We recently connected with Allan Strapasson Pin and have shared our conversation below.
Allan, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What’s the backstory behind how you came up with the idea for your business?
I was a nomad, cycling in Italy during the summer in 2021. At the time, I felt very connected to the nature and in a good headspace to create… then I thought: why I don’t go back to a marketing plan I created a year ago about sustainable swimwear? That was wild!!! In a couple of weeks, I had my first collection designed and ready for production. Half of my collection is created with pictures I photographed along my career – showing a bit of my passion for nature. I was able to combine so many passions at the same time: fashion, sustainability, design, photography and LGBTQIA+ community. Today, I am proud to say that my swimwear are designed in limited editions and we transform every element of our take-make-waste system: how we manage resources, who makes, how we make, how we distribute our products, and what we do with the materials afterwards. With a unique regeneration process, Verdinha is transforming global problems into fashion solutions.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I am a creative communicator specialist with hands-on experience creating and managing marketing and advertising strategies to bring up a brand to life in a sustainable way. Previously, I worked as a photographer/videographer and learned aspects of planning and organising creative visuals for high-profile global brands. I love creating. And I love telling stories. I am familiar with different business models: e-commerce, fashion, beauty, media, fintech, advertising and NGO’s. My latest adventure is working on the creation of “Verdinha” – my sustainable swimwear brand – in which I participated in every step of it: from the idea, creating the designs, finding suppliers, brand/communication/marketing and now about to make pre-orders available. It’s actually crazy to look back and thing: damn, I’ve been creating ALL OF THIS? super proud or this journey, so far.
Okay – so how did you figure out the manufacturing part? Did you have prior experience?
I had no idea how manufacturing products or where to do it. After a long research, I found my supplier and today I am prod to say: 100% of our swimwear are handmade by women in Brazil using recycled or renewable materials and certified by @peta.
We work with two types of fabrics:
🌊 Econyl is made from the regeneration of fishing nets removed from our oceans by divers from the Healthy Seas Initiative.
🌱 Amni Soul Eco is the world’s first biodegradable polyamide yarn that allows garments made from it to decompose in less than 3 years when properly disposed of in landfills, a Brazilian technology and a pioneer in the world.
What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?
I think before went into this adventure, I was already a representation of my own brand: responsible with the planet, people and passionate about fashion and gay community. So, I already had a strong community built around it. And working hard to keep empowering people and minimize our impact in the planet.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.verdinha.store
- Instagram: @allanpin
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/allanstrapassonpin/
- Other: Instagram: @verdinha.swimwear TikTok: @verdinha.swimwear
Image Credits
@allanpin