Sally Dear, founder of sustainable, gender-neutral kidswear brand Ducky Zebra, discusses how her values-led business is working to promote kindness and confidence in children whilst giving back to people and the planet.

 

Laura Turner: What inspired you to launch Ducky Zebra?

Sally Dear: My background isn’t in fashion, nor is it in retail. I’m a marketeer, having worked predominantly in the automotive and rail sectors. So, why Ducky Zebra? I’m a parent of two and was shocked when my daughter, at the age of four, mentioned she couldn’t be a taxi driver when she was older because she was a girl. We’d always tried hard to avoid stereotypes in our household, but with this comment came the realisation that we weren’t her only influence. The books she read, the TV she watched, the toys she played with, and the clothes she wore all had an impact. I went on to discover that stereotypes in early years – many of which are often so engrained we don’t even notice them – can go on to affect children’s choices and decisions later in life, including subject choices, career paths, mental health and behaviour. At this point, I decided to tackle at least one of the influencing areas: the clothes my daughter wore. I wanted to create clothes for her and other girls that inspired confidence and determination to achieve whatever they wanted.

LT: What was the next step?

SD: Ever the optimist, I quit my job and began the process only to find during my early research that things were equally bad for boys, perhaps even worse. Dull, boring colours, aggressive teeth-baring predators, messages of heroism and dominance. There was little reference to kindness. I didn’t want my son to grow up displaying these aggressive characteristics. And so, I changed direction, and began to look at clothes that would benefit girls and boys equally. Soon after, I surveyed over 1,000 parents and carers. One quote stood out in particular: “I believe happy, cheery clothes make my boys smile more.” This is what we all want to achieve. Happy, smiling children. And it was this quote, amongst many others, that resulted in Ducky Zebra. A brand that creates happy, cheery clothes, celebrates kindness and confidence and puts climbing and adventures above looks and beauty. Shorts that aren’t too short, tops without the itchy frills, and clothes with pockets to store away life’s treasures. Developing Ducky Zebra has been a huge learning curve. I’ve discovered so much about fabrics, dyes and how to manufacture more sustainably. The more I’ve learnt, the more I’ve become determined to create clothes that are kind to the planet and kind to the people that make them. From the get-go, we’ve used GOTS-certified organic cotton to reduce our impact and have slow, sustainable fashion as one of our core guiding values.

 

 

LT: What’s the meaning behind the brand name?

SD: All our clothes celebrate determination, uniqueness, confidence, kindness and a ‘yes’ approach to life. Take the first letter from each of these words and you get ducky. And what about the zebra? Well, it’s hard to distinguish between a young male and female zebra, allowing us to celebrate gender similarities rather than gender differences. Plus, no two zebras have the same stripes, reminding us to be confident in our unique selves.

LT: What are Ducky Zebra’s values?

SD: We have a set of core values that underpin everything we do, every decision we make, and every relationship we build. These are founded on three problems we aim to address. The first problem is that many parents and carers are frustrated with the stereotypes found in high-street kids’ clothing. Girls’ clothes are often pink, cute and impractical. They promote kindness, but not always confidence. Boys’ clothes are often blue, aggressive and adventure-seeking. They promote confidence, but not always kindness. Ducky Zebra brings these two characteristics together, allowing all children, whatever their gender, to celebrate both kindness and confidence. Our clothes ooze kindness and confidence, with every item containing an embroidered splash ‘power button’ as a physical reminder to be so. We also celebrate these traits via downloadable certificates on our website. So, perhaps a child has made someone smile or feel special, maybe they’ve overcome a challenge, or tried something new. Whatever the reason, they can download the certificate to celebrate their acts of kindness and confidence. The second problem we address is that only six per cent of parents and carers say their children want to wear unisex, with many describing the offering as monochrome and boring. At Ducky Zebra we’ve involved children in our design process so that we’re creating unisex clothes children want to wear. The third problem we tackle is the negative impact the fashion industry has on the world around us. It accounts for around 10 per cent of global carbon emissions and nearly 20% of wastewater. This is not sustainable. Ducky Zebra is committed to slow fashion. We’ve carefully selected a GOTS-certified manufacturing partner that shares our values for sustainable, ethical production. It uses energy from renewable sources, harvests rainwater and digitally prints most of our fabrics, which uses less energy, water and ink. We’re continuously looking for ways to reduce our environmental impact while increasing our positive social impact.

LT: What does the collection comprise?

SD: The collection is for babies and kids up to six years old, with every item made from GOTS-certified organic cotton. We offer a range of sleepsuits, dungarees and bodysuits for 0 to 24 months, and tops, bottoms and dresses for the older age range. Where possible, we include clever features such as two-way zips for easy dressing and roll-down cuffs to give extra length as the child grows.

 

 

LT: How are you embracing sustainability as a business?

SD: We’re passionate about reducing our environmental impact, working ethically and being transparent. A few examples of how we’re doing this include using GOTS-certified organic cotton to reduce environmental impact and ensure safe working conditions. Our clothes are also made from high-quality fabric and are designed to last and pass on to siblings and friends for reuse. Sizing is generous, with features like turn-up cuffs to increase longevity. And rather than adopting the latest trends or seasonal gimmicks, we rethink fashion for children, creating small volumes of colourful, unisex designs that can be reused regardless of season or gender. Elsewhere we have partnered with Wrapkind, which up-cycles our pre-production samples into gift bags; any clothes that fail quality checks are sold at a discounted rate as part of our ‘practically perfect’ programme. Our manufacturing partner also sends unusable fabric offcuts to a mill to become recycled yarn. When it comes to our packaging, we use recycled and fully recyclable postage bags and our swing tags and greeting cards are fully recyclable, too. We’ve also partnered with Borro and thelittleloop to allow customers to rent a selection of our clothes, helping to increase their lifecycle and make them accessible to even more people.

LT: You also have a pre-loved programme?

SD: Yes, our pre-loved programme encourages customers to return their old Ducky Zebra clothes to us, and we then pass them on to the Oxford Baby Bank for reuse. In exchange, and as a thank you, we give customers 15 per cent off their next purchase. The programme aims to spread kindness while also extending the lifecycle of our clothes.

 

 

LT: Can you tell me more about your partnership with the charity Chance UK?

SD: Every time a customer buys an item of Ducky Zebra clothing, we donate £1 to Chance UK, inclusive of tax. Chance UK’s vision is for every child in the UK to feel happy about themselves, realise their potential, and be confident in their ability to build a brighter future. We’ve selected a charity that shares our values, challenges stereotypes, and champions children’s confidence. As we grow, we plan to involve our customers in selecting which charities we should support in the future.

LT: You’re also part of The Ethical Move – what does this entail?

SD: The world is shaped by how we buy and sell. We are trapped in an endless loop of wanting and buying more. Marketing techniques often rely on scare tactics and psychological manipulation to encourage this. Currently, according to The Ethical Move, “the weight rests on the shoulders of the consumer to break out of this hamster wheel – to ‘vote with their wallet’ to make the ethical choice.” But we, as sellers, can also have a role in breaking this cycle. By joining The Ethical Move, we pledge to take responsibility, avoid scare tactics, and market transparently and honestly.

LT: What’s your long-term vision for Ducky Zebra?

SD: We’re a small start-up, but with a big plan. We want to shake up kids’ fashion so that we can create a more equal and sustainable world. Of course, we want to grow our brand, but we also want to spark and inspire others within the industry. Our long-term vision is to encourage change: to remove the pink vs blue, kind vs confident, and sweet vs heroic stereotypes that we often wear from birth.

For further information on Ducky Zebra, please click here.