Never Waste Money on Fast Fashion Again - Shop Sustainably with Yvette Estime

Welcome to Compassiviste Dialogues. I'm Ali, your host, and my mission with this podcast is to shed light on critical social and environmental issues worldwide, exploring avenues for positive change.

Today we’re thrilled to share the inspiring story of Yvette Estime, the founder of Dirty Celebrity, a sustainable fashion brand that’s changing the game. After leaving a corporate job, Yvette and her sister launched Dirty Celebrity, and within months, Yvette was named Alternative Designer of the Year by Lux Magazine and invited to join the Accessories Council.

In this episode, we’ll dive into Yvette’s journey of building a sustainable brand that uses deadstock and organic materials, all while prioritizing fair wages and local production to minimize emissions. Stay tuned as we discuss Yvette’s vision for a more eco-conscious fashion industry and how Dirty Celebrity is leading the charge. Let’s get started!

ABOUT GUEST:

Yvette Estime started Dirty Celebrity with her twin sister, Eva,  in 2020 after 6 years in a toxic corporate landscape.

The twins were born in NYC and lived in Spanish Harlem (aka El Barro) but now called East Harlem. They were the children of immigrants, a Hispanic father and a Jamaican mother. Their father was self employed and sowed the seeds of entrepreneurship early allowing us to sell candy at school and learn how to monetize our talents. Our mother took us to the 5th Ave shops during the weekend that fostered our love of fashion.

We later moved to Miami to escape the hardships of our neighborhood at 12 years old and fell in love with thrifting and  the bold colors of Miami nightlife. 

While living in Florida, Yvette completed her Masters in Psychology as her parents steered her away from an artistic career (as immigrant parents do). During the great recession, it became hard to sustain income in Florida and we moved to NJ.

In NJ, we thrived but the nagging feeling that we were missing out on our true calling grew especially during the pandemic where we had multiple brushes with Covid. We decided to throw caution to the wind and follow our hearts to launch Dirty Celebrity in 2020 informally and then put our LLC through in December of 2021.

We won numerous accolades during the 3 years including:

2020 Klarna Initiative
2021 Luminary Fellowship (co-working space)
2022 PNC x Corulus Venture fund
2023 Selfmade Fellowship 
2023 Elaine Gold Foundation Launchpad by the CFDA and Accessories Council

KEY NOTES:

The global shift to sustainability: What ignited the global awareness?
Can communities drive sustainability without government regulation?
The challenge of balancing plastic taxes and true environmental change
Making sustainability profitable: How can businesses turn eco-consciousness into an advantage?
Is overconsumption the root issue of today’s environmental crisis?

TIMESTAMPS:

00:00 - Episode Trailer
01:20 - Intro  
02:50 - The Shift to Sustainable: What Sparked the Global Consciousness?  
03:44 - Global Citizens: Navigating Identity Beyond Borders  
12:22 - Where does the name Dirty Celebrity come from, and what does it mean to Yvette?  
14:10 - Can Communities Drive Sustainability Without Government Policing?  
21:03 - Plastic Taxes vs. Real Change: Can Inconvenience Drive Sustainability?  
23:11 - The Profit Dilemma: How to Make Sustainability a Business Advantage  
26:52 - What Does It Mean to Have Access to Sustainable Fashion?  
28:35 - Collective Buying for Sustainability: A Solution or Overconsumption Trap?  
30:35 - Eco-Crimes and Marketing Lies: Who's Really to Blame for Environmental Catastrophes?  
37:20 - Clothing vs. Culture: Shifting Fashion from Brands to Beliefs  
47:50 - What’s Behind the Dirty Celebrity Affiliate Program?  
49:50 - How to be a Conscious, Mindful Shopper?  
55:40 - How can people reach Yvette?  
56:27 - The Overconsumption Dilemma: Is It the Key Issue of Today?  
58:12 - Can Consumer Power Force Corporations to Change Their Ways?  
01:01:55 - From Fantasy to Reality: Can Governments and Consumers Transform the World?  
01:08:38 - Outro  

THINGS MENTIONED IN THE PODCAST:

Website: https://shopdirtyceleb.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DirtyCelebrity/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dirty_celebrity/?hl=en
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@dirty_celebrity

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