Is farm-to-close the future of fashion?
Denica Riadini-Flesch is a problem solver. The development economist has actually made a career because it has spent a large part of its professional life for the World Bank and the World Economic Forum throughout Indonesia. How is she worked in fashion?
“I am really the least likely person who is in fashion-I am probably the least fashion person you will ever meet,” she says, grinning with self-stirdik. “But when I traveled in villages all over Indonesia, I saw the first time how clothes are made. Unfortunately, the reality is that the history is not beautiful for these women, which they do in villages in the developing countries. It was a wake -up call.”
Instead of fixing a problem, Riadini-Flesch suddenly felt part of one. Your reaction was not to donate or sharpen awareness, but immediately try to find a solution. The result was her foundation of Sukkhacitta, a clothing brand from Farm-to-Closet that is a pioneer of renewable fashion. The ethos behind the company brings it back to the basics: to produce the consumer directly with the women on site by making the products and the feeling of separating Riadini-Flesch in their first encounters with the reality of the clothing industry. It pays women a fair livelihood and focuses on the preservation of local cultures and traditional artistic practices.
Sukkhacitta is more than just a brand with a moral mission; It is one with a real sustainable focus. “When I tried to solve this very severe problem, I realized that there were other problems in the environmental impact of the processes associated with it,” she says. “When the brand was founded, it was my first encounter with agriculture in which we draw the plants that make the dye for our clothes. Then we have to include farmers who are now also investing in planting the type of leaves that they need. I don’t think we can see how intrinically connected fashion that is managed, and now. Supplier and attempts to repair everything. “
It is a brave endeavor, especially for a first entrepreneur with a self -evident lack of experience in the fashion industry. However, Riadini-Flesch received invaluable financial support from the Rolex Awards for Enterprise, which she won in 2023. The initiative provides funds for people who may not have access to traditional funds, but their companies or ideas make a real difference to society and the environment. It has been awarded 160 people since its foundation in 1976.
“The entire process with Rolex was very rewarding and frankly one of the greatest privileges,” she says. “There is the microphone to talk about what you believe in and to bring your story to a global audience – because for me my final is adoption. I want Sukkhacitta to be a movement. I have the feeling that I am working on this blueprint for regenerative fashion that can be used.
The brand was a departure from Riadini-Flesch, the basis of which was far more in non-profit organizations, but it sees a real durability when combining business with purpose and essentially rethinking the way the fashion industry works completely.
“Sometimes people ask me why I’m so radical and it makes it clear to me how anchoring the current story about the conventional way of things is,” she says. “Because it doesn’t seem radical for me. We bring back to the basics to connect with the human work behind your clothes and the country that she creates.”
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