The Linen Shirt Company
Using 100% Irish woven linen, the Linen Shirt Company produce collections of shirts for men, women and juniors both for the domestic and international markets.
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The circular challenge
The Linen Shirt Company’s core purpose is to encourage customers to invest in Irish garments & have a lasting relationship with them. In order to do this, they want to be able to better communicate with their customers about the product and to understand the journey and durability of their shirts after purchase.
The circular design strategy:
- Design for Physical Durability
- Design for Emotional Durability
- Design for Cyclability
The NOW solution: What circular solution was prototyped and what are the companies short-term circular goals?
In the short-term, the Linen Shirt Company are working with TCD project E Code to print unique QR codes onto their shirts. This will allow them to communicate with their customers about the provenance of the garment and how to care for it. It will also create opportunities for extended use through repair services & take-back schemes. Their goal is to launch these QR codes across the full product range and offer their QR printing service to other retailers.
What were the main hurdles and lessons learnt from your prototyping phase?
They struggled to source a printer that could meet their needs for the prototype, but have now found one! Their next challenge is to gather the product information relating to the QR code, and create a landing page for it online.
The NEXT solution: What are your bigger / longer-term circular goals for your brand?
In the bigger picture, the Linen Shirt Company are committed to creating a sustainable, ethical garment manufacturing industry in Ireland to further localise and celebrate the Irish consumer’s connection to their clothes. By March 2023, they hope to open their first Incubation Hub in New Ross to train 12 machinists in garment production over a six month programme. Through the hub they hope to offer machinists in Ireland a new, formal accreditation. LSC will also invite other brands to produce in their hubs and avail of these machinists, with the commitment to each open their own manufacturing facilities after two years.
Projected future impact: What is the expected positive impact - environmental, economic, social - from your longer term circular solution.
The future impact they hope will be both environmental and economic. By introducing the QR coding to the clothing they will educate the consumer and encourage them to make more informed choices about where their clothes are made, who makes them and how to care for them. By developing the relationship with the consumer the will increase their understanding of the value of ‘Made in Ireland’, inviting them to be part of a community rather than being just a passive consumer of clothing.
What questions or uncertainties are you facing right now in terms of your circular development?
- How can we maximise a continued connection with our customer through the QR code?
- Will the customer engage with the QR code?
- How can we offer this QR code infrastructure to other brands, too?
Call to Action:
To move from prototype to pilot, Linen Shirt Company is looking for the following supports:
- Government grants & funding opportunities to support the rebuilding of an ethical Irish manufacturing infrastructure.
