The Melbourne duo turning holes, stains and scraps into clothes kids are begging to wear

Buying clothes for children is often a task that can be as challenging as it is cute. Not only do the outfits need to be durable enough for play and running around, but because children have a very speedy development, many buyers may want to spend as little as possible to escape investing in pieces that will be outgrown in months, or even weeks.

Cheap clothes but at what cost

Despite the ease of buying cheap, easily replaceable clothes, it comes with moral guilt for some shoppers, as fast fashion is commonly described as a key contributor to the environmental crisis. The claim that there is enough clothing on the planet to dress the next six generations is one of several that frequently circulate. Along with research stating that globally, 92 million tonnes of textile waste is sent to landfills each year, more shoppers have reason to pause when buying new.  

A social enterprise

With people becoming more eco-conscious than ever, there’s a growing market for clothes with a history – it helps to ease the feeling of contributing to the rapidly increasing amount of fabric waste. And Cactus Revival – a children’s clothing social enterprise that rescues clothes heading for landfill through creative sewing techniques – is here to address just that.

After over a decade spent working in the environmental sector, Melbourne-based entrepreneur Kate Fenby was always aware of the global need to reduce waste. When she welcomed her son during the pandemic, Kate found a renewed passion for making new things out of old. “When I went on maternity leave, I was so excited to get creative and make things from cardboard boxes with my son,” she explains. “As a kid, I loved making things out of loo rolls, egg cartons, ribbon, fabric scraps, laddered stockings – anything that was destined for the bin! I had this sense that I was giving these things another life,” she adds.

Creative spark

While spending more time at home, Kate also dusted off her mother’s old sewing machine and joined a class to learn how to use it, sparking further thoughts of a more creative career path while maintaining her passion for protecting the environment. Then, when she found holes in her son’s shorts, the final piece of the puzzle came together.

“I kept thinking what a waste it would be for them to be discarded,” Kate continues. “The shorts were brown, and I’d just helped my son make a treasure map, so an idea sprang to mind. A few online videos later and I had darned the holes, appliquéed on a red ‘x’, hand stitched a trail to follow around the legs and hid a gold button, that looked like a precious gem, in the pocket. My son loved his “new” Treasure Map Shorts, and the idea for Cactus was sparked!”

The start of cactus revival

Seeing how well the refashioned shorts had gone down, Kate had a clear example of how tattered clothes could be resurrected with a touch of creativity – and knew that other parents and children could be interested too. “After the success of the treasure map shorts, the first thing I did was write down all my ideas for Cactus, including its purpose, the look and feel of the brand, basically my vision and how it would work,” she says.

“I knew that fast fashion was causing huge problems for our environment, and I could see there was a real gap in the market between high-quality second-hand clothing and that which was destined for the bin.” 

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A great collaboration

While the first seeds for Cactus Revival were being sown, Kate reached out to her friend and former colleague Sara MacMillan for her help with branding. Having known Kate for around 15 years, Sara was confident that they’d be able to work together well – and with Covid leading to the end of a job contract, Sara was ready to throw herself into something new, even if she’d never tried her hand at the clothing industry before.

I could see there was a real gap in the market between high-quality second-hand clothing and that which was destined for the bin…

The desire for change

“I have absolutely no experience in clothing or sewing!” Sara admits. “But both Kate and
I studied Communications at university and built careers advocating for change in the environment sector. We know that most people want to help the environment, but sometimes it can feel overwhelming, and we feel a little hopeless to make a difference. 

“So we wanted to create a tangible and practical way for people to help the environment, reduce waste and feel good about what they’re doing. Nobody likes to see clothing go to waste.”

Sourcing second-hand

After sourcing clothes from ‘op shops’ – known as charity shops to UK readers – Kate got busy creating the first Cactus Revival pieces. “Almost all my materials are second-hand,” she notes. “I pick up vintage laces, fabrics and other haberdashery items from my local charity shops, and I also have family and friends who donate things that might be from an older auntie or grandmother who isn’t sewing anymore. I love thinking about breathing new life into these items again,”

An amazing start

When enough pieces were ready, Cactus Revival debuted at a market in Melbourne in 2022, and it was clear that they were onto something good when enthusiastic shoppers kept commenting on how much they loved the idea. 

“It was a great feeling!” Sara remembers. “We have a sign at the front that shows the before and after shots of a singlet top, and people were stopping to read it, then telling their friends, ‘Hey, look at this.’ Those early sales and feedback really helped to prove to us that it could work.”

Great success

Three years later, Cactus Revival ships all over Australia and internationally, with clothing ranging from 0 to 12 years. Just a quick look at their website hints at how it has developed into a successful enterprise. 

From blue jeans adorned with patches of pink gingham, to striped shirts with a hungry wombat stitched in the middle, or denim shorts with beautiful embroidered daisies around the hems, Cactus Revival’s range definitely has a bright and fun feel, with every piece being a one-of-a-kind creation.

“I think our playful and whimsical designs appeal to people – I love using animal 
and nature motifs, creating space scenes on jeans, hiding treasures in pockets,” Kate explains. “It ignites a nostalgic feeling for people, and they like to reminisce about having little patches sewn onto their jeans by their mum or grandmother, their faces light up as they remember.”

For Kate, these unique touches are essential for people to connect with their clothes, and be more inclined to take care of them well rather than swap it out for a new, exact replica from the shops. “It’s another example of how important handmade is; the feel-good feelings that it promotes, not just for the maker, but the customer and the recipient,” she says. 

Present and future

As the brand continues to build, Kate and Sara have high hopes for just how far Cactus will go. Currently, they run local workshops that teach people mending skills such as patching or darning, and hope to build more partnerships with op shops to help save even more clothes from landfill. 

It ignites a nostalgic feeling for people

Though running a clothing business comes with its fair share of challenges, including impostor syndrome and competing with cheaper, fast fashion retailers, both women are focused on everything that the future holds – more international shipping, and ranges for adults included.

“There is so much scope for Cactus,” Kate says. “The tricky thing is fitting it all in!”