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C.A.L.I.C.O.

Brand

1993 - 1999

Sold in the 1990s, C.A.L.I.C.O. was a Montreal brand of clothing made primarily of hemp fibre and recycled textiles. The company was founded in 1993 by couple Julie Lefebvre and Charles Brochu. The latter was in charge of the administrative side of C.A.L.I.C.O. while his spouse was the designer. Before going into business, Julie Lefebvre had worked for fashion designer Jean-Claude Poitras while studying fashion design at LaSalle College in Montreal. She then continued her studies at Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design in London.

The brand’s two lines, C.A.L.I.C.O. and Strawberry Fields by C.A.L.I.C.O., were sold at the company’s store on St. Denis Street in Montreal. Its collections were also distributed via a network of retailers in Canada and the United States.

At the time, the Montreal label was seen as an eco-fashion pioneer, which earned it a profile in the American magazine Hemp Times.

The brand was also featured in an exhibition entitled Au Courant: Contemporary Canadian Fashion presented in 1998 at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto.

C.A.L.I.C.O. ceased operations in 1999.

Sources

« La rage du recyclage », La Presse, 11 septembre 1996, (récupéré dans Eureka!)

« S’habiller recyclé », La Presse, 10 décembre 2002, (récupéré dans Eureka!)

Publication date

01/10/2004

Writing

Dicomode

Revision

Madeleine Goubau, Contributor

Last edited on
01/02/2019 Suggest an edit

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