In this campaign we are collaborating with the amazing Raline Shah who also supports our cause. Read this interview to learn more about her views >>

Tell us why this campaign with Bumiterra and HuntStreet matters to you?

This collaboration between HuntStreet and Bumiterra matters to me because it’s something that I have believed in for a while—and I have actually been a big fan of HuntStreet and its founders since it came to fruition in Indonesia. I thought it was very forward-thinking of a bunch of Indonesian girls to come out with a vintage fashion platform—but for luxury. Because being an Indonesian girl coming from Jakarta where everyone is so obsessed with brands and fashion, it can be seen as very trivial - which a lot of times it is. You just buy things and just live an aesthetic life based on trends. But actually these girls when they set this up, they thought, “How can we do this in a way that the people that don’t have access or can’t afford it, can experience luxury? And the people who no longer love these items that are so well-crafted - luxurious items with big names - how can they discard the items in a wonderful way, in the way that these items deserve so that someone can just love them again?”

So I thought, this matters to me because I have always thought that there has to be a way to discard beautiful items and there has to be no shame as well tied to it. ‘Cause there is so much shame in people buying goods that were someone else’s or something that is cheap and not trendy anymore and it’s just very shameful somehow in our culture, it’s like​​​​—“Oh you can’t afford it, so you buy it!”. But the truth is, many people can’t afford luxury items at a retail price. So why is it shameful? We should be proud that we’re empowered women who work for our money and want to have beautiful things at a price point that makes sense and it doesn’t have to be fast fashion all the time. 

I think it’s important for me to support this because it’s a start of seeing resale platforms in Indonesia work together with environmental organizations—like Bumiterra and HuntStreet’s collaboration. I think people need to understand the concept that what you buy and what you wear can also help the environment or damage it. If you do some research and you're inquisitive on these things, there’s so much waste in fast fashion and people just changing trends all the time producing things with plastic. I would feel really sad if I’m not involved and trying to get people to be more aware of how the things you buy impact the environment, not just what you eat and how you live. It’s a whole lifestyle. If I don’t do it, who will? If we don’t do it now, then when do we do it? So yeah, it’s important for me to do this.

What does conscious luxury personally mean to you?

Conscious luxury personally means the way forward, how I want to live my life. I have always enjoyed luxurious ways of living, spending, consuming—but now I realize that as a consumer and as an individual, I have the power. Because as consumers, you choose what you buy and through what you buy that’s how you’re giving the power to the people that make it.

So when I buy something cheap now, I ask myself “How is this made? What is the supply chain of this thing? How did it get to me? Do I want to contribute? Do I want to give power to the people that made it? that helped get it here?” So now I’m more inquisitive of where things come from and how it will be discarded as well. So with this collaboration I feel conscious luxury is really being executed well, because how do we expand the useful life of a luxurious fashion item? So other people can also benefit from it, use it, and love it as well—that’s why it’s called preloved. You don’t want something beautiful or something that is created by a big fashion house that is sourced sustainably and at the finest quality to just go to a landfill. You want it to be enjoyed by the world because it’s a wonderful creation and it’s original and unique. Even though everything is inspired by something else, it should be made to a quality that benefits others and where the impact is mostly positive or neutral. A lot of fast fashion is not that. 

You are what you buy. You’re also choosing what you give power and love to. So conscious luxury just means you can continue your luxurious hedonistic life, but you have to be conscious of where those things come from and how you can impact the world in a better way with your lifestyle.

What is your reaction to people who might say that sustainable fashion may cramp your style?

Sustainable means fashion that is produced, consumed, and discarded in an ethical way, in the best way possible, good for everyone, or at least in the trail. So no, it doesn’t cramp your style—in fact, it should be your lifestyle! Because that’s the only way to go - people can continue to produce beautiful clothes at the highest quality if it’s sustainable, because if it’s not sustainable then it won’t continue, that’s what it means to be able to sustain itself. So like I said before, you are what you wear, you are not just what you eat, so make sure that what you wear is produced in a good way: it’s giving people what they deserve, whether people are getting paid enough, we know where it comes from, the materials are also not damaging the Earth - so all of these are very important. I love luxury, I love trends, and I want them to continue to make beautiful clothes.