Q&A: Meet Isadora Alvarez, of Back Beat Co.

What are 3 core values that you associate with your brand?

Low impact, high comfort, high vibes.

Where are your products made?

We work with small factories in Los Angeles, India, and China.

Who would you say are muses for your brand (people of note alive or dead)

Zoe Kravitz, Peggy Oki.

What one word do you feel best describes the culture of your company?

Laid back (technically two words but that's really the phrase!)

How do you stay competitive in a market inundated with fast fashion?

We just try to put our own spin on things and make sure that every item is fit for our customer's everyday life. We also try to have as low of an impact as possible, so we try to make well designed pieces that have soul.
 

What kind of impact would you like your brand to have; whether environmentally or socially?

We try to be as low impact as possible; we use better fabrics like organic cotton, hemp, recycled cotton, and linen and we only produce in very small batches.

Why is brand transparency important?

If you're investing your hard earned money into buying a company's product, wouldn't you like to know if they are doing the best they can in terms of business practices like fair wages, wastefulness, company culture etc.... If I've got nothing to hide then I'll share it!

What sustainability challenges does your brand face?

We are a super small brand so we always hit roadblocks when it comes to ordering our low impact fabrics as the minimums are too high or we don't want to make too many of one thing, so a lot of factories don't want to work with us because our units are so low. I think for smaller brands in general it's always a challenge to do business and find partners who believe in you and want to help you grow!

Is there a brand you try to emulate in terms of sustainability/give back practices?

Eileen Fisher is the OG sustainable brand. She was doing things way before anyone even tried touching it. She's the ultimate dream!

What other sustainable practices do you try to implement in your life?

I try to make sure I always live with intention. We can never be 100% sustainable, but if we evaluate our everyday things and pick better choices if we can, then we are doing our best!

What are 3 words that best describe your personal shopping style?

Vintage, reworked, Back Beat Co!

Salty or sweet?

Both!

Current song on repeat?

You Need Love by Ebo Taylor.

Currents brands you are crushing on?

When I'm not wearing BBCO, I'm usually wearing vintage or various independent labels.

Why join essio?

It is such a great platform to be on and I love how it focuses on sustainability but in a well thought out way.