These fashion and beauty brands fight the coronavirus by making masks and medical supplies

Karla Colletto Swimwear has been manufacturing chic and sophisticated swimwear for 30 years. But instead of sewing machines in their factory in Virginia humming to make swimsuits and playful bikinis, they will soon make surgical masks instead to help fight the coronavirus. We decided to take action to help make PPE because we realized that we were in a unique position to help nurses and primary care physicians, says Karla Colletto, co-founder of Swimwear Karla Colletto. As stores started to cancel or postpone orders, we had to shift gears and reallocate our facilities to bring back our workforce and help the community.

They are not the only fashion brand to embark on this unprecedented period. When New York Governor Andrew Cuomo asked for help for the medical supply chain on Twitter, Christian Siriano replied that he was there and mobilized his sewing team, who works from home, to help make masks. Rag & Bone answered a similar call, and Brandon Maxwell, Prabal Gurung and Los Angeles Apparel are also in the game, to name a few.

As the The coronavirus crisis is constantly evolving, as are the needs to combat it, with the new FDA and constantly evolving state regulations. For the last week, Prabal Gurungs team worked with Governor Cuomos office and local hospitals to finalize an action plan manufacture PPE for medical workers and first responders. The fashion industry is a community that has a tremendous amount of heart and innovation, and fashion designers are the soul of this industry, says Gurung. Designers, publishers, retailers, manufacturers all of us are united in our intention and our great desire to help by providing a robust and effective response to the coronavirus crisis. We are all evolving to meet government-mandated standards to produce the personal protection that is safe and necessary to keep medical workers, patients and the community safe. At this time of information overload, confirmed and factual information is what will be crucial for my team and the fashion sector’s COVID-19 rescue efforts.

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Before Governor Cuomo called on people to stay inside and practice social distancing, Brandon maxwell took steps to protect staff two weeks ago by allowing everyone in the studio to work from home. “We equipped the workshop with sewing machines and our administrative team of computers so that they could continue to work on the collections,” explains Maxwell. In response to the global need for PPE in hospitals, we decided to devote our time to the creation of gowns and mask covers. It was important for us to use our resources and our help in one way or another. We managed to obtain a durable, breathable and water-repellent technical fabric for the dresses. There is a massive shortage of medical tissue on the market, so we use the best option until antimicrobial medical tissue is available. Large companies have reached out to donate materials, so we have 100% cotton that we will use to create the mask covers. As more and more medical grade textiles become available, be sure to switch to using these fabrications. We are open to hearing from anyone with information on donation locations or organizations that need these supplies.

Like so many other industries, the coronavirus has had a profound impact on the economy of the fashion worlds. It must be a very difficult time for everyone, says Lisa Rovan, co-founder of Karla Colletto Swimwear. We can only speak for Karla Colletto swimsuits, but currently 10% of our orders have been canceled, the balance being carried over to subsequent deliveries. We have stopped production until further notice. Making supplies will help bring the workforce back for the months to come. The Gurungs brand produces over 90% of their collections in New York, so they hope their efforts will help not only those on the front lines of COVID-19, but also revitalize American producers and suppliers.

For Karla Colletto Swimwear, having their own installation makes them more agile. [It] allows us to shift quickly and our skilled employees are ready to work, says Colletto. Out of 40 employees, 22 are qualified sewing machine operators. Our hope is to get them all back to work as soon as possible, but we are still trying to determine how many people will be able to bring them back for this project. We can organize the machines according to CDC distance guidelines. For example, they will organize the machines six feet apart. We haven’t reopened yet; we are currently working with suppliers to receive materials as well as government agencies and authorized distributors, so that we can start producing personal protective equipment according to the appropriate guidelines, Rovan says. They will start by producing surgical masks, but are also ready to make dresses or anything else that can be done in their establishment.

Beauty brands are also doing their part, while beauty juggernauts Coty, LOreal and LVMH have announced that they will all start making hand sanitizers. for European hospitals. Companies also respond to states, such as Apostrophe, a telemedicine platform dedicated to dermatology which is refocusing its efforts to produce a hand sanitizer. This is how we can have the greatest impact, says Ben Holber, CEO and co-founder of Apostrophe. The FDA has announced the shortage of drugstore pharmacies to meet the national shortage. We immediately bought our first barrel of 58-gallon isopropyl alcohol and started buying bottles. We all want to do what we can to help.

Apostrophic hand sanitizers will be available for sale to the public, which is crucial to stopping the spread of the coronavirus, and will donate 100% of the profits to the WHO COVID-19 Response Fund. Our hand sanitizer strictly follows WHO guidelines, says Holber. As a prep pharmacy, we follow the formula precisely to make sure it works as expected. Weve noticed that many people make their own disinfectants at home. Although I love resourcefulness, many of these recipes are poorly made and endanger the user. If the recipe is not reliable, it gives a false sense of security.

In the end, through these big and small beauty and fashion brands, they prove that everyone can do their part to fight coronavirus even if it’s as simple as staying at home. While we can’t be physically together right now, we think we will come out stronger from this team, says Maxwell. It is important for us to seize the opportunity not only for each other, but also for the communities that count on us.