This New Sustainable Plus-Size Fashion Line is All About Versatility

It’s always a great day when a new plus-size label hits the market. On June 18, co-founders and sisters-in-law Harroop Gulati Kaur and Naaz Gulati launched HOURS, a contemporary, ethically minded clothing line available exclusively in sizes 14-28.

Initially launching with nine different silhouettes and a total of 20 different colorways, HOURS offers a collection of plus-size pieces that aren’t exactly basics, and aren’t exactly statement pieces. Instead, the founders focused on offering plus-size customers elevated wardrobe essentials that are high-quality, stylish, and are extremely versatile — all while maintaining a bit of an edge.

“Being in New York, the epicenter of fashion, we see all types of women every day and we can see that this industry is missing a high-quality chic line, Gulati says. “Our mission is to celebrate the plus-size woman with sexy, seasonless styles that you can wear from day to night. She is fun and confident, and above all does not compromise style due to lack of fit and availability”  

The collection includes a supersoft longline cardigan that can also be worn as a dress, leggings and matching tees, and a sleeveless skater dress. Prices range from $38-$178.

“We wanted to create high quality wardrobe staples that were sexy and cool and felt luxurious,” Gulati says, “But still effortless and easy to wear.”

The label is also focused on sustainability, a rarity in the plus-size market. Everything about the clothing — from the production stage to the fabrics — is as low-impact as possible.  

“Sustainability is a pillar of HOURS,” says Kaur. “We strive to keep that as a consideration for all decisions — especially in the production lifecycle, where much of the waste is created at the fabric level. Our collection is made of upcycled fabrics that would normally be discarded at the mills. We also made sure to produce only what was needed to reduce the amount of inventory excess that ultimately turns to waste.”

Though the label isn’t 100 percent sustainable yet, the HOURS founders plan to develop their business and production models to achieve that goal in the future.

“As we think about our future collections, we want to use even more eco-friendly fabrications while still delivering a premium product to our customers,” Kaur says. “There’s new technologies and so much innovation happening every day in the sustainability space.”

Part of that mission is a commitment to being totally plastic-free — and that includes both their garments and the packaging used to ship clothing to their customers.

“We are learning every day about what sustainability means for us as a clothing brand, and how this impacts the environment,” says Kaur. “We use 100 percent recycled and 100 percent recyclable packaging from our mailer, to our tissue paper to our envelope and do not use any plastic.”

HOURS is available at 10 a.m. EST on June 18 at itshours.co, and will drop new monthly collections starting in Fall 2019.  You can sign up for the mailing list here.

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