Natalia Trevino Amaro is not your typical young designer. Currently based in Los Angeles, Amaro is making a name for herself in the fashion world by combining her effortlessly stylish designs and her passion for sustainability, one handmade design at a time. Her work highlights an ethical approach to fashion while beautifully fusing two juxtaposed styles – seductive femininity and edgy expression. Ultimately, her brand calls for a total shift in Gen Z’s view of fashion and consumption.
In the world of Amaro, transparency about how your clothes are made is the norm. Unlike the typical fast fashion brands that Gen Z tends to buy into, its slow fashion brand, NTA, refuses to take part in the damage the industry is causing to garment workers and the environment. At the heart of its values? Ethics and sustainability. While attending the Fashion Institute of Technology as an undergrad, Amaro was introduced to the conversation about sustainability, as well as the effects the fashion industry has on our planet. After graduating in 2020, she knew she wanted to launch her own sustainable brand and she immediately started making waves in the industry. At the end of September 2022, she had organized her first and very own show at New York Fashion Week. In this interview with Her Campus, Amaro shares more about her work as a fashion designer, her perspective as a member of Generation Z, and how this generation can start consuming more mindfully.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
Her Campus: Could you tell us a bit more about the reality of most of the world’s favorite fashion brands and the effects of fast fashion?
Natalia Trevino Amaro: Even in the past two years, the fast fashion industry has grown ridiculously. I think with social media and TikTok, and people wanting any viral piece to emerge at the time so fast, everyone reproduces it at such insane speeds. So there is a ridiculous amount of overproduction and overconsumption. Not terrible for the planet in terms of end of product life, but also in pre-production.
I feel like people choose to ignore it, in a way. Because even growing up, when we weren’t really talking about the sustainability space, even just in terms of ethics, people know that sweatshops exist. It’s always been one thing to know that things are made in China, the people, the slave labor, all those things are known. It was never a hidden fact, but I think people either didn’t know there was a way around it, or didn’t care, or it had become so normal that people didn’t care to listen to what they heard. Growing up, I knew sweatshops existed, but I don’t know why I never bothered to say “Oh my god, maybe I shouldn’t support brands that do this.” It never clicked for me until much later. There’s a lot going on with the industry.
HC: What sustainable practices does your brand implement?
NTA: One of my main practices is to be primarily a make-to-order brand. I only make parts after they’ve been sold, which reduces any excess stock at the end of the season. This way there is no overproduction. I also try to be as zero waste as possible, so I save all my waste and reuse it if I can, and some I’ve started sending out to be properly recycled just because I have a lot of it.
I have so many scraps that I can’t even imagine how much fast fashion companies make, because I feel like I’m overloaded with them and that’s literally just me. Then I also have carbon neutral shipping on my website, and I also use mostly unused fabrics, which are designer leftovers. Once it’s gone, it’s gone, and I can’t replicate it, which is also fun.
HC: How would you describe the style/aesthetic of your brand?
NTA: I think I’m relatively minimal. I like to be very classic and timeless. I don’t like getting into super trendy things or super crazy colors or things like that. I try to be fairly neutral in this aspect. But also rather feminine, but maybe a bit edgy.
HC: What would you say to someone who is intimidated by the higher price of durable clothing?
NTA: I think it’s just a mindset change. I was also intimidated. I used to be the type of person who shopped quite frequently. I used to go to Forever 21 every other weekend with my friends in our spare time, so you spend at least $20 each time. If you use all the money you used to spend on fast fashion but only buy once or twice a year, it balances out the same way. So it’s just about prioritizing quality over quantity.
At the end of the day, you probably spend the same amount, or at least that’s how I feel because I used to shop so often, but it was always like, “Oh, that’s only $5 is only $10,” whatever. Of course, it adds up. He just doesn’t want to at the moment. You have to say “OK, well, if I only run errands a few times a year, then maybe spending $200 on a part doesn’t really matter in the lifetime of how much you’re going to use it , because you don’t do my shopping often, so it balances out.
CH: What does it mean to you, as a Gen Z designer, to have a voice in the fashion industry?
NTA: It means a lot. Gen Z is generally a pretty vocal generation, which I so enjoy being a part of. I feel like the older designers, the classics, never talked about sustainability or anything too deep in fashion years ago. It was just very much about “fashion is art”, which is really cool and I obviously love it.
But I think it’s really cool to see a new generation of designers coming along, and actually not only caring about the money that might come from the brands they make, but the impact is the highest priority part. Gen Z is actually trying to make a change and listen to people who are trying to make an impact.
HC: What are some of the things consumers can do to shop more consciously?
NTA: If you are going to buy something, you have to think: Am I really going to wear it multiple times? Is it an impulse buy? Is it of good quality? Will it last me long? Am I 100% liking the fit, knowing I’m really going to wear it?
If it’s wrong and you don’t wear it, it won’t work. If you’re going to buy jeans or something like that, make sure they’re jeans that you’re going to love wearing for the next few years. Personally, I have a lot of fast fashion purchases from when I was in high school that I still wear to this day. Being aware of what you are consuming and why you are consuming it is usually the best way to start.
HC: I saw on TikTok that your most recent designs are inspired by Taylor Swift the most iconic concert outfits, which fans can wear to her Periods concerts! Can you tell me a bit more?
NTA: So, it’s so funny. I’m a huge Taylor Swift fan, and it’s pretty obvious if you know me, and I recently, for Halloween, did the reputation visit held like my costume. I’ve had a few people contact me saying, “Hey, could you do this again for her Tour of eras for next year?” I was like, “Yeah. I’m totally ready to do that. Then I thought to myself, you know what? What if I just put it out there in the world that I’ll make outfits for it Tour of eras? So, I did a TikTok and I was like, “Hey, I’m going to make your outfits for the Tour of eras, all that you want. I’m so depressed.”
Of course, TikTok is going viral and doing well, it has really hit the right audience. So now I’ve had hundreds of emails from people wanting custom outfits for the Taylor Swift tour. So now I just do custom outfits for the Taylor Swift Periods round!
HC: Do you have any advice for people in design school who want to eventually create their own brand?
NTA: I feel like it’s really cheesy, but I would say, stay true to yourself and your creations. When it comes to starting a business or a brand, I think the most important part is to stand out and stay true to what you actually love and what you do. I think putting on the most authentic things for you will attract more people to you, rather than trying to recreate whatever sort of hip vibe is going on, because that fades.