Vegan Menswear Brands You Need To Know

With the rise of sustainable fashion, it's been easy to forget about menswear. Generally within the fashion conversation, men's clothing seems to be a bit of an after-thought – but with sustainable fashion in particular, it's been so heavily geared towards women that terms like "eco gender gap" have been coined to illustrate the disparity. Wherever you look, Earth-conscious clothing seems to be a woman's game.

By Sascha Camilli: writer, speaker, activist, and vegan fashion expert. 

One explanation for this could be that most designers in the eco-fashion realm are women. And as an overwhelming majority of garment workers are women, ethics in fashion appears to be a feminist issue. Vegan fashion echoes this, as vegan menswear brands aren't anywhere near as frequent as those aimed at women.

But men still wear clothes – and as such, ethical fashion should concern them. To address the gap in the market, ethically conscious companies have started increasingly catering to the male market, offering designs that men gravitate towards for the quality and style factor, alongside ethics. Here are some of our favourite vegan menswear brands.

The classic shirt specialists: Rewound Clothing

Rewound Clothing focuses on high-quality menswear in nature-friendly fabrics. All the materials that Rewound Clothing works with are either recycled or biodegradable - Tencel (which is made from wood-pulp cellulose), cotton, hemp and blends of the three make up their easy-to-wear range of men's shirts in pared-back neutrals as well as colourful patterns. The founders, Eleanor and David Jaffa, are a father-and-daughter duo whose idea for a sustainable vegan menswear brand was born during the COVID-19 pandemic. “Our mission is to create high-quality, sustainable shirts that fit straight into your wardrobe and that you’ll want to wear again and again," they say. "All of our shirts are timeless and trans-seasonal, so you can be sure to that you are making the most of the designs and shopping responsibly.”

The pioneers: Komodo Clothing

A champion of Britain's sustainable fashion scene since the late 80s, Mark Bloom is a true visionary: bringing back the colourful, unique vibes he discovered on his travels, he launched a sustainable clothing brand that has stood the test of time. Experimenting with patterns and textures in materials such as cotton, linen, and hemp, Komodo mainly works with GOTS-certified suppliers to ensure worker safety, equal rights, and fair pay. The brand is also working towards bringing in more animal-free materials to replace wool. "Why can't we look good while fighting for a world we believe in?" asks Bloom. And that is a question that Komodo's collections answer brilliantly. 

The boundary breakers: Brave GentleMan

Joshua Katcher is arguably one of the most prominent voices of ethical menswear. A former blogger and design school adjunct professor, he is also a published author and a hub strategist for forest conservation nonprofit Canopy. But none of this has stopped Katcher from running the ground-breaking apparel and accessory brand Brave GentleMan, which has been worn by Liam Hemsworth, Joaquin Phoenix and Alan Cumming to name a few. Bringing new-generation materials into menswear with covetable garments as well as footwear, Katcher is setting the standard for a new era of sleek, sustainable clothing for all.

The elegant accessory purveyors: Solari Milano

Solari Milano's elegant vegan shoes are as kind to the planet as they are stylish. This consciously minded label offers handcrafted shoes that are made from carefully sourced plant materials. With a background in investment banking in London, Niccolò Amati started the brand after being confronted with the necessity to wear non-leather shoes in a business environment. His business partner,  Orsola Amati, has a background in communication and vegan shoe production. Together, they create classic brogues, oxfords, and loafers in materials made from corn and hemp, to name a few. “We are proud to produce truly cruelty-free shoes, which are consciously green and embody Italian elegance,” says Amati.

The everyday shoe experts: V.GAN

Derrick Hoyle and Marcel Bordon were obsessed with shoes – so when they decided to launch their own brand, it was obvious that they would take on the footwear industry. As this industry is also among the world's top users of leather, the cruelty-free shoemakers decided to create a vast, wearable range of leather-free shoes that were unapologetically vegan. With an impressive selection of men's sneakers, sandals, boots and boat shoes, V.GAN is one of the vegan menswear brands that conscious consumers are guaranteed to reach for over and over again.

The accessory connoisseurs: Watson & Wolfe

Helen Farr-Leander knows her leather goods: after spending a decade working with luxury leather goods brand Aspinal of London, she did more research into the leather trade and its impact on the environment, which led her away from the industry and towards launching a vegan label. “I wanted to build a business that was considerate and that my children could be proud of too. Nobody should be profiteering on the back of environmental damage.” Specialising in accessories such as belts, wallets and small vegan leather goods, Farr-Leander crafts her designs from planet-conscious materials like leathers made from corn, cactus, and cork.

The smooth operators: Oliver Co. London

This London-based brand is on a mission to create highly functional, sustainably made accessories without compromising on style. Working with leathers made from apples and wood (yes, wood leather is a thing), the Oliver Co. brand went vegan after concerns about the leather industry's environmental and ethical impact. The brand's wallets, cardholders, and laptop sleeves are as sleek and sophisticated as they are sustainable, elevating the modern man's wardrobe with one easy touch. “We aim to change people’s perceptions of sustainability and, through using innovative new fabrics and working with high-end manufacturers, create minimalistic functional designs that outlive fashion’s seasonal trends," says founder Matt Oliver. "We’re only just seeing the start of bio-material innovation and there are lots of exciting developments to come.”

The sneakers to add to your wishlist: COG

While sneakers are at the core of this brand's offering, their ankle boots are also wishlist material. And speaking of materials, COG pays great attention to them: this brand works with planet-friendly grape leather Vegea, as well as cork, and recycled fibres such as recycled plastic and rubber. Many of their materials are OEKO TEX-certified. The details matter: even the small components, such as zippers and glues, are sourced with the environment in mind and are 100% vegan.

By Sascha Camilli

About Sascha

Sascha Camilli is a vegan fashion writer, speaker and activist. Her book Vegan Style is out now on Murdoch Books. For more about Sascha, you can read our interview with her or read her newsletter Kind of Wild. You can also follow her on Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn.

Cover image by COG. All images via respective brands.

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