Shamini Dhana — SHACK15

A model wearing a customized D/Sphere hoodie. All images courtesy of Shamini Dhana

SHACK15 member Shamini Dhana spoke in depth with us about her circular fashion company D/Sphere, launching in November 2021.

For the past 28 years, Dhana has been at the forefront in paving new markets, ventures, investment banking, government, finance and the fashion industry. As a global citizen, Dhana is committed to advancing human networks, environmental solutions, and business impact via ethical and sustainable fashion. She is passionate about celebrating our link to the natural ecosystems and paying it forward to value people and our planet every step of the way. She was previously a Senior Vice President at Silicon Valley Bank and managed the State of California's Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) Asia Pacific Program.

SHACK15: We’re curious about this topic of circular fashion, which seems to be gaining more and more attention as environmental awareness has grown. What is circular fashion to you and what drew you to develop a fashion business with people and sustainability as the focal point?

DHANA: Today, climate change is Top of Mind due to the impact of COVID-19 on the planet coupled with the effects of climate change on our lives from the fires, hurricanes, flooding and carbon emissions. And so when you look at the $3 trillion fashion and apparel industry, it is appalling to realize that over 70% of the clothing produced ends up in the landfill or is burnt – which is a $500 billion value opportunity. This model of take-make-dispose is one that is linear and represents most of the fast fashion industry and the true cost of fashion is both harmful and wasteful in terms of people and planet. Over 20% of all carbon emissions in the world is a result of the fashion industry. We need to transform this linear business model towards a circular business model where every piece of clothing is designed out of waste. The goal is to extend the life of the clothing as long as possible and bring it back to the current eco-system instead of the landfill.

My passion for the fashion industry is one that is steeped in sustainability – as I believe that “every day we place a piece of clothing on ourselves that has the power to connect us to people and planet”. I witnessed firsthand the exploitation of children and the pollution of our waters and rivers when I was in India working as Senior Vice President of a prestigious Silicon Valley bank. It was a pivotal moment in my life and I vowed to forever be the solution to environmental integrity and social justice. It was then, in 2008, that I established Dhana Inc. the parent company and began a journey of sustainable and ethical fashion with the vision of “Uniting Humanity Through Fashion.” In a 2017, we pivoted to becoming a circular fashion brand to ensure there was a closed loop system in place so that people would be able to apply the seven circular business principles: reduce, reuse, rent, repair, resale, repurpose and recycle.

SHACK15: What is D/Sphere and why did you decide to launch this venture?

DHANA: D/Sphere is a creative fashion platform to inspire people to design circular fashion with second life materials while doing good in the world.

D stands for Digital Fashion in the Digital Economy.

Sphere is symbolism for equality and inclusion in the world we live in.

I realized that people and in particular the next generation leaders (GenZs) care about climate change and are looking to be solutions to this phenomenon by endorsing brands with their wallets, taking action by reselling and the one thing that was missing was Creativity. That is where we step in and combine the environmental impact of repurposing clothing (saving on water, energy and carbon emissions) using a digital platform and providing creative tools for people to utilize their unwanted or used clothing into fresh new designs and fashion. We call this D/Sphere - Fashion ReCreated. It is the only digital fashion platform that also connects you with the garment worker who makes your clothing and by doing so, customers can share their gratitude and “pay it forward” by celebrating their fashion stories and one hundred percent personalized clothing that they co-created.

SHACK15: Where does D/Sphere stand within the larger world of circular and sustainable fashion, and within the fashion industry at large?

DHANA: D/Sphere is one of the innovative solutions based on principles of circularity. The differentiator here is D/Sphere is the people’s platform to create, impact and celebrate fashion. It is all about bringing a new fashion garment to life with technology as an enabler and driving social and environmental impact. So in other words, D/Sphere is inspiring people to create circular fashion and valuing people and planet every step of the way. Ultimately, we can envision D/Sphere as the platform of choice where people will visit and discover circular fashion by brands, designers and materials to recreate into new fashion. This is similar to platforms that provide a shared vision, with a goal of commerce and exchange with multiple players all belonging to the same tribe of doing good for people and planet.

SHACK15: Where do you see the fashion industry in ten years? Do you think there is a general trend in the fashion industry to move towards sustainability?

DHANA: Every fashion brand is already looking at the need to become more sustainable as it is what the next generation conscious consumer expects the world of fashion to demonstrate. Fashion brands and companies will be rewarded for their sustainability efforts including taxation on waste produced.

In ten years, we will see the fashion industry leveraging technology so that we will realize what it means to have zero waste designs, a tracking system to understand the true cost of making a piece of clothing – from the usage of water to carbon emissions and energy saved to new materials and fiber made out of multiple waste streams including food, fiber and natural resources like wood, wine and wool. Additionally, we will transition to “on-demand” fashion and personalization. I imagine fashion becoming an extension of our personas and the way we share stories and celebrate life through milestone events and priceless memories. Fashion is the new medium of storytelling connecting us to the people along the way and the planetary experiences we hold so dear to us.

Digitalization of fashion will be the era of possibilities and a digital revolution with people spanning the world with careers paths related to creating avatars of ourselves and fashion shows in the digital world.

“Less is More” as in ten years we may only have a few pieces of clothing but the ability to repurpose and recreate into new clothing will perpetuate a world of entertainment, creativity and imagination. We are spawning the birth of an era of minimalism and self-actualization through the journey of fashion.

SHACK15: What are you hoping to accomplish by launching D/Sphere, apart from generating awareness about the environment and people and fostering independent designs?

DHANA: We have truly evolved into a species where we seek human expression, the yearning for connection and to be able to storytell. Today, we do an excellent job with technology on our smartphones and through the medium of sound, video, film, music, art, food, and words we share these priceless memories with our friends and family.

With D/Sphere, I believe a new medium of creativity and self-expression is born with personalized fashion and storytelling. After all, almost ninety-nine percent of people wear clothes every day, travel the journey of life and make memories in them. And so, if we can associate and refer to a piece of clothing having a priceless memory attached to it, then it is safe to say we can wear our memories. D/Sphere is the platform towards creative expression with the ability to uniquely position the player in a clothing that tells timeless stories in the most captivating and perhaps colorful way.

SHACK15: Any words of advice for those who want to get involved in circular fashion?

DHANA: Circular fashion is the future of fashion, and we are looking at a movement that is clearly taking off and will become the standard for all fashion companies and brands of the future. It is also important that circular fashion means different things to different people as it is all encompassing when we look at the different models, actionable steps and avenues of collaboration. Learn about circular fashion and enroll yourself in the institutions and foundations leading the charge such as the Ellen MacArthur Foundation and follow fashion brands who pledge their support for circularity and sustainability. Like everything else, identify and demonstrate how you will impact people and our planet positively and by doing so, there is a good chance you are either tackling global textile waste or improving the lives of people, garment workers and folks in the fashion industry – both are as critical to the circular fashion revolution today. We, the Dhana Tribe, are always looking to share, educate and collaborate with others looking to move towards circular fashion and sustainability. Happy to connect as together “We’re Wearin’ The World” (Dhana’s tagline). Finally, I like to also say that it is important to reflect on “Brand-Customer Value Alignment” which is ultimately the question to ask when we embark on a fashion business. Dhana Inc. released the WearOurValues report back in 2019 and it clearly showed the need for brand transparency as a key factor in this move towards value alignment. To value people and our planet is embedded in the world of circular fashion.