OUR STORY

REAWAKE founder and managing director Rea Bill is the green heart of the company. After a successful career as a model in Tokyo, Paris and New York, she had to admit that she could not reconcile the fast-moving fashion industry and its overexploitation of the planet and people with her values.
While she looked after her newborn daughter, her conviction became that you can live your love for style and fashion more sustainably, after all, REAWAKE was born - Rea's “second baby”.

REAWAKE stands for mindful fashion consumption that consciously avoids fast fashion and aims to reduce resource consumption and negative environmental impacts through a circular economy approach. Rea has led the company and her growing team of “Reawakers” since the beginning with an uncompromising dedication to her value system and an unwavering company philosophy: RESPECT RECIRCLE REAWAKE.

Over the last 15 years, the one woman show has grown into a successful company that can now be found on the shelves of Jelmoli in Zurich, Glatt in Wallisellen, Maggs in Bern and Bongenie Grieder in Geneva. You can get to know our wonderful founder better in the interview below.

Your career reads like the plot of a Netflix film. Who is this Rea Bill?
Rea Bill by training is a teacher from Biel who stumbled into the fashion industry by chance and is now trying, together with the REAWAKE team, to sensitize our community for sustainable consumption. Today I am, first and foremost, a mom, a managing director, a forest lover and an unwavering optimist. It was never my desire to be a model, but it allowed me to earn money, travel and discover the world at a young age. I am very grateful for the instructive time because it taught me many things that I still apply today. But right from the start I lacked meaning in this activity. I ultimately found working with children as a teacher more fulfilling. The birth of my daughter and the drastic change in my priorities in life that came with it made this regular work routine simply impossible for me. So, as a new mom, I started REAWAKE's “Caterpillar Stadium” “Markentussi” from my living room. It became clear relatively quickly that trading high-end treasures could be not only sustainable, but also profitable. For me as a single mother, this was the ideal, flexible solution for several years to provide for my small family. With REAWAKE, when I had more capacity again, the metaphorical butterfly hatched: a real company with a passionate team and a clearly defined brand.

Why the name “REAWAKE”?
The word “reawake” brings together three central elements of our model: firstly, little treasures awaken to a second life by finding a new home; secondly, it is expressed that we can also bring treasures back to life through repairs in our studio and through upcycling; and last but not least, REAWAKE also contains my own name. The company is a part of me and inseparable from what I try to live as a person. There is no greenwashing here - that's what I wanted to stand for with my name.

So REAWAKE stands for real values. But isn't consumption still consumption?
Yes. I don't claim to be an environmental activist. Of course, you could also take the most consistent step - simply stop consuming at all. I just don't think this is a particularly realistic and mass-market solution. People love beautiful things. I love beautiful things. Fashion is an expression of culture, art and individuality and can make you happy. REAWAKE comes into play here and, within this context, offers an effective way to drastically reduce the negative effects of consumption: the production and manufacture of a piece of clothing accounts for 70% of the effects on the environment and climate. Our contribution is to ensure that high-quality goods remain in use for as long as possible. We don't offer bargains at cheap prices, but rather see our treasures as investments. What you buy from us should give customers - and perhaps even their children - joy for a lifetime. We turn one person's bad purchase into another's lucky purchase, so to speak.

Zurich has a thriving second-hand landscape.The business with luxury products and vintage is booming in particular.What do you think makes REAWAKE so special?
We are really pleased that the market is so popular. My goal has always been to be part of change and with REAWAKE we are trying to actively raise awareness of sustainability issues. I think what sets us apart are primarily three things: First of all, I think our offer is convincing. Our range of Treasures is carefully selected and reflects our love for style and the respect we have for each piece.
In addition, we are definitely among the old hands in Zurich and Switzerland. Our experience in the sector, in authentication, our contacts and, last but not least, our community of returning customers who trust us are the result of over a decade of hard work. And last but not least, I believe that practicing sustainability sets us apart and differentiates us. We know from a survey in autumn that our customers value this and themselves cite sustainable consumption as one of the reasons why they buy from us. That makes my green fashion heart jump!

What is your vision with REAWAKE, what do you want to achieve?
I hope that REAWAKE can be part of a new fashion industry that revives respect for crafts and does not promote the consumption of the latest trend as a quick kick. I want our customers to buy and sell from us with a clear conscience and to create a cycle in which everyone can pursue their passion for fashion stylishly and happily - while negative impacts on the environment and people are kept as low as possible.
Where exactly is the journey the coming years will show. I am very grateful for the fantastic, exciting opportunities that are currently opening up for REAWAKE. However, as managing director, I also feel a great responsibility towards my team and so I would like to continue to lead this family based on values and with caution. Growth and profit have never been our top priority. In the long term, I want my “two babies” to live in a world where there is clean water, fresh air and healthy ecosystems, and where we all do our part to preserve our beautiful Mother Earth for future generations. In my mind's eye, my daughter might be wearing my vintage Hermès Kelly bag...