Partnership : Airs de Paris x Coup de Pouce

Fashion is the second most polluting industry after the oil sector! Fast fashion has created a «culture of overconsumption».

Airs de Paris magazine and the Coup de Pouce have joined forces to promote local manufacturing and an ecosystem called «Made in France».

The Coup de Pouce association was created in 1997 by several women who wanted to create a company in which each woman could use her skills. Coup de Pouce is a sewing workshop, a place for creating social links.

Doesn’t it remobilise people who are far from the labour market thanks to its integration project? Indeed, each year, the workshop receives individuals who have different problems. The aim is to enable the beneficiaries to develop socially, familiarly, and professionally.

Group cohesion and knowledge sharing contributes to this development. The most senior employees accompany the newcomers to the structure. This encourages initiative and strengthens self-confidence.

Employees stay in the organisation from six months to a maximum of twenty-four months. Throughout the course, employees receive internal and external training.

The training days are intended to be rich and intense. They provide the employees in integration with knowledge and skills to continue their social and professional pathway. The social follow-up is as important as the professional follow-up with the sole aim of building a programme at different stages.

In this exemplary workshop, the great seamstress is Marie Helene. A graduate of the International Cutting School in Paris, Marie Helen has developed solid experience. After a difficult period in her life, she has found fulfilment thanks to the workshop. She now trains newcomers by bringing her know-how.

The magazine Airs de Paris shares the same values as Coup de Pouce. A partnership was born to develop «Made in France», solitary and ecological ecosystem. Last July, Coup de Pouce took part in the exhibition organised by Airs de Paris in the Première Vision shows with a view to developing more sustainable and social fashion.

Marie Helene revisited a design created by Imane Ayssi, a first-ever designer from sub-Saharan Africa who joined the elite club of Parisian haute couture. An Arab dress and an African dress, among others, have been made by the workshop to express cultural diversity. All fabrics are made from ECOBAMBOO, a new generation of ecological fibre.

An ecological bag

Unfortunately, plastic bags have become part of our daily routine. They are used every twenty minutes on average. These bags remain in nature, taking between one and four centuries to degrade. Coup de Pouce and Airs de Paris are currently working on a new project: the ecological bag. The workshop is studying the design of different prototypes to create small collections for various uses. The fabrics are recycled or ecological. Its bags should be able to be used for packaging and everyday objects.

In the face of economic difficulties and much criticism on issues of «sustainability», the fashion industry has entered a phase of change. Fashion that is «profitable by any means necessary» no longer corresponds to the evolution of our society. A better world can only be built through respect for all, where each person is involved in a responsible manner. Such will be the spirit of the 21st century… It is Airs de Paris that says it!