SunStitch - saving the planet and your health

Ruby Burr, Mackenzie Dyer, Danny Ryan, Brodie Seelen, Ollie Walker and Connor Johnston are the six Year 13 Business Studies students running 'SunStitch,' a business that in their own words is, "your one-stop shop for ethically produced, custom-made, reversible bucket hats, made from recycled fabrics."

When asked how they came up with the idea, Ruby said, "At the start of the year I made a bucket hat and I thought 'Oh this would be cool to have as a business' and then when we met with our business mentor we went over ideation and started refining our ideas and we went with that one."

The students source their recycled fabric from op shops as well as receiving donations of fabric. They are also open to customers providing their own pieces of fabric and the group are passionate about making the bucket hats customised to customer preferences. No two hats are the same. 

And it's not just about running a business for these students. Their promotional statements on social media aim to raise awareness around New Zealand having the second highest rate of melanoma in the world, along with the staggering 75% of textiles sent to landfill each year.

When asked what their biggest challenge was, Mackenzie, Danny & Ruby all said "production" simultaneously as they laughed. "Getting on top of all the orders and sewing hats can be very time consuming," said Ruby.

"Making them fast enough and also making sure that they're high quality," added Danny.

For a while the group had a seamstress however now they are working with some of the Nayland College textiles students and Ruby has done a lot of the sewing herself. 

For Makenzie the most rewarding part of running the business has been the satisfaction of seeing someone buy their product and then wear it around. Ruby also really enjoyed meeting different people in the business world.

Danny just enjoyed seeing people walking around wearing the hats that they had made.

Production will be slowing down over the next few weeks as the students focus on their exams and take up holiday jobs however you can contact SunStitch through their facebook or instagram pages.

Congratulations again on your Environmental and Sustainability Award!