From Uniqlo to Everlane, the brands making high-quality basics as an antidote to fast fashion
- Brands such as Uniqlo and Everlane are starting to push high-quality basics over seasonal trends as more consumers look towards sustainable fashion
- Malaysia’s Buttonwell uses high-quality Supima cotton from the US that lasts wash after wash to give new life to basic, plain T-shirts
Fashion seasons have always revolved around trends that come and go, but some clothes are a little more timeless – and more companies than ever are rising to the challenge of creating these forever pieces.
Take, for example, the humble plain T-shirt. Once, it might have been an afterthought – one grabbed off the rack in a store selling 1,000 other louder, shinier or trendier offerings.
These days, though, a good quality basic tee is increasingly in vogue – which was exactly what Goh How Khiam and Lai Kar Jun were banking on when they launched Buttonwell, a Malaysia-based brand specialising in plain, classic T-shirts made with luxury Supima cotton.
Buttonwell’s value proposition is a simple, yet compelling one: they create shirts that they promise will look and feel better than the average tee, at an affordable price.
The brand, which launched two years ago, sources its cotton from the United States, and production is closely overseen in Thailand.
In Southeast Asia, companies like Buttonwell – specialising in basic apparel – are still rare. But around the world, more and more fashion brands are building their reputation on high-quality basics. They aim, from design all the way to production, to offer an alternative to the fast-fashion business model.
