Sittingbourne, Kent Apr 20, 2018 (Issuewire.com) - Pioneering Sustainable Luxury Since 2005 : Elvis & Kresse has rescued and transformed all of London’s damaged fire hoses since 2005 and donated 50% of their profits to charity.
In 2005 Kresse Wesling MBE had a chance meeting with the London Fire Brigade and a very emotional response to their damaged, decommissioned fire hose. It was too heroic and too beautiful for landfill. Somebody had to do something, and those somebodies were Elvis & Kresse (Kresse and her partner James ‘aka Elvis’ Henrit).
They mounted a rescue, and over the last 13 years have saved all of London’s hoses, transforming them into a range of luxury accessories and donating 50% of the profits to the Fire Fighters Charity. From the first day Elvis & Kresse had a unique DNA: rescue, transform, donate.
They don’t recycle per se, they redefine materials by cherishing them, honouring them, and embedding craftsmanship and design into them, ensuring their next life is a full one. They are re-engineers who design for utility, not for seasonality. They are also committed to repairing any of their products, prolonging their life as much as possible.
Over the last 13 years Elvis & Kresse has grown to tackle more than 10 unique materials, from tea sacks to printing blankets, always with the same methodology. They have developed a unique voice in the luxury industry and are now tackling their greatest ever challenge, the 800,000 tonnes of leather off-cuts that are generated each year by the global leather industry.
In the creation of leather goods, even when patterns are carefully planned to maximise the hide, the process inevitably creates small off cuts. These are high quality, unused, freshly tanned and dyed leather, but fall to the workshop floor as seemingly unusable pieces. Elvis & Kresse has designed a system that transforms these fragments into components, which are then hand woven into a new kind of hide that is unrestricted by size or shape.
In November 2017 Elvis & Kresse launched a 5-year partnership with the Burberry Foundation to scale their leather waste solution. To mark the announcement Kresse said: “When we decided to tackle the much, much larger leather problem, we knew we would need a brave partner. We are grateful for the support of the Burberry Foundation and are truly excited to scale this solution and magnify its impact. This is the kind of work we are made for and this is the kind of partnership that will change the future of luxury.”
Media Contact
Elvis & Kresse kresse@elvisandkresse.com +44 (0) 1795 484 235 Tonge Mill, Church Road https://www.elvisandkresse.com/
