Why This Fashion Brand Wants You To Meet Your Maker

KNOWN SUPPLY RAGLAN T-SHIRT

Socially conscious apparel brand Known Supply is on a mission to connect consumers to the makers of their clothing. Producing a basic line of apparel, the ultimate goal is to humanize fashion by connecting consumers to the makers of their clothing. Each piece is hand signed and customers are invited to learn more about their maker, who comes from either Lima, Peru or Gulu, Uganda. 

Makers are profiled on their website, so for example, if Lamunu Faith from Uganda made an item, customers would learn that during the war, she was abducted and forced to march long distances with the rebel army. This job has enabled Faith to support herself and put her child through school. She hopes to start a small business with the money that she saves through the program. Customers are able to send a thank you directly to their maker through the website and after learning about Faith, one customer sent her a note of thanks, saying, “You are a beautiful woman inside and out. You are amazing and going to do wonderful things in life!”

KNOWN SUPPLY MARINA DRESS

When asked why this is important to him, Founder Kohl Crecelius said, “We were meeting women who were formally living in poverty, who didn’t mirror the perception of what we were led to believe people living in poverty were supposed to look like. They weren’t sad, they weren’t downtrodden, they weren’t hopeless. They were actually the opposite of all of those things-they were beautiful, capable and credible people.” 

Through Known Supply, Crecelius wants to change the narrative when it comes to the perception of poverty and break down the societal barriers that separate people living in different cultures. By economically empowering artisans in Peru and Uganda, the company is working to lift people out of poverty, one article of clothing at a time-the perfect reason to wear their lightweight Marina dress on every beach getaway.