First and foremost, thanks so much for taking part in my interview series! Tell us a bit more about yourself and your background.
Hi Jamie, thanks for having me! My name is Matt Oliver and I am the founder of Oliver Co - a sustainable accessories brand based in London. I am a product designer by trade and have been working in the luxury & fashion industry for 5 years.
What are your thoughts on sustainability and when did you first become aware of it?
My interest in sustainability was really sparked during my placement year at university. I was working at a company manufacturing super yachts and I was amazed by the amount of toxicity and waste in the industry. I became incredibly interested in understanding what I could do as a designer to try and change this. The first book I read was ‘cradle to cradle’, which for any designer looking to understand more about sustainability, is a great place to start. My interest then led me to start up Oliver Co - which I have now been doing for 2 years alongside my other design job.
What are you specifically interested in?
I guess the main areas I’ve focused on in sustainable design are material science and the circular economy. They are separate subject matters but of course very much go hand in hand.
Learning the new ways we are harnessing nature to create renewable bio-based materials and how the business model can implement them in a profitable way, is a forever changing landscape. Every week there seems to be something new, and it’s exciting to see how Oliver Co. can possibly implement them.
Have you seen a noticeable difference in the way people approach spending now and which companies they choose to support?
Yes, I really believe a growing number of people are educating themselves when it comes to spending. They are expecting more from brands and demand transparency. The great thing about more companies moving toward ethical and sustainable manufacturing is that they are beginning to learn from one another, ourselves included, and are getting better at delivering their message clearly. Social media, blogs and press are also allowing people to easily find like-minded companies for every aspect of their lives.
There’s no doubt that money still acts as a huge barrier for many though. People want to look nice and have nice things but can’t always afford to buy sustainably. It can feel like a constant battle and questioning everything and thinking sustainably all the time can be quite exhausting. Its a journey though that I think is becoming easier. Direct to consumer brands are also allowing products to be fairly priced whilst still having high ethics and quality.
Tell me about a recent challenge you faced while working on a sustainability project. How did you overcome it?
Working with new materials has its challenges and can require more sampling and design development. Getting the best out of the materials and understanding how they react with one another has been a challenge and often requires several rounds of sampling. Having a perfect understanding of the construction of the product and the relationship between materials, is the only answer. And don’t make assumptions! At the very beginning we made a tiny change to the lining of our compact wallet thinking it would have no effect - the result was really not good and it ended up delaying production by a month. Lesson learnt!
What would you say are your industry’s main downfalls and what are the obstacles to improving them?
I believe its not going far enough with the transparency. In the case of accessory design, so often you see a company using the vague term ‘eco’ for describing materials without explaining exactly how or why. They also fail to mention specifically what lining they use or sometimes even where the product is manufactured.
Especially within larger companies where there are a large number of products, it can often simply be a breakdown in communication between the designers and the rest of the team. E-commerce teams for example, who may write the product descriptions on the web page, are never going to know as much as the designers when it comes to the product details. The internal process needs to be such that all members of the team obtain a full understanding of the product.
If you were to choose the first and most achievable changes for any small business, what would they be?
Good question, I think the most important change to make is the mindset in the team. If everyone is thinking in the same way and thinking of ways to change their role to be more sustainable, then together big change can happen quickly. This comes from the top though, and needs to be built into the vision of the brand.
More specifically, I think the change needs to come from the product and strategy team first. In short, analyse your product in detail - map out what you know and don’t and figure out how to address each aspect. Then strategise how you could change the product whilst remaining profitable as a business.
What kind of impact do you think small & medium businesses can have on the shift to a more sustainable society?
I think they have the power to innovate and disrupt. Large companies aren’t as agile and are often trapped within the way they have always done things before. Small businesses can pave the way, and set new benchmarks for sustainable business. If successful, their models will help many other companies make changes too, which in turn will make for a more sustainable society.
What do you think is the ‘elephant in the room’ with regards to sustainability in business? What do you think we should be speaking about more?
I think companies admitting to their sustainable pitfalls can be difficult. I believe they think it might effect a customers opinion of the brand or put them off buying from them. No company is perfect, and there is no such thing as a fully sustainable brand in truth - they all have a detrimental effect on the planet to some degree, but it is important they are constantly striving to do better. At the beginning I felt this way before too and was scared to admit to flaws. The important thing was though, I knew I was truly trying to be as sustainable as possible and think about as many elements as I could. Sustainability can always be improved upon, and being transparent and talking about the flaws and the ways the company is looking to address them can be just as powerful to a customer.
What are your predictions for consumer behaviour in 2020? Which trends are you expecting to emerge or continue to grow?
I personally think we’re going to see more support for smaller independent brands. Targeted advertising allows small companies to showcase their product directly to the customers that really resonate with the brand. Young consumers in particular are looking for products that best represent them, and smaller brands have the ability to do that.
