At the start of 2016, Pauline Le and Vivian Le—the Founders of Salt + Coco, a sustainable swimwear brand based in Los Angeles—found themselves swimming in the tropical waters of Bali, Indonesia. Surrounded by the richest hues of blues and greens that nature has to offer, they discovered garbage floating everywhere; bottles, wrappers and other harmful plastic debris had tainted this sanctuary. The disturbing image left an eye-opening imprint on their perspective as it set the moral standards of Salt + Coco’s vision and built the foundation of their brand’s heartbeat.
Since their month-long trip to Asia three-and-a-half years ago, Pauline and Vivian developed the idea of Salt + Coco by fusing their love for fashion and their desire to better the world in all the ways they can. “We’re starting a brand with a purpose,” says Pauline, the marketing specialist, skilled photographer and social media guru. “We’re living in a different generation where we have to be more conscious of our actions. Every company should be heading towards this… There’s so much waste and things are getting overproduced.”
The mission of Salt + Coco is to promote the importance of sustainability through their collection of essential and versatile swimwear pieces designed with timeless looks to perfectly fit the body type of every saltwater lover, earth-conscious lounger and daring adventurer. Vivian, the talented fashion designer, is well aware of the detriments generated by fast fashion, which is why she designs every swim piece with the intentions of quality and longevity. “Just mentioning the word sustainability helps people become more aware,” she explains. “With Salt + Coco, you can be part of fighting for the greater good all while looking cute and feeling comfortable. It shouldn’t have to be a sacrifice.”
To help promote the earth’s longevity, they partnered with Carvico—a textile manufacturer that repurposes waste into ECONYL®, a sustainable Nylon. Produced by using refurbished fishing nets, Salt + Coco recently launched their second swim line collection designed with classic cuts that flaunt fun and bright, borderline-neon colors. They also designed stylish black boardshorts for men. The boardshorts are made with REPREVE®, a fabric created from recycled water bottles and other plastics.
Every aspect, function and detail that goes into Salt + Coco has a specific eco-friendly purpose to fulfill—from the fully-plantable hang tags infused with a mix of wildflower seeds to the timeless swim designs meant to be in-fashion for years to come. “Everything that goes into our swim line is of quality and detail,” explains Vivian. “It’s about the little things and going the extra mile to cater to the taste of our consumers and the wellbeing of our planet.”
With color options in orange, pink, blue, nude, white and gray, some crowd favorites are the two-piece Santorini bikini—a wide-deep V plunge top with adjustable straps—and the Positano two-piece bikini—a low rounded scoop with skinny modifiable straps—both accompanied with several chic choices of cheeky bottoms. Their multifaceted Capri One Piece in black can go from lounging poolside to throwing a pair of ripped jeans over in preparation for a fun night out. Whether you’re splashing in the water or exploring the city, the exceptional quality of the nylon fabric molds to your body, accentuating all the right places. “We’re not your average bathing suit line,” Pauline shares. “We wanted to create pieces that you can also wear as part of your outfit.”
The battle for the greater good doesn’t stop at sustainability for Salt + Coco. Along with being aware of the type of quality and fabric used to create their swim line, the Asian American duo also cares about what goes on behind the scenes of their production and how the workers creating their products are being treated.
On their excursion to Asia, the pair visited factories located in China, the Philippines and Vietnam. Many of these factories focused on creating cheap products for a fast market which contributes to additional waste.
“We didn’t understand the severity of how fast fashion played a negative impact on working environments until we physically witnessed some of the working conditions in factories throughout Asia,” recounts Pauline. “We want to use Salt + Coco as a platform to educate people on the realities of fast fashion and to support brands who are focused on being environmentally conscious.”
The partners conducted thorough research and found that factories in Bali promoted ethical manufacturing and used sustainable fabric to create quality products. “Our goal was to find a factory that shared our beliefs and that also met our needs and standards for quality,” she adds.
The self-funded company hopes to eventually expand Salt + Coco’s outreach worldwide. Their goal has always been to help make the world a better place to live in through the simplicity of a bathing suit: look good, feel good and spread the message to do good.
In the near future, they want to develop a system that encourages their customers to recycle and repurpose their swimsuits. “We’re not just a brand,” says Vivian. “We want to help our environment and be conscious of what’s going on and see where we can help.”
Match Made in Heaven | Possessing skills and attributes that the other may lack, the pair creates the perfect business partnership. Pauline is great at networking and understands the ins and outs of marketing, and Vivian handles the back-end logistics and creates incredible swim designs.
You Gotta Be FIDM Me | In 2015, Vivan attended the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising for fashion design and Pauline worked there as a front desk receptionist. They both wanted to start their own brand, and a mutual friend, Anika Corpus, connected them.
Same Same But Different | Although very different from one another, they’re “both very honest with each other and have thick skin.” Vivian shares, “We are so different in terms of what we like to do, but our work ethics are very similar.”
Weekend Vibes | On any given Saturday, you’ll find Vivian at home playing video games such as Kingdom Hearts and cuddling with her dog while Pauline puts shows together for Snoop Dogg and Ty Dolla $ign.
Photographed By: Andrea Domjan
Model: Sasha Patrick
Article Published In: Locale Magazine (pgs. 124-127)
Photoshoot Location:
Dream Hollywood | The Highlight Room
6417 Selma Ave
Hollywood, CA 90028
323.844.6417
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