Head outside and it won’t be long before you spot someone sporting a pair of Lucy & Yak’s trademark colourful dungarees. The ethical brand are almost as well known for their sustainable business model and cute pink shops as they are for their distinctive clothes. A few months after the opening of the second Lucy & Yak store in Brighton, we caught up with co-founder Lucy Greenwood to talk all things conscious fashion, breast censorship, and the joys of van life.
Your second Brighton store is a ‘concept store’ and the eighth Lucy & Yak in the UK. What’s behind the idea of that? And why did you choose Brighton’s Lanes?
A concept store is something I’ve always wanted to test as a playground for sustainable conversations, workshops and events. We’ve been running events and ’Re:Yak’ workshops in our little pink shops for the past couple of years but we wanted to test a space that would speak to our earthy customers, like myself! We can’t wait to share more details on what we’ll be hosting, the team are working hard to bring this together to share soon. In terms of location, Brighton is home to our first shop as well as our Brighton office making it easy for us to pop over or test out a new idea. I can’t wait to see where our journey takes us next.

You’re well known for having a brand that is kinder to the planet than some others, but how do you maintain the company’s core values as you grow?
We’ve always sought to champion making products ethically, from our fabric choices to our relationship with our suppliers and partners, because we know it’s the right thing to do. This mindset has been with us from the beginning, but over the years we’ve learnt that to make significant progress on this journey, we need to partner with leading organisations who can support us in achieving the high standards that we’ve set ourselves. Last year, Lucy & Yak was re-certified to meet global organic textile, content and recycling standards.
We believe that brands should take responsibility for the lifecycle of their pieces even after purchase – it’s one of the first things we discussed when launching Lucy & Yak in 2017. To support our growth, in 2023, we launched our first buyback scheme, offering an easy way to give pre-loved Yaks a new life, or support customers to recycle them once they can’t be enjoyed any more. For every item returned to us, you’ll get a voucher to spend online and in store.
Something brands usually move away from as they start to expand is transparency with customers. This has got harder as we’ve expanded as we have so much going on behind the scenes. But to keep transparency at the forefront of our minds, we hired a sustainability manager. They work closely with our product and marketing teams to ensure our practices are trackable right through our supply chain and that we’re sharing the right information across our various platforms. We’re not perfect, but we’re always looking at how we can be better.
In 2023, Lucy & Yak appeared in a list of the top fastest-growing companies in the UK in The Times (at number 72). What does the future look like for the brand?
Receiving this three years in a row really has been such a huge achievement for us and also offers a chance for reflection. ‘Looking after people and planet’ has always been a driver for us since we launched back in 2017. ‘People’ includes the community, our customer base, that have supported us over the years. We never want to lose sight of this as we grow, so looking at more ways we can work with our customers to build the brand is a priority.
For ‘planet’, we’ve always stuck by our ethos of owning the lifecycle of our products. If we create something new, it should be our responsibility as a brand to take ownership of that item, even after it gets handed over to the customer. We’ve already got the Re:Yak buyback initiative and later this year we’ll be expanding Re:Yak online… Keep an eye on our socials for updates! We want to push this further with our shops too, I won’t say too much but an outlet store would be a great idea, don’t you think?

We love the idea of an outlet store! You already organise the (Im)Perfect Yaks Sale in London, any chance of seeing something similar in Brighton?
Brighton has a special place in my heart, and it’s where a lot of our team is based too. We love hosting our (Im)Perfect Yaks Sales – there’s no better feeling than bringing our community together. And who can resist finding some cool pieces while also keeping clothes in circulation? You’ll have to stay tuned for what’s next…
We’ll keep our fingers crossed for a Brighton version then! But on to other topics: earlier this year, you launched a campaign against breast and chest censorship, targeting social media algorithms…
Celebrating our bodies is one thing, but how we share this throws a number of challenges into the mix which is why we started to think about censorship. How could we share a campaign, when our message and content can’t be seen online or billboards? We like to think we’re in control of what content we’re seeing, but in actual fact AI algorithms hold a lot of the power. And, as it turns out, these AI systems are susceptible to mistakes and bias – mistakes that negatively impact and over-censor women, plus-size people, sex-positive accounts, non-binary and trans people on social media.
Our aim with the Baring All campaign was to use our platforms to show off something that is generally deemed as taboo and asking the question ‘why are some bodies or nipples censored and sexualised while others are not?’ The best part is Meta fell straight into our trap, taking down one of our posts on Instagram and Facebook – before the campaign even kicked off! As far as answering this question, I think it’s far from answered but I hope our campaign will keep the conversation open and inspire more people to speak up.
We’re a few months on now – how has the campaign been received?
It really got people talking, but this conversation is far from over. With our purpose-led campaigns, we’re all about making sure our community feels empowered and informed. As a brand, we know we can’t change the world, but sparking off these discussions? That’s where we can start to help push the needle forward. We always invite and encourage our community to keep this conversation going on their own channels with friends and family.
We’ve got a few Brighton (and Hove)-specific questions for you now: whereabouts in Brighton do you all live? What do you like about it?
I’ve actually been embracing van life! Brighton’s my homebase for now, but I’m always on the move, depending on work and family. I love catching the views in the Peak District or hanging out in my hometown of Barnsley (South Yorkshire), there’s never a shortage of things to do! Also, [inland surf spot] The Wave in Bristol, or the sandy beaches in Cornwall for the surf scene.

What’s your perfect day in Brighton? And which Lucy & Yak outfit would you wear for it?!
That’s a tricky one, I could list too much here, but here we go: I would definitely start with an early morning walk with my dog Louie on the beach, it’s always so peaceful before the city wakes up. Next up, breakfast in the Lanes – I love the açai bowls from Wolfox. As it’s my perfect day, the surf will also be perfect (obviously), so I’d head out for a couple of hours before coffee and lunch in the van to refuel. Brighton is so much more than just a city, so I’d head up into the Downs for sunset – we really do get the best sunsets down here.
In terms of clothing, I’m currently living in our Rumi trousers – super comfy with loads of pockets (probably the most pockets we’ve made?!). I’ve also managed to get my hands on the new Wesley jacket (founder perks!) early – it’s our corded oversized hoodie. We also have some really cute towelling co-ords that I’ve got my eye on for post-surfing.

Any top shopping spots in the city?
I’d have to say our new shop in The Lanes! Its design speaks so much to me and it also stocks our new-season collection which I’m so excited about.
We’d agree! Thanks, Lucy!
You can find Lucy & Yak’s original store at 18 Kensington Gardens and the new concept store at 59 Ship Street.
lucyandyak.com