Nikki Reed, Loci Cofounder Eribo Discuss Collab, Conservation
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
Actress Nikki Reed recently launched a capsule collection of sneakers with vegan sneaker brand Loci named Reed x Loci and the actress took to Zoom Tuesday night to discuss the collaboration with Loc cofounder Emmanuel Eribo.
The sneakers, which launched May 6, are handmade in Portugal with recycled plastic materials sourced from the Mediterranean. The four genderless models retail for $160 each, with 10 percent of the profits going toward ocean conservation sites and preserving ocean life, which is a passion the collaborators share.
More from WWD
“I love designing all across the board… designing without thinking about seasonal trends,” said Reed. “People want to wear things that represent who they are and people want to be on the right side of history. I think now more so than ever we recognize our impact.”
The collaborators also agreed that they prefer designing for the long term instead of chasing trends, and also their shared mission of protecting the planet.
Eribo said he and his Butterfly Twists cofounders set out to start Loci after seeing as many as 70,000 shoes in a warehouse in Asia. They thought that the world doesn’t need more shoes to wind up in a landfill so they created Loci, a vertically integrated brand that produces per order.
“We have to retrain customers to be OK with that,” Reed said about customers being more intentional with their purchases and waiting for orders. “We’re in an Amazon world, a DM [direct messaging] world, energetic boundaries. Patience benefits human beings. We would be excited about saving up for a vacation or to get an ice cream sandwich as a kid.”
Reed spoke at length about her interest in conservation and sustainability. She explained that she would bring animals home as a child and as she got older noticed the interconnectedness between animal protection and starting a plant-based diet.
“In my early ’20s, I went plant-based and initially it was for my health and thinking of the animals,” she explained. “Everything we do has a domino effect. When I was pregnant with my daughter, you start looking for things that have to do with your body, which is something you do when you’re caring for another life.”
This led her to not only think of what’s going into her body but what’s around her body. “How can I think of one thing and not the other?” she asked.
She continued, “It’s a little gesture. It’s the decision to do something differently while being a part of the mainstream. If I should be thinking about this then I should be thinking about that.”
Best of WWD
Sign up for WWD's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
