Produce to order

The wait that pays off environment and people.

In our current post-industrial scenario, we are constantly prompted to consider the most urgent actions needed to reduce the impact of our choices on the planet.

The extraordinary inventiveness of the human race has led to incredible innovations that now define our everyday lives. Simultaneously, it has generated needs that were previously unimaginable, often not as essential as they seem.
Undoubtedly, economic growth has improved average living conditions, at least in certain parts of the globe, compared to the early 20th century. To believe it, just ask our grandparents.

Better conditions and greater economic availability in general, a newfound enthusiasm combined with previously unforeseeable availability.

The post-war period was characterized by a social and economic resurgence that led to significant investments, increased production, and the subsequent constant need to optimize costs to offer increasingly competitive and widely affordable products.
A perfect combination that progressively led to the outsourcing of entire production chains, initially local, in favor of continuous cost savings and relatively higher profits.

The more we produced, the more production chains were outsourced, and the more revenues increased..

The race to find the best supplier, the best and one might wonder, most responsibleproduction chain was on.
As production volumes skyrocketed, prices contracted, and skillfully placed marketing induced unrealistic needs. The die was cast.

Products designed to be disposable (or almost) were born, triggering a series of devastating side effects.

Si Excessive quantities of goods were produced both those we needed (food, clothing, etc.) and those we didn't truly require. The impacts of this approach often led overproductions harmful effects on the environment, society, and individuals.

For those who overconsume there are clearly those who overproduce, this over (over-production e overconsumption, as they say in English, is so massive that products often become waste even before they are used.

The issue is massive, underestimated (or concealed) for years, and now we witness imbalances and results that give us the sensation that our individual actions cannot bring about tangible change. However, that's not the case.

Let's now focus on the sector we know best, namely the textile industry.

Years of work experience have brought us an awareness of overproduction and the demands of various brands that aren't very considerate of their environmental impacts. These are issues we have experienced firsthand and with some regret.
Behind the catwalks and storefronts lies a powerful sector that gives voice to a cultural, identifying, and creative expression of society. Yet, it also conceals evident contradictions and a touch of insincerity, to be honest.

As you may have seen in the Rai documentary, Il verde è di moda aired in May 2023 (here's the link), the issue of communication characterized by ethical messages and seemingly pro-environmental content with vague and unquantifiable aspects (green-washing) is a prime example of how to sweep dust under the rug, as well as an increasingly widespread technique of unfair marketing.

Carefully planned strategies of massive and outsourced production, misleading and hard-to-verify information contribute to devastating entire geographical areas and the families within them while giving final customers the feeling of doing the right thing, or rather, making the right purchase.
A rightness that doesn't seem to concern several brands and influencer or, at least, doesn't touch them so closely.

This article delves into the topic of clothing overproduction di abbigliamento e di and how it's possible to envision a different future, perhaps one that is slower and more focused on quality.

The causes can be initially attributed to the rise of the fast-fashion system in the late 1980s and early 1990s, but not exclusively.
Driven by fast consumption and motivated by aggressive sales policies, we have lost sight of reasonableness and necessity.
According to research by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, in the textile sector alone, the equivalent of $500 billion worth of clothes are produced, purchased, worn, and discarded every year!

This has led us to produce items we don't really need, to the extent that they often become waste before they are even consumed; we're talking about new, unsold products that are thrown away..

A spontaneous question arises.
Who pays for everything that's produced, not bought, and discarded?

Any profit-oriented company cannot disregard these costs, so they adapt by minimizing process costs and applying a high profit margin—so high that it can cover unsold items.

Well, when a finished product is sold for a few euros and has been manufactured on the other side of the world, the numbers don't seem to add up. Don't you think?

We've highlighted these important themes to underline the imbalances these activities create in the environment and society: pollution, insane logistical movements, resource exploitation, human exploitation, and a short product lifecycle can't be the direction to continue operating in.

As long as production volume remains the global economic driver, businesses will continuously compress their margins, reducing the possibility of both business and social development.

This will lead to creating an imbalance between supply chains the healthy, innovative that are mindful of their impacts, and outsourced companies that are uncontrollable and conceal opaque production practices.
In our view, this creates a significant imbalance and an effectively impossible market competition due to incomparable transformation costs.
The high investments required for adhering to high production standards in terms of emissions containment and promoting healthy social contexts affect the value and price of products, making them uncompetitive compared to other regions of the world where people and the environment are continually exploited and crushed.

So now, how can we reverse this trend?

Much starts with all of us becoming aware. da parte di tutti noi.
Understanding that the problem truly exists and affects all of us is the first step to take action.
Our task is to analyze and propose alternatives that encompass social, economic, and environmental well-being.

The frequently term mentioned these days"happy degrowth"a concept that makes entrepreneurs shudder in some ways, as it departs from what has characterized economic growth up until now.

Degrowth departs from policies linked to increasing the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), instead focusing more on human well-being, environmental sustainability, and quality of life.

Finding a new balance is a significant challenge and a great opportunity.

