Talitha Ward

Ode is a sustainable fashion e-commerce marketplace for fashion-forward Gen Z and millennials. Ode stands for (o)n (de)mand and is characterised by our collective of made-to- order brands that exhibit an uncompromising relationship between style and sustainability. Our alternative commerce model and updated approach to sustainable fashion will redefine sustainable fashion to young consumers whose blanket association with conscious consumption is with traditional eco tropes.

Ode was born of my own conflictions. As someone who loves the creativity and self-expression that fashion allows, I felt confined by society’s version of sustainable fashion. My journey involved long periods of not consuming clothing at all to only buying second hand to trying to process guilt when I purchased first hand from mass-market brands out of a desire to find more inspiring pieces. Ode alleviates all of these pain points by offering sustainable first-hand consumption from creative independent brands.

The vision of Ode is to ‘redefine sustainable fashion.’ It takes the concept of the conscious clothing sector and reframes it, pushing it beyond what the fashion industry has boxed it into. Defined by artful imagery, a very purposeful ‘playful’ tone of voice and, overall, a fashion-driven identity, Ode ‘rebrands’ sustainable fashion by taking stereotypical eco communication tactics and flipping them on their head.