SoHo: a Great Place to be Alternative (Apparel, That Is)
With multiple retail spaces thriving on the West Coast, it was only a matter of time before the eco-friendly apparel company, Alternative, opened its first New York City location. On Thursday, May 15, I trekked from Brooklyn feeling the pull of electricity to the new SoHo store’s grand opening. The invite promised four of my favorite things: sustainable fashion, great music, delicious cocktails, and free food. Alternative did not disappoint. The new store is beautiful. The strong, golden wood beams running along the ceiling add a natural drama to the vintage living room effect that floating built-ins add to the store. The store’s flow kept the large crowd mobile as we mingled our way through.
The grand opening of the new Alternative store held up to the GRAND part of its name. At eight o’clock, when I arrived, the store was packed as the party flowed unto the sidewalk. Jenny Walton drew fashion illustrations of guests styled in Alternative by Orondava Mumford, the brand’s creative director, and I luckily ran into BUST Magazine’s Senior Editor, Molly Simms. The SoHo crowd loved the classic funky tunes of DJ Natasha Diggs who kept us dancing through Montauk beers, and Pravda’s fiery ginger cocktails. Alternative’s opening presents the East Coast a strong, fun, and tastefully trendy way to be greener.
The brand, born in 1995, is focused on bringing simplicity and style to the eco-friendly fashion scene. Alternative currently has two stores in the LA area, one on Larchmont Blvd and one in Venice, and another in San Francisco’s Hayes Valley. With ethical sourcing and partnerships, the brand finds a creative way to tie the globally local way that humans live and thrive. Alternative is currently partnering with ECOTINTES, an ethical Peruvian dye company. The story of that partnership played product information screens in the store where the ECOTINTES collection can be shopped. The brand’s mission was evident throughout the space. The soft basics pulled on my love of chic, yet comfortable building blocks for any wardrobe, and I couldn’t help but slide my fingers through the soft grey t-shirts on the rack behind me.
If you find yourself in SoHo, go ahead and check out the new store. It is open on Monday to Saturday from 11 a.m to 7 p.m, and Sunday from 12 p.m to 6 p.m. You can also shop Alternative online.
Want more Spring fashion? Check out the new Cri de Coeur collection designed by Arden Wohl.
Chrislande Dorcilus
Chrislande Dorcilus is a writer living in Brooklyn, and ever proud of the cliché. She loves feminism, humor, sustainable architecture, and poetry. She hates to love to hate New York, compares bathrooms around the city, avoids the Six train, and misses the ocean. Chrislande is a proud former editorial intern, and blog contributor to the loved feminist publication, BUST Magazine. She hopes to see you at one of their spectacular BUST Craftacular events in Brooklyn this year. She has written for various fashion and media sources online, and is more than excited to delve into the eco-world with “y’all.”
