Learn how an entrepreneurial MUN student is turning plastic bottles into fashion
Seaside Apparel's fabrics are made from recycled plastic bottles and sewing scraps
It all started with a broken fence.
Trevor Bessette had just moved into a new place and he needed a table. He built one with the remains of the fence and something lit up inside him.
"I fell in love with the idea of turning what people consider trash or garbage and giving it new life," he told the St. John's Morning Show.
Now, he's making clothes from pop bottles, in a fashion.
Pop bottles and cotton scraps
Seaside Apparel's sports T-shirts are made entirely from recycled plastic drink bottles. The plastic is turned into a polyester that feels like traditional polyester used for sports shorts.
"People are usually surprised at how soft it is," Bessette said.
The company also uses material made from cotton scraps collected from sewing room floors. Seaside Apparel hoodies, for example, are made from a mix of the pop bottle fabric and the fabric made from scraps.
The fabrics are ethically made in North Carolina, he said, and the clothing is sewn in Haiti and Guatemala at co-op manufacturing facilities.
All the screen printing is done by local companies.
'Join the fight against plastic pollution'
Seaside Apparel's goal, he said, is "to help join the fight against plastic pollution, over-consumption and to give Newfoundlanders and Labradorians an alternative to fast fashion."
It's a fight Bessette became interested in a few years ago, after taking courses on the subjects at Memorial University.
"I started wondering if there was something I could do myself to make a difference," he said.
A portion of Seaside's profits also get donated to local clean-up activities.
Right now, people can buy the clothes on the Seaside Apparel website. He also sets up pop-up shops, and he'll be selling his wares at the Royal St. John's Regatta next week.
Bessette is happy with the slow-and-steady pace of his business's growth, and is aiming for an eventual expansion to the rest of Atlantic Canada.
"One by one, as people see it and want to join the whole movement, that's the ultimate goal."