Loungewear is unsurprisingly what we’ve all been wearing this spring, but not just any loungewear. Discerning consumers are turning to independent fashion brands such as LA Relaxed, an ethical, sustainable loungewear brand which aims to create comfortable clothing with a purpose. Claire Hoppe, an executive at LA Relaxed, tells us more about the brand.

Can you tell us more about LA Relaxed and how the brand started out?

We were founded in 2015 as a small eco-friendly tee shirt line initially. Our founder, Dana Weinstein, has been in the apparel industry for many years and wanted to bring her passion for sustainable fabrics and local manufacturing to a brand that she could really craft into a larger movement. Since then the brand has expanded into a full collection of both knits and wovens, even some men. It’s all still made right here in Los Angeles.

Can you tell us about the sustainable fashion and ethical loungewear concept behind the brand?

Sustainability (and that include ethical manufacturing practices) is at the core of our brand. For us, that means not only using eco-friendly fabrics like Lyocell and Hemp but also minimizing waste in the production process and creating mindfully. We want our pieces to make women feel good physically and become wardrobe staples that they will reach for every day. We achieve this with timeless, not trendy, silhouettes and breathable, soft fabrics. While we lean toward the loungewear aesthetic, these are absolutely pieces that are multi-functional and can be worn almost anywhere.

Why did you decide to focus on loungewear and comfortable clothing?

A big inspiration for that is living in Los Angeles and having a lifestyle that is geared toward the outdoors and an active, casual approach to most days. Beyond that, the ethos of being relaxed with who you are as a human being and really feeling comfortable in your skin is something we strive to translate into clothing. Lounge and casual wear was a natural fit for that (and also the type of clothing we tend to wear most days.

If you had to define your customer base, who would you say the LA Relaxed woman is?

She is anyone that wants to use her dollars to vote for supporting local supply chains and clothes that are made in a way that is gentle on the planet. She cares about the environment but also about having a meaningful assortment of quality clothing that was made with intention, whether it’s from us or other amazing sustainable brands in this space. Most of our customer feedback is about how good people feel while wearing our clothes, not necessarily specifics about the styles themselves.

What are LA Relaxed's plans for the future?

We are grateful that we’ve been able to expand our offerings and have grown every year since our launch. We want to keep pushing for human rights and ethical manufacturing within our company and any supplier we work with and use our platform to share the impact of demanding sustainable practices from brands. It’s possible! We will continue to work on developing new and improved eco textiles with our mill partners as well.