Sue Stemp and Paud Roche are the husband-and-wife duo behind the Los Angeles-based label St.Roche. In 2014 they launched their label with a commitment to creating responsibly-designed and manufactured womenswear that brings sustainable textiles and artisanal details to their customers at an affordable price.

As a finalist in the CFDA + Lexus Fashion* Initiative 2.0, the St.Roche duo has been re-examining every aspect of their business in order to quantify their sustainability impact and optimize their process where needed.

“Until now we had very little resources and knowledge of current tools and frameworks available to help evaluate how sustainable our practices are and therefore clarify which strategic choices to make in growing our business,” Stemp explained.

St.Roche utilizes the wholesale model to reach a wide audience and to bring high volume orders to their manufacturing partners. As a system that lengthens the supply chain and dilutes brand storytelling, it is a hard model to sync with sustainability. As a small and nimble company though, St.Roche is able to mitigate some of the challenges of wholesaling by working directly with the people who make their clothes.

“I believe our clothes should have a much longer shelf-life and be less disposable than the time they currently are on the sales floor,” Stemp said. “It’s the nature of fashion to want something new, but we’re thinking of different strategies to minimize the waste in this area going forward.”

With all the difficulties of being a sustainable brand in the wholesale system, St.Roche is committed to navigating the roadblock to be a leader for other wholesale heavy brands looking to design and manufacture more sustainably.

“Every little step towards becoming a sustainable company helps,” Stemp noted. “Look at the big picture of your design and business practices then start with one element that you can change… Involve your suppliers and try and make the biggest impact first.”