstitching, silk-bound necklines, and seams which makes them easier to alter, allowing them to grow and change with the wearer. From materials to garment construction, the ultimate goal of LP Mode is to create clothing that lives beyond trends and gender.
Country: United States
Seref
The first thing that struck me about this brand is their vibrant blouses that provide just the right amount of drama to make a sustainable statement with any outfit. The gender-fluid approach of Seref, focussing on creating clothing that anyone can wear, is inspired by founder, Serefina Rose’s, personal style that combines masculine and feminine elements.
Sustainability, in all aspects, is at the core of this brand and they are honest about the fact that there is always room to improve. Their clothing is made from deadstock fabrics and one-off charity shop finds. They work with small businesses that align with their ethical and sustainable ethos, use GOTS certified organic cotton, support fair wage pay, and avoid single-use plastic.
Seref produces in small batches to create one-off and made-to-order garments that limit waste in the production process and prioritize the creation of unique pieces that you will truly find nowhere else. Seref hopes to encourage people to wear whatever makes them feel like their best selves!
Country: United Kingdom
Hecha/做
HECHA / 做 is an empathy-driven collaborative founded by Luz Angélica Fernández and Ting Ding in 2016. They create sustainable gender-flexible hand-painted, utilitarian garments, and activewear basics. Each of their hand-painted garments, including their Overalls and Greige Bucket Hat are cut from hand-painted fabric and are one-of-a-kind.
HECHA / 做 is very clear, intentional, and transparent about their approach to sustainability, in response to the vagueness that often leads to greenwashing. They focus on ethical production, designs that are durable and limit waste, fabrics that reduce chemical impact and defy narratives of overconsumption.
They've incorporated adjustable straps, ties, extra panels, and multiple buttons to areas of the garments where there is the most variation in body size or shape as a way to increase inclusivity, adaptability and encourage customization.
Their work and their wearable art aim to create conversational platforms for human connection, collaboration, and communal support. Drawing on this ethos, they often collaborate with other artists and creatives to add to a collective vision of connection and community.
Country: United States
Big Bud Press
Big Bud Press is a unisex, size-inclusive brand based in Los Angeles that inspires major nostalgia for the 70s with their vibrant colors. They create everyday goods that celebrate different bodies.
The founders, Lacey Micallef and Philip Seastrom, realized that “unisex” has historically been a rebranding of menswear. Instead, their unisex garments, such as their Trousers and Wrap Tops, fit a diversity of bodies and cater to a variety of style choices.
Big Bud Press prides themselves on their ethical and localized manufacturing processes, which are sweatshop-free, garment workers are paid hourly rates, and they independently audit all their manufacturing partners.
When it comes to fabric, they focus on almost exclusively 100% cotton fabrics. The majority of the fabric they use is grown and made domestically and is NAFTA certified. This brand is on a mission to make you look good, feel good, while they do good at the same time!
Country: United States
Riley Studio
When Riley Uggla started Riley Studio, she was on a mission to transform the fashion industry by changing mindsets of overconsumption. Riley Studio creates gender-free fashion for the planet, and will have you swooning over their seasonless, minimalist wardrobe classics, such as their Organic Cotton Pocket Trouser and Flannel Overshirt.
Their focus on gender-neutral clothing allows them to minimize their binary gender collections and reduce the production of unnecessary garments, rather than focusing on timeless pieces that can be styled by people of all genders and ages.
While their website is still categorized into ‘Mens’, ‘Womens’, and ‘Kids’, this seems to be primarily to assist with sizing. They also have a dedicated size guide to help you settle on the perfect fit. And, they offer free exchanges and returns so that people can feel comfortable trying on the items at home before committing to investing.
Their materials focus is on recycled, organic, and biodegradable materials. To ensure that no Riley Studio garment ever becomes waste, they offer a lifetime repair guarantee on all products.
Country: United Kingdom
These brands are reimagining what a truly inclusive, sustainable, and ethical future of fashion could look like. I hope that browsing through these brands shows you that genderless fashion looks no different from any other kind of fashion, and it is not a specific fit, style, or aesthetic.
If you’d like to learn more about the movement to degender fashion, and why clothing should be for everyone, you can read this Conscious Fashion Collective article featuring the thoughts and perspectives of five people who are challenging gender binaries in fashion.
About the Author:
Stella Hertantyo is based in Cape Town, South Africa, and is currently completing her PGDip in Sustainable Development to accompany her undergraduate in Multimedia journalism. She is a slow-living enthusiast and a lover of low-impact fashion.
She is passionate about encouraging an approach to sustainability that is inclusive, accessible, and fun as we try to figure out how to create a more sustainable and just world, together.
When Stella is not in front of her laptop doing uni work, you'll probably find her reading, writing, illustrating, or baking/cooking. A dip in the ocean, or a walk in the mountains, are the two things that bring her the most peace.
