Francisca Vieira NCC Ecobrands in the French report
“Francisca Vieira’s designs show the riches of Paraiba as each piece brings a wealth of knowledge and local traditions. In every outfit you can map the entire production chain involved in the production of sustainable fashion “This excerpt sums up the essence of story by Sarah Brunebarbe with photos by Charlotte Joly, from Europe Ecologie-Les Verts, published in Textile au Tour du Monde.
In October 2014, the journalists were in Paraíba to follow the organic color cotton harvest, the base of the Natural Color Cotton group – NCC Ecobrands’ production. From the agenda “Slow Fashion” they knew the showroom and talked with the designer Francisca Vieira, head of the group of ecofriendly products.
The designer’s career
For Sarah, being immersed in the production process was important to know the history and also understand the creative process of the designer. The journalist reports that Francisca began in Fashion producing street wear clothes. When she had the idea of adding the renaissance embroidery to some pieces, she discovered how women artisans were underpaid in her area – which bothered her. To change this situation, she redeveloped her business plan and switched her sources from industrialized production to small local manufacturers – a way of trying to ensure that the amount paid to these suppliers were higher and dignified. Francisca Vieira, says:
“I have always believed in the success of social development through work. I want to work with people, not with the big dehumanized corporations”
In the text, Sarah reinforces the importance of this decision: “Aware of the importance of preserving natural fibers and in regard to social development, Francisca – who leads the NCC Ecobrands group – sources the organic color cotton producers in the local region and invests in paying the best price on the Brazilian market. Thus, by opting for locally produced organic color cotton and making use of traditional handcraft techniques, the designer chose to act within the “Slow Fashion” movement, in which 50% is creativity, 50% is common sense, and sustainability is 100%.
Winning the international market
Francisca Vieira’s dresses, blouses and skirts won the international market with the support of the Brazilian Association of Textile Industry – ABIT and above all because they have the certificate of organic products issued by Biodynamic Institute – IBD – given to the 15 organic color cotton producers in Paraíba, who grow for the NCC Ecobrands group.
In regard to the market of Fashion, journalist Sarah talks about the timeless character of the designer’s creations. Francisca justified in reporting that their fashion is “unfashion”. “It is a fashion out of fashion”, she adds. For the journalist, besides the beauty, the creative design and differentiated and exclusive result of color cotton clothing, acceptance by the public seeking exclusively natural and organic materials is guaranteed. This is a commitment, a struggle against the invasion of synthetic fabrics in fashion. “If you throw away a polyester piece of clothing, it will take 120 years to disappear in nature. We know that these synthetic materials pollute the oceans, compromising the entire food chain and will, in the end, end up at our table”, explains the designer in the report.
International recognition: slowly but surely
With the NCC Ecobrands group, Francisca Vieira regularly attends international ethical fashion, sustainable and environmentally friendly events. And the North American market has recently opened to the brand. This year, in addition to participation in Expo West California, her products made a first appearance in New York at a shop of a Brazilian cosmetics brand Surya Brazil. In Europe, Tentation Bio, in France, acts as supplier for some customers on the continent. The designer’s clothes have also been sold to Japan and Dubai. Faced with all these new opportunities, Francisca says:
“The higher the sales, the lower the production cost and the greater the remuneration of the entire production chain.”
This is the spirit of the NCC Ecobrands group, a win-win relationship – social and ecological gains in a new concept of fashion production. That’s Slow Fashion.
Hi, I’m glad you liked this article, thank you for using and sharing it!
Best regards.
Sarah
Hello Sarah, thank you for writing this article on our work. We are very happy about it.
Best regards
(by Francisca Vieira)