Ethereal Tendencies talk sustainable fashion and owning a business

Tell us a bit about yourselves!

Hello! Our names are Jade and Malia Haakonsen, and we are 17 year old, twin sisterpreneurs from Los Angeles, California. As twin sisters, we grew up as best friends, finding similar passions for startups. Blending our complementary skills, our business has Jade as the Creative Director and Malia as the Financial Director.

Why did you create ethereal tendencies/what was the inspiration for it?

Jade: We started Ethereal Tendencies to inspire society through philosophical sayings and phrases. This idea of starting a clothing brand has been on our minds since 2017. The name is derived from words relating to delicacy and spirituality. Inspired by our progressive city of Los Angeles, we aim to bring a new element to the fashion industry.

Malia: A major motivation behind our brand is sustainability and the wages of garment workers across developing countries. Our grandparents are from the Philippines, which allows us to learn first-hand about the labor and factory system in other countries. We became inspired to be entrepreneurs after hearing many stories, deciding to blend these messages with current fashion.

Jade: Additionally, we want to launch a business to serve as an example to young female entrepreneurs. As someone striving for the involvement of women in business, I want to promote female empowerment and address the issues of gender equality and the wage gap.

What is your goal with Ethereal Tendencies?

Jade: Our goal and mission at Ethereal Tendencies is to instill deep thought among individuals and help them realize the meaning behind the clothes that they wear. We strive to raise awareness on fast fashion, sustainability, and the gender wage gap. Ethereal Tendencies features stylistic crewnecks and tees that reflect individuality. We hope to grow on an international scale and let people around the globe know about the significance of the fashion industry.

What is the process of making clothes? Do you guys make the shirts yourselves, or do they come from a warehouse?

Jade: We design the clothing colors and logos all on our own. Right now, our shirts and sweatshirts are printed and provided through a wholesale company with natural materials and given to us where Malia and I package and ship the orders ourselves. I’m excited to announce that we are in the process of setting up a made-to-order policy for the winter/spring launch in which we plan on making the shirts ourselves and integrating embroidery.

Tell us more about why you decided to contribute some of the proceeds to the #PayUp movement.

Malia: We think that making a fashionable brand aimed at teens will help gain more exposure to the issues of underpaid garment workers. As Filipino-American females, we feel a strong cultural connection to our country and hope to contribute back to laborers. Worried about the environmental and economic danger of quick factory-made clothing, both of us desire change in this element of society, especially in countries like the Philippines. Thus, we seek to help partner with organizations and campaigns like the #PayUp movement that will improve worker's wages and conditions, reminding them that they are important in this world.

Jade: The #PayUp movement appealed to our purpose of sustainability. We have a personal link with these Filipino garment workers by hearing stories from our grandmother. She tells us about the conditions of workers in her hometown of the Philippines. The stories of these unfair jobs motivates us to give back and support the Filipino community and others as well.

Why did you name the brand Ethereal Tendencies?

Malia: We created the name after thinking about how to spark deep thought among customers. My sister Jade and I tried to find two different words that one wouldn't think to combine together. We wanted to find a name that would be absurd yet thought-provoking. Jade wanted a name to reflect a heavenly, spiritual theme. I wanted the name to also add a theme of progression and a purpose of how people behave. We both had an epiphany and thought of the word “ethereal” to reflect the beauty and elegance of this world. Then, I thought that we should add the word “tendency” to the name to embody the patterns of society. The combination of the two words reflects the two sides of our personality: angelic thinking and natural processes. Ethereal Tendencies was born.