What 2025 Taught Us About Resilience, Community, and Ethical Fashion

We are really, really excited to see the beginning of a new year. There’s nothing better than a fresh start, especially after a year full of unexpected challenges.

In 2025, running a small, ethical fashion business meant navigating day-to-day tariff changes and unpredictable economic policies. We were constantly adjusting, recalculating, and holding tight. At times, it felt like a hanging onto a roller coaster without a seatbelt.

In addition to that uncertainty, two major ethical marketplaces (DoneGood and Made Trade) shuttered their businesses, creating sudden dead ends down two of our most reliable sales avenues.

We know that you, too felt the impact of economic uncertainty. Consumer price sensitivity was high, and we understand why. When financial planning feels uncertain, spending decisions become harder.

For Passon Lilie, we experienced an overall 11% decline in total sales compared to 2024. But our year is not a story of failure, it is one of resilience. Instead of compromising our values or cutting corners, we focused on building a stronger fair trade business, diversifying what we offer, and designing new products we know you’ll adore.

Diversifying our sales channels to build a more resilient fashion brand

One of our biggest takeaways from 2025 was the importance of diversification for small, sustainable fashion brands. While some of our channels declined, others showed encouraging growth. 

• Wholesale (Faire) grew by 14%, becoming our strongest channel
• Etsy sales also grew by 14%, even with reduced ad spend
• Our French Quarter shop experienced a 62% sales increase on the products we carefully curate from local and fair trade makers

We prioritized our relationships with wholesale partners, invested in local products, and stayed flexible as we encountered challenges.

Today, we’re proud to share that 55 independent shops across the U.S. carry Passion Lilie clothing. Each one represents the values we share: slow fashion, fair wages, and beautiful garments made to last.

Resilience through community and connection

Resilience doesn’t happen in a vacuum. In 2025, it was our community, near and far, that made Passion Lilie stronger.

Supporting local and ethical makers in New Orleans

We leaned more deeply into collaboration, especially within our New Orleans community. Our city is full of makers doing thoughtful, creative work, and we’re proud to share our space with them. From Bayou Soap Company, founded by a Grammy Award–winning saxophonist, to Walking Man Studios, whose handmade cards depict the best of New Orleans, these brands reflect the values we care about: creativity, thoughtfulness, and sustainability. Carrying their products in our shop allows us to help amplify other small businesses, just as they do for us.

That sense of mutual support extends beyond our walls. Local partners like Feet First proudly carry Passion Lilie clothing and actively share our mission with their customers. These relationships remind us that small businesses are strongest when we champion one another.

Giving back through philanthropy and community partnerships

Giving back remains a core part of how we show up for our community. In 2025, we donated 5% of our profits to organizations doing meaningful work, including ricRACK NOLA, Glass Half Full, and Grow Ahead. Supporting these nonprofits is one small way we contribute to a more resilient, equitable future for our neighbors and the planet.

Measuring our environmental footprint and reducing fashion’s impact

In 2025, our team in India achieved an important milestone: our apparel production unit became carbon neutral!  Even more exciting, the factory began implementing digital meters to track electricity, solar energy, and water usage. Within the next year, we’ll be able to share precise data on how much energy goes into making each garment — allowing us (and you) to better understand and reduce our environmental footprint.

This kind of success may not show up in sales numbers, but it’s incredibly important to us and is certainly one of the 2025 victories we’ll celebrate.

What resilience means to us as a fair trade fashion brand

We’re building Passion Lilie to last. For us, resilience means:

• Designing clothes that are beautiful, comfortable, and durable. You’ll be able to love them through many seasons of life.
• Paying fair wages, providing safe working conditions, and treating all people with dignity. Our long-term partnerships build stable livelihoods for the artisans who make Passion Lilie products.
• Choosing organic cotton and low-impact dyes, and never compromising on the highest quality of fibers we use for our clothing.
• Strengthening relationships near and far, as those are the most important part of any life, any business.

Every piece of Passion Lilie clothing and every system we use from farm to clothing rack reflects these values.

Looking ahead

New year, same great clothes and same important values. We’ve got exciting things coming this year – a new product line (check the Impact Report for a clue), expanding our Pre-Loved and circular fashion efforts, and continued investment in the people and organizations doing great work in New Orleans and around the world.

We’re proud of what we’ve built over the last 13 years, and we’re grateful to everyone who has supported Passion Lilie along the way.

Read the Full 2025 Impact Report

This blog post is just a snapshot. Our full Impact Report dives deeper into the numbers, stories, and strategies behind 2025.

📖  Read the full 2025 Impact Report here

Thank you for supporting Passion Lilie — not just this year, but every year. Your belief in ethical fashion makes everything we do possible.