The Hemp Trading Company

The Hemp Trading Company emerged from Hempology, a hemp-awareness group connected with the University of Hull. Similar groups at other campuses helped create a network linked to clubbing and music culture, providing the founders with an audience and cultural setting for a hemp-focused clothing venture. In 1999, brothers Dru and Gav Lawson and their friend Dan Sodergren established the business in Bristol and London. From its beginning, THTC treated clothing as both a commercial product and a vehicle for environmental and political communication. Hemp was a defining material, supplemented by bamboo, organic cotton, and other sustainable textiles. The label's designs were aimed at consumers who wanted streetwear connected to environmental concerns without abandoning contemporary urban style. Its graphics could be explicitly political, including a documented design criticizing George Bush and his son, while other work drew on street art and social commentary. The company built recognition through broad cultural networking rather than through conventional mass-market fashion positioning. It worked with DJs, MCs, musicians, and celebrities, and produced merchandise for Beardyman, Morcheeba, and Braintax by 2008. The brand was also associated with performers and public figures including Benjamin Zephaniah, De La Soul, and Brad Pitt. Street artists such as Mau Mau contributed to the visual identity, helping THTC connect sustainable materials with graffiti, music, and activist aesthetics. The label's approach attracted attention from the emerging ethical-fashion movement. In 2006 it was shortlisted for the Observer Ethical Fashion Awards. By 2008, Jeremy Smith