You may or may not know of VV Brown, if you don’t where have you been? If you do, kudos to you. VV’s most recent venture, to add to her already full to bursting portfolio of activities, which include singing, song writing, producing and modelling is reinventing and recycling clothing alongside business partner Lola Peach.

Back in January VV and Lola re-launched VV’s vintage website VV Vintage as a platform for upcycling, reinvention and the celebration of emerging designers within the fashion industry. Working closely with Oxfam and with 10% of the profits from all the upcycled and vintage clothing going to charity, you’re getting an amazing one-off piece, whilst giving to charity and supporting the issue of ethics and sustainability within the fashion industry.

Founders of VV Vintage: Lola Peach (left) and VV Brown (right)

I had a quick Q&A with the delightful Miss Brown and talked fashion, books and Spitalfields.

The website re-launched with its new identity in January. How have the past 3 months been? Is it as you’d expected?

It has been amazing watching the business grow. We are excited about the opportunities that organically come our way and the passion and hard work is paying of. We really believe in the idea of the grass roots approach. Being involved in music and taking on this new project has liberated my thirst for entrepreneurial activities even more and it’s a great way to express myself.

We have met so many talented designers and the idea of sustainability and charity within business is appealing. This is just all coming from a small office and us emailing with the hope that people will believe in the vision and enjoy the clothes. We are learning so much and education in any form is liberating.

After watching an episode of Global Cool where their task was to find an outfit to keep warm in the house so you’d turn your heating down and save energy. How environmental are you?

I try and be environmental. I recycle and I only buy sustainable clothes, especially after reading “To Die For” by Lucy Siegle. I try my best to contribute in whatever way I can. There’s always room to improve and learn and be better in regards to the environment.

You were at Spitalfields this Easter weekend trading at the Affordable Vintage Fair, how did you find that?

It was cool. We are an online store firstly so we have never done a market like that before, but it was new and refreshing and a nice way to meet our customers. We also got interviewed for the national news, which was exciting!

You’ve previously been a model at London Fashion Week, what was it like being on the other side of it all and representing VV Vintage at London Fashion Weekend?

It’s absolutely wonderful to be on the other side of fashion where you can concentrate on the clothes rather than wearing them or being in the public eye. It’s nice to be hiding behind the business plans and meetings without worrying about cameras etc. I love the fact that this new fresh approach to the industry gives you a sense of privacy through expression.

Would you be interested in creating your own ethically sustainable brand? Whether it be using ethically sourced materials or up-cycling would it be something you’d consider?

I would love to continue to build our program where we support designers who are interested in up-cycling and perhaps do a high end collection that is conceptual and abstract that can be seen at Somerset House Fashion week, one day. What a day that would be for us.

The idea is to use fashion to support and contribute towards the community and somehow make people happy through expression. There is so much talent out there.

"Bringing to life the old, making it new and exciting" – VV Brown

VV was also kind enough to give us a review of  “To Die For” by Lucy Siegle, which partly inspired her decision and is an expose on the fashion industry written by the Observer’s ‘Ethical Living’ columnist.

“This is a fresh inspiring take on the sustainable world and an education on the truth of the mass market. As I was reading it, it became a fun journey and an effortless read, diving into the truths and statistics of ethics in fashion. Not only is it wrapped in great metaphors and glorious shocking details about waste, it opens your eyes to believe in the ethics of fashion so much so that you feel you have to change your ways.

“It’s a book I would recommend to anyone and it does the opposite of alienating a community into a subculture that defines itself as “special” or on a pretentious high horse, which some socio-economical books can have. Instead it makes you want to be in a club that is about the goodness, fair trade and the treatment of the human being whilst evaluating the perception of greed and the quick fix mentality through the influence of the monopolisation of capitalistic endeavours that we somehow get caught up in.

“Whilst being so detailed, it’s wrapped in a language that reminds you of a great Sex and the City episode.”

It’s brilliant basically and it was the fundamental catalyst that made me passionate about my business www.vvvintage.com even more.

If you haven’t already you should definitely check out VV Vintage an exciting new business that is ethically conscious as well as fashionable and fun.