Eco-Chick · The modern girl's guide to living green & fabulous.

Victoria's Dirty Secret

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by Kimberly Jordan Allen · 04/24/06

I was reading Business Week online and noticed this interesting piece on Victoria’s Secret. Limited Brands, the parent company of VS, has been publically indicted for its blatant use of virgin fiber in their catalog production that reaches quantities as large as 395 million produced anually. This paper ends up in the garbage, or if we’re lucky, in the recycling bin.

The destruction of the forests of the Southern U.S., where nearly 6 million acres are logged annually, and the continuing decimation of the endangered Canadian Boreal Forest has generated concern internationally. The organization largely to blame for bringing this flagrant deforestation to the fore is Forest Ethics, a group who seek to hold corporations accountable for the destruction of, yep, you guessed it, our forests! 225 protests took place accross the U.S. on April 11th of this year, putting pressure on the company to terminate its contract with International Paper, who have been criticized for destroying endangered woodlands. Since the campaign began, VS has begun using 80% recycled content for their clearance catalogs but their current contract is still largely using pulp derived from endangered species.

business, catalogs, corporations, deforestation, Eco-Chick, ethics, garbage, paper, produce, recycle, recycled, Recycling, wood

Liz Claiborne Loves Beaver!

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by Summer Rayne Oakes · 01/05/06

When a company is owned by a man named Beaver and wife of Beaver, you know it’s going to be good. This past November, PrAna, the fast-growing maker of apparel for climbing, yoga and outdoor activities, was acquired by women’s wear giant, Liz Claiborne Inc. PrAna (did we mention that the owner’s name is Beaver?) is known for being a rather environmentally- and socially-responsible company in ethics, production, and manufacturing. This is a significant acquisition considering that it is one of the first eco-oriented lines being bought out by a major fashion house.

The purchase price of $34.4 million consists of an initial payment of $32.5 million (representing 60 percent of Prana’s valuation) and the retirement of debt at closing of approximately $1.9 million. Prana’s owners will receive additional payments based upon a multiple of Prana’s earnings in the fiscal years 2008, 2009 and 2010.

Prana co-owners and founders Beaver and Pam Theodosakis, and Demian Kloer, will continue to run the company. Prana, based in Vista, CA, is expected to generate net sales of approximately $30 million in fiscal 2005. Christ! That’s A LOT of BEAVER lovers!!!

Beaver had this to say about the recent acquisition: “One of the primary reasons we selected Liz Claiborne was because of our ability to maintain a significant economic interest and independence in running Prana, which will allow us to preserve the quality and essence of the PrAna brand that our customers and retailers expect. This relationship goes far beyond the bottom line as we are highly impressed by Liz’s brand-building capabilities and corporate commitment to people, fair trade and the environment. We have a great opportunity to share best practices in these areas.”

Check out the PrAna site. There are a host of both guys and gals climbing that are mighty impressive, particularly to an acrophobe. Beaver lovers…women, men and children…

children, ethics, Fair Trade, Fashion, sales, women, women's, yoga