Bye bye Nau: sustainable apparel company hangs it up
While it seems like the world of eco-fashion is bursting with growth potential, investors are apparently not feeling the love for green clothing startups in these shaky economic times. Citing an inability to raise funds for the next quarter, Portland-based eco-fashion company Nau is calling it quits after only 14 months. Founded by ex-Nike and ex-Patagonia executives, Nau's mission was to blend fashion, environmentalism, and social activism into an experimental business model -- donating 5% of all sales to non-profits. The tragic part of Nau's plight is that the operations side of their business model was actually working -- it was their timing that proved to be their undoing. After turning out high quality sustainable products, stronger than expected sales, and donating $223,000 to non-profits through their customer-directed Partners for Change program, the drying up of venture capital has driven Nau to the breaking point. Bummer. Their unique way of doing business has definitely left its mark in the world of green business. Right now, they're entire inventory is 50% off.
[via Treehugger]
The race for the world's first "green" island
Tommy Lee's green makeover_thumbnail.jpg)
Transportation Alternatives: Designing a "post-automobile" street
_thumbnail.jpg "Green superheroes")