From our perspective, a model aligned with these principles can be achieved through localized supply chains, returning to collaborate with the local community, getting to know the producers, and participating in the decisions made. Not relying on others for inspections and verifications; we, as individual private citizens, are the best quality certifiers. Not relying on others for inspections and verifications, we, as individual private citizens, are the best quality certifiers.

It's estimated that in the production of a t-shirt, at least 30% (and sometimes even higher percentages, disregarding quality) of materials are discarded in the processes between cultivation and the creation of the finished garment. These quantities add to the now-famous 11 kg of textile waste per capita for European citizens annually, bringing it to 15/16 kg of textile waste per year.

Companies are therefore faced with the challenge of transitioning from quantity-focused business models to quality-oriented ones, in the holistic sense of the term.

Following these reflections, deeply rooted in the genesis of the La Methode project, we've compiled a short list of topics to reflect upon and act on:

This mindset represents our mission.

By producing only on demand, we take a firm step towards an ecosystem that we strongly believe in. This approach drastically reduces waste and scraps, favoring their management and, most importantly, their reuse.

We stand in contrast to the current market trend, where immediate purchases and products arriving at our homes before we even have a real need for them (see anticipatory marketinghave become the norm.
Will this model continue to work? Is it what we truly need?
How is it possible that products arrive before we register a genuine need for them?

Choosing garments made directly by manufacturers and ordering their production is a strong and decisive act in favor of both supply chains and the environment.

We will return to a slower system and thewaiting will be rewarding, because we will receive something we truly need, crafted with care in Italy by people we can get to know and engage with.


Producing on demand enables companies to avoid investing money in unsold items, returns, or products that turn into waste. It frees up resources to invest in selecting raw materialsand reusing discarded yarns or fabrics thus enabling control over all the inputs and outputs linked to the processes. Additionally, the quantities produced are destined for an end customer, not a retailer, and therefore potentially headed for a shelf!

Currently, it takes about a month to create a product, encompassing weaving, finishing, and artisanal packaging.

The companies we collaborate with are family-run and located within a 100 km radius of our headquarters.
All of them represent excellence in the industry, and we can certify that their processes are conducted ethically.

We believe that this model can help change the course, envisioning a future that is more local, authentic, and of higher quality.

From Scorace to Mello - Part II

Fashion at the butchery. Between sass and realness.

Emitting some CO2, from Sicily we will then project ourselves to the province of Sondrio; to a historic place where the Mocchi family's passion for climbing and more was born.

The Mello Valley!

We have been exploring this mythical Valley for ten years, often In the company of the legendary Jacopo Merizzi, a great teacher and illusionist, free thinker and superb creative who with light steps takes us into the world he has been exploring and protecting for years. 

Love of adventure, respect for self and this beautiful and delicate nature are the values that unite us, the simple rules dictated by Jacopo and the Sassisti group are invisible and yet carved in the hard granite of Val Di Mello.

Playing with one's fears, exploring one's limits, accepting the defeats that hard rock does not spare, make the days spent in the Valley adrenaline-pumping and powerfully alive.

Whether boulders, single pitches or long routes, chatting, drinking and diving into frozen streams, you always return home enriched by so much good living.

This mythical valley during the days of the Mello Block and throughout the month of May will be an opportunity to savor again the glories of the mythical Mello Block and the Sassista philosophy.

La Methode is dress the change

It sees us present in the center of the country with our ethical, simple, robust and iconic products; we are involved in wanting to communicate with La Methode the few simple rules that we all must espouse to live better, to fully savor life and truly consume it as it deserves to be consumed.

A month with nature in our hearts, common sense in our eyes and endless curiosity.
We want to communicate the necessary and simple change that this magical place suggests. 

Combining passion and projects, meeting old and new friends, sharing ideas and ideals, touching and discovering how small and simple a choice it is to make in order to gain an invaluable good in return.

As we have mentioned it will return, after a few years of silence, the Mello Blocco; a fairy-tale event in an edition dedicated to nature and common sense. An opportunity to jump at the chance for those of us who have these themes in our blood and who have scoured the Valley far and wide.

We and Jacopo will be waiting for you at our booth at the Mello Block and...
To ex-butchery close to the pub Kundaluna every weekend in May from Thursday to Sunday evenings in San Martino (SO), another insight from Bruno.

Fashion at the Butchery. Between Provocation and Reality.

Here's what Jacopo Merizzi thinks about it:

"If you are completely unfamiliar with sustainable fashion, you will find those who will turn it into a disease for you; if you are experienced and willing to improve, you will find those who will make you achieve unhoped-for possibilities".

We are on the edge of an unforgiving slab, move carefully, precariously balanced, and step forward.

The step toward quality, essentiality of styles and respect for others!

Don't miss La Methode events:

Stop by the store for challenges and great prizes: ethical and sustainable!
The coffee grinder, tenure challenge and style contest are waiting for you, tomorrow through the end of the month!

Yes, because our Mello Block lasts all month long, thanks to the active temporary shop at St. Martin's.

"Fashion at the Butchery is waiting for you".

Preorder?

