Wilmington clothing brand AndAgain thrives on collaboration and sustainability

A lot of clothing brands say they’re not like other clothing brands, but AndAgain really is pretty unique.

Started by University of Delaware graduates Morgan Young and Greg Harder when they were still students, AndAgain began with a simple focus on ethical fashion.

“Originally it started off that we wanted to bring sustainability into the fashion world,” said Young. “There are a ton of issues regarding manufacturing processes, it takes a tremendous amount of water to create denim — so that was our original mission.”

That original idea, to take used denim jeans and repurpose them into designer fashions, has evolved, with the help of Horn Entrepreneurship, into a brand with a strong sustainability message. Only using pre-existing jeans to create “new” garments remains the same.

But the evolution wasn’t done there. A trip to New York City last December introduced Young and Harder to a number of creatives who were enthusiastic about collaboration.

They quickly found that the art community offered the kind of support they were looking for. “It’s very closely knit and the people really want to help one another,” said Young. “Which I think is a much better aspect of the industry as compared to the fashion space. When you’re only in fashion, it’s super cutthroat.”

Every month AndAgain collaborates with a different artist. “They use our apparel as a blank canvas,” Young said. “We’re giving these artists another revenue stream, another outlet for their creativity that they might have not had before.”

Not to mention, the collaborative fashions look super cool.

An AndAgain jacket. (Courtesy image)

The way the art is applied to the garments varies from artist to artist. Some use printing techniques, some paint directly on the garment by hand, and some art is converted into digital embroidery.

Much of the physical creation of the garments are made by a network of skilled sewers all over the country, found on online freelance platforms like Upwork. “We have people from Connecticut, Virginia, some in the Midwest,” said Young. “Which is really fun, because we’re working with individuals as opposed to larger companies.”

AndAgain’s primary space is located at 1313 Innovation in Wilmington. It’s a larger space, separate from the coworking area. “We have a good amount of equipment, because we’re still sewing a good amount of pieces,” Young said.

Amber Vittoria, an award-winning illustrator based in NYC whose artwork focuses on femininity and the female form, is the newest collaborator with AndAgain, with a design that’s been turned into embroidery by Philadelphia-based artist Alyssa Spytman. The colorful design, which will grace the backs of jackets, will be available starting Sept. 21.