While we may be enjoying some late September sun this week, soon we’ll say goodbye to the good weather and find ourselves navigating the season change as autumn arrives, bringing with it warm wooly jumpers, coats, scarves and boots. But in the fashion world, sights are set firmly on spring/summer 2022, with shows and presentations taking place at fashion weeks in New York, London, Milan and Paris this month. Irish fashion label Circus is no different, presenting images of its collections for next year. With some 200 stockists across Europe, this vintage-inspired brand is finding its feet after navigating the ups and downs of the global pandemic.

Lockdowns and ensuing retail closures throughout 2020 forced Tom Walsh and his team to make the difficult decision to close its bricks-and-mortar retail store, Carousel, with locations in Dublin, Cork and Galway, shifting to an online-only business model with its website www.ilovecarousel.com, where Circus is currently stocked.

With all pieces designed in Ireland, Circus’s identity sits firmly in the vintage-inspired bracket with ‘50s and ‘60s style dresses brought up-to-date with modern prints and vibrant colours. While ethical production and manufacturing was always a priority for Walsh, a number of years ago he began to examine production methods in an effort to move towards a completely sustainable model.

Circus clothing is produced in a factory in the Good Earth India factory in Delhi, which is certified by SEDEX (Supplier Ethical Data Exchange, an online system that allows suppliers to maintain data on ethical and responsible practices) but Walsh wanted to improve the sustainability credentials of Circus’s garments, he tells us, “We went through the year-long process of registering with Eco Vero, GOTS and BCI. Eco Vero is a sustainable wood pulp based viscose product made from replenishable forestation. GOTS is the Global Organic Textiles Standard and BCI is the Better Cotton Initiative. We now only use BCI cotton/organic cotton, Eco Vero and other sustainable fabrics. We are currently looking at bamboo derived fabrics and Tencel.”

Once Walsh and his team were happy that the brand’s ethical and sustainability values were reflected in Circus fabrics and products the company began growing its wholesale business across Europe and is now stocked in over 200 stores across Europe and the USA.

Evoking warm summer days on the continent, Circus’s spring/summer 2022 collection is filled with colour and optimism and would make the perfect addition to your suitcase when next year’s long-awaited European adventures come around. Says Walsh, “I believe that clothing should not just be functional but also express hope, fun and a person’s unique personality.”

Now all we have to do is get through the next six months until spring arrives … Until then, you can find the Circus AW21 collection available to shop now on www.ilovecarousel.com.

Where to find Circus

Website – www.ilovecarousel.com

Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/followCarousel

Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/ilovecarousel/