Pre-ordering, an ethical step.

On our website it says "Dress the Change," but what exactly does that mean?
Hey, we don't claim to have all the answers, but two questions we have asked ourselvesAnd we have a couple of ideas about it.

As you can read here, La Methode is already committed to dramatically reducing its impact in terms of:

But the last step involves you, too.

Recent research and documentaries (we mention for the record the one about Shein aired on Channel 4) have revealed the open secret of fast fashion fast fashion product: not only exploited workers in toxic work environments, not only materials that are the equivalent of wearing oil on your skin, but also tons and tons of unsold clothes that accumulate in warehouses and are thrown away or left to rot.

This is no longer acceptable or sustainable.

That is why we decided to adopt and offer you PREORDER, which as a production system presents the most sustainability.
In fact, it allows us to produce only according to demand, avoiding overproduction and waste.
And you, by pre-ordering, make a difference with a gesture of love for yourself and the planet.

But does this mean I have to wait months to receive my La Methode garment? 

No. (Or rather, ni).

You'll have to be patient; we're talking days or weeks, not months.

It works like this::
on the page of the garment you intend to buy you will already find an approximate delivery datebased on the timing of the pre-order.
Every end of the month we collect orders and send them to production.

Once you've made your purchase, all you have to do is login into your account to follow the step-by-step updates of the creation of your garment

And if you're wondering what steps each La Methode garment goes through, here they are:

1 - selection and purchase of raw materials and the best yarns;
2 - knitted fabric production;
3 - finishing of the fabric in the dyehouse;
4 - cutting and making up the garment;
5 - washing and drying;
6 - packaging and shipping;
;
7 - repair and after-sale service.

This is also the guarantee that testifies to the way we operate, based on a short supply chain and very careful use of resources. filiera corta e su un attentissimo uso delle risorse.

And yes, on a level of quality that is nothing short of maniacal.

And then, think how nice: after the wait you will find in your hands your cargo, your hoodie, your girocollo (crew-neck short sleeves) or giroslim (crew-neck short sleeves slim fit)made for you, because you wanted them, and ready to accompany you in the coming years to come.

Can't you wait?
Then it's time to place your La Methode preorder!

La Methode, dress the change

We are La Methode, a real proposal for ethical clothing.

"Yet another sustainable fashion brand?!" you'll say. Well, read on and you'll see.
We were born from Produce Synapses, quality fabrics are our business.
And from here we want to start our revolution.
But how?

We explain it to you in seven points, one for each item in our collection (present and future), some already present and some coming soon.

1. Reduce waste

Do you know how many kilograms of textiles are thrown away every year?
Circa 11 kg for each person, in Europe alone, 90 percent of which end up burned even though they would still be usable.
E non parliamo solo di capi già confezionati ma anche di filati, invenduti per piccoli difetti o smaltiti come rimanenze di vecchie collezioni.

Abbiamo guardato nei nostri magazzini e in quelli di altri fornitori di tessuti di qualità e ci siamo detti: Perché continuiamo a produrre quando potremmo valorizzare ciò che già esiste?
And we are not only talking about ready-made garments but also yarns, unsold due to small defects or disposed of as remnants of old collections. 

2. Top raw materials

Fast fashion has brought very poor quality, high-plastic fabrics to the market because they are cheaper to produce but much more polluting, to the environment and to the wearer.
For this we use only Supima® and raw cotton, nettle, hemp, Manila hemp, organic cottons and recycled cottons.
We select high quality inventories or yarns from traceable and transparent production whose every step we follow.
Better for the planet, better for our skin.

3. Ethical supply chain

We rely on Italian artisan workshops that we know personally.
Each seam is carefully done to produce garments that look good and last.

4. Production on demand

The overproduction of garments is not only polluting but also detrimental to the dignity of male and female workers in the sector, subjected to grueling shifts with no protections.
That is why La Methode produces only to order.
Garments that you have desired and chosen consciously.
About the timing we have discussed in this article but fear not: the result is worth all the waiting (Which is not that long!).

5. Basic cuts and genderless garments

Our collection develops 7 patterns including hoodie, cargo, crew neck and seraphim.
The cuts are basic, essential, far from gender stereotypes.
We make premium and essential garments, designed to ensure a optimal fit and make the wearer feel comfortable at all times. 

6. Sustainable packaging

Methode reaches everywhere.
What we want is for you to come and pick up your garments directly from us, so you can see the production process, the materials and how a small choice can go to involve an entire supply chain.
Certainly we can ship them to you, wherever you are, and we are sure you will still be able to appreciate their magic.
Labels and packaging are designed to reduce waste and to be reusable, they are also made in-house in our lab, printed with natural water-based inks and packaged by hand, in fact each packaging is unique and to open it will require a dedicated action.

7. Garments made to last

Our garments are made with care and made by adopting the right choices that are functional in making them durable and suitable for accompanying you for a long, long time.

Then, of course, they are also beautiful to look at, wear and give as gifts but that's a different kettle of fish!

We look to a more ethical and responsible future. Will you join us? Ti unisci a noi?