Royal approval for entrepreneur’s sustainable approach to ballet
ALINK up with the Royal Ballet School and its principal ballerina has given sustainability entrepreneur Helen Banks’ fledgling business a giant leap forward.
The prestigious Covent Garden-based home for aspiring dancers has taken a shine to the 50-year-old’s sustainable ballet wear.
And its rising Brazilian star Mayara Magri has signed an exclusive deal to wear outfits supplied only by Helen’s Stockport-based company Imperfect Pointes.
She was contacted by the school – keen on boosting its own green credentials with small businesses – soon after launching her start-up.
Her outfits are now sold exclusively at the Royal Ballet’s London headquarters, also the home of the Royal Opera.
Helen’s collection is made from ECONYL yarn, which uses regenerated materials recovered from landfill waste, combined with industrial plastic waste and ghost fishing nets.
The dancewear can be restored and recycled and ultimately passed on to disadvantaged communities across the globe, including in the UK, one of Helen’s fundamental aims.
“Mainstream dancewear is comprised mainly of nylon, which does immense harm to the environment,” said mum-ofthreeHelen.
“My outfits can be repaired and reused multiple times. That’s what appealed to the Royal Ballet.”
Material for the outfits comes from Italy via a supplier in Altrincham and they are made in South Yorkshire.
In keeping with her sustainability agenda, Helen was spurred on by her 14-year-old elite ballerina daughter to promote more inclusivity in the ballet world.
Helen explained: “We were in the middle of the Black Lives Matter thing when I was considering starting my business.
“It was driven by my daughter and we were thinking about how we represent ballerinas.
“There are lots of stereotypes around ballerinas.
“They need breaking down in order for us to move forward.
“There is a combination of discipline and a sense of well-being from practising ballet techniques.
“There’s no reason why anyone shouldn’t do it, regardless of their shape, creed, race, age or gender.
“It’s for this reason some of my ballet wear is suitable for people who aren’t actually ballet dancers.
“I’m not a ballet dancer, so I’m not held back by conventions. I’m not one of those mothers dragging daughters to ballet because that’s what I wanted to do.”
Helen’s journey into running her own business began in a not uncommon way. She was made redundant.
“It was a great job at a sportswear company,” she said. “I loved it. I was based in Amsterdam for four years and I even learnt to speak Dutch.
“But there’s something liberating about finding yourself in a situation where you’ve been made redundant and it was a case of now or never. It freed me up.”
Before that the Wakefield-born businesswoman spent 16 years working with the Co-op in Manchester where she learnt the basics in ethical practice.
Helen said: “That’s where I got my grounding in responsible retail. I’ve always believed in responsible sourcing and ethical trade.”
Then she found herself working in the fast fashion sector and was one company’s first social responsibility manager.
“But it was like fitting a square peg into a round hole,” she went on. “I loved it for its excitement. But it was fast fashion in its purest driven sense. It gave me a wake-up call. I tried unsuccessfully to get them to engage in responsible recycled fabrics.
“The problem is, we’ve all got so used to paying low prices for everything. I think we should buy less but of better quality.
“I’ve not bought anything new for myself for nearly 18 months. I’ve got three kids – I’m a realist but I wanted to embrace sustainability. In the lockdown we tried to manage with less.”
Helen launched her business after securing the maximum available loan from the Manchesterbased Business Growth Hub.
She continued: “I invested significantly in a website which gives my products that gloss.
“I do 70pc female and 30 pc male ballet wear. But I’m moving towards gender fluid clothing. I also want to be representative of dancers of colour.”
A photo shoot has taken place at the Grade II-listed Victoria Baths in Manchester
and 27-year-old Mayara has also shot a video at the former Mayfield railway station near Piccadilly, by the Royal Ballet’s principal dancer Matthew Ball.
Helen said: “Mayara’s time is very limited because she is so dedicated to her art, but during the lockdown she was more open to working with brands, hence the film we made together, which looks amazing.
“She’s so talented and charismatic.”
Meanwhile, Helen has made sure packaging for products ordered online is compostable.
“There is nothing that won’t break down in a food bin,” she said. “While I was in lockdown I did a course in sustainability leadership at Cambridge University. I really believe in sustainability. We’ve all got to change. We’ve all got to stop buying as much stuff.”
She’s also offered a free repairs service for when a leotard starts to wear out.
“It’s not sales prevention,” she added. “It’s about sustainability.”