"We believe in creating the world you wish to live in, meaning every step of the creation process is guided by our aim to contribute to a more sustainable, eco-conscious and inclusive future." ~ Lynda, CEO
As a brand, we recognised from day one that in order to make a difference, we needed to do things differently. Our first step towards conscious fashion was making our production chain local.
With our fabric mill, embroiderer, printer, garment factories, and head office all located in Melbourne, Australia, we’re able to keep our carbon footprint to a minimum whilst overseeing every part of the production process, ensuring transparency and accountability from start to finish.
Low Impact, High Performance
We choose low impact and/or recycled fabrics like 100% Australian Merino Wool, ProForm™ EcoFlex, Ultra Fleece™ and Eco Breathe™ whenever possible. Selected for their natural performance enhancing qualities, these fabrics require less energy, use natural or recycled materials, are biodegradable, and have a substantially smaller environmental impact than other synthetic fibres.
From humble origins beginning with a small storefront in Melbourne, Victoria in 1988, Energetiks has steadily grown into the leading Australian dancewear brand trusted by dancers worldwide.
Guided by the vision of founders Gail and Lynda, Energetiks' unwavering passion and commitment to empower dancers to live well and perform well has shaped the company into the internationally recognised brand it is today. We believe in creating the world you wish to live in, meaning every step of the creation process is guided by our aim to contribute to a more sustainable, eco-conscious and inclusive future.
With 95% of all Energetiks garments made right here in Australia, we are proud to be able to carry the iconic green and gold ‘Product of Australia’ logo and support other Australian Makers along the way.
In addition, our Fabric Mill is 100% GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard) Certified, the world's leading textile processing standard for organic fibres.
Where we’re at today is not where we aim to be tomorrow. Our next major goal is already underway: we are transitioning our entire Essential range to fabric made from recycled plastic bottles whilst maintaining our trademark exceptional quality and feel. We aim to reach this target by 2023.
This goes beyond just making environmentally conscious decisions. Our factories must align with our standards for human and labour rights, which means paying workers fairly and providing a safe working environment.
Our CEOs make regular visits to our factories to see first-hand that all those involved in the creation process of our garments and shoes receive sufficient wages, comfortable working conditions, regular training opportunities, food and accommodation where needed, and a workplace free from harassment and discrimination.
Fashion should not be exploitative. We choose ethics and aesthetics, no compromises.
Putting Waste to Work
Our meticulous quality control and close relationship with our factories has led to a total fault rate of less than 0.02%. To put this into perspective, the standard acceptance rate for faulty items in garments is 2.5% for major defects and 5.0% for minor defects. Maintaining this exceptionally low fault rate prevents unnecessary product waste and sees that 99.98% of all our carefully crafted dancewear in Australia find a loving home the first time around. Our ‘Not Quite Right’ mystery bags close the loop, giving even ‘imperfect’ garments a chance to fulfil their purpose. To further eradicate waste, our fabric offcuts are also collected and donated to make filling for car seats, stuffed toys, garden ties and robes, so no scrap of fabric goes to waste.
In 2021, we introduced GRS (Global Recycled Standard) Certified and 100% recyclable garment bags to replace our existing bags. We also reuse every garment bag across our head office, warehouse, and retail locations so that no additional bags are produced unnecessarily.
With every goal we accomplish, another one is made. This year, we’ve set our sights on transitioning to 100% recyclable satchel bags so that every parcel sent uses sustainable packaging.
We’re proud to partner with a textile mill that has a 5 stage water treatment plant on site, ensuring around 85% of the water used is recycled, either back through the manufacturing process or diverted to water programs for agriculture, parklands and industry.
Community Comes First
Our vision is to create a positive shift in the dance industry, as part of a global community of athletes and artists who share our passion and love for dance. We are dedicated to providing support and education to students, professionals and teachers at every stage of their dance journey, and with over three decades in the industry, we’re proud to have witnessed the ripple effects each contribution has made to better the dance world as a whole.
As part of our philanthropy efforts Energetiks has donated an average of 10% of profits every year to causes that matter. You’ll feel our impact across countless dance events, competitions, school fundraisers and festivals, and find us backstage and behind the scenes at workshops, performances and major projects, helping shape the future of dance.
We founded our blog, A Dancer’s Life, in 2012 with the aim of highlighting the issues, stories and voices that deserve to be heard, and continue to use this platform to spotlight emerging talent and advocate for a more inclusive and diverse future for dancers everywhere.
The Future is Bright
In 2022, Energetiks founded the Next Steps project as an overarching initiative to encompass the fundraising projects and donations Energetiks contribute to in addition to our yearly sponsorship efforts. The idea to create a movement for change solidified when we sponsored The Artists of Colour Initiative in 2020 and decided that rather than waiting for initiatives to donate to, we could make our own.
The first iteration of The Next Steps project has seen us team up with two Indigenous Australian artists, Kyralee Shields and Clara Trindall (of Krubi Creative), to create beautiful, limited edition, printed carry bags. These bags will be available online and in-store in October 2022, with 100% of profits from the bags going towards supporting the Rekindling Youth Program and Community Workshops run by Bangarra Dance, helping to keep indigenous dance and culture alive and thriving.
We don’t intend to stop here. We truly believe that dance is for all, and body positivity, #BLM, LGBTQIA+ and gender equality are all causes we care deeply about. This is reflected across our team and our entire product range, from the conscious sizing options we offer - XXXSml to 4XLge - to the diverse colour tones available throughout our undergarments, shoes, and pointe shoes, and our expanding range of unisex and gender-neutral clothing to provide options that cater to every dancer.
We are always listening to our dance community and the things that are important to you, so our range is constantly expanding and evolving. If you have feedback about how we could continue improving our range or want to suggest a cause for the Next Steps Project, our inbox is always open. We created this page to give you an introduction to who we are as a brand, but you don’t need to take our word for it. You’ll find our identity woven into every strand of thread we use and every garment we sew. Browse the blog, visit our socials, come in store for dance essentials or explore our dance costumes in Australia online and find out for yourself.