On May 6th, Stine Goya’s Østerbro store emerged from its lockdown cocoon and reopened as an archive. Goya Gallery, a permanent addition to the Goya retail family, offers fans of the brand the chance to shop old seasons, collection classics, unique samples, and upcycled one-offs for up to 70% off.
Originally planned as an entire new store to be launched in fall, the opening date was brought forward as the stores lay dormant and consumer habits changed in light of COVID. “We we’re looking to launch a rental platform during this period,” explains Angela Etiebet, in charge of global PR & marketing at Stine Goya, “but we felt Goya Gallery and giving access to our archive made more sense in terms of consumer behavior at this time.”
“We felt that is was the right time for us to do something that could create a new story around our circular economy and trying to close the loop,” says Goya herself of the decision to move this opening forward.
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“The gallery is something we’ve been planning for a while but we couldn’t find the right spot. We thought it would make sense to turn the Østerbro store into the gallery store, just to get this idea out into real life.”
The archive store is one part of a multifaceted commitment to sustainability, launched in 2019. As outlined in their sustainability report, Stine Goya is focusing on “People, Product, and Planet” and has already made big changes to the way they operate. Their use of sustainable fabrics has dramatically increased and brought with it new inspiration for the Scandinavian brand.
Says Goya of these developments: “It’s quite exciting now to be able to do things that have a sustainable impact. We as a brand design only what we believe in – we’re trying to tell stories. Now we are able to do things that are true to our designs with materials that are sustainable, which is very inspiring.”
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The interest surrounding Goya Gallery, which has seen people patiently queuing inline with COVID protocol to get their hands on pieces of Goya’s history, signifies an exciting cultural shift and an understanding that new isn’t always best.
Secondhand has carried a stigma for a while, so much so that luxury resale has struggled to enter the Chinese market due to cultural taboos.
This, coupled with the unabated pressure to dress in new season – which has been encouraged by street style’s growing influence and brands dressing key figures in clothes that are yet to hit the runway – has created an unsustainable demand for new products and a wealth of waste in its wake.
Our wardrobes need to last longer than 12 months if we’re to create any significant change to fashion’s carbon footprint. Changing the culture around old seasons, secondhand, and dead stock is a vital tool in managing the surplus clothing produced by rampant consumerism.
“It makes me so happy when I see people wearing my older pieces. I still get excited that people are keeping their items from collections that are many years old, because they actually are timeless pieces,” says Goya.
“I’m very proud to have a brand that can feel timeless.”
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Selling off older pieces isn’t enough to close the gap between production and waste, which is why Stine Goya reduced their AW20 collection by 35%, and moving forwards will reduce by 50%. It’s also why they’ve chosen to stop forecasting sales, to allow for a truer order that will reduce excess stock.
This is an exciting time to be investing in resale, as questions around the viability of the fashion calendar and fashion weeks grow louder. Stine Goya has echoed a feeling felt throughout the industry in opting to “proceed with a more digital type of presentation” this coming fashion week. “It just feels like it’s not the right time to do a fashion show.”
The Goya Gallery is currently only available at their Østerbro shop, although there is a possibility it will be available online again in the future. “We wanted it to be special. We might do it again when we pick up some special items from our archives, but it’s not something we want to have permanently online,” explains Goya.
Frustrating though it may be to not get your hands on these special archival pieces, it is a necessity: we all need to start looking at what already exists around us, instead of buying new.
See more from Stine Goya.
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Goya Gallery
Østerbrogade 46
2100 Copenhagen
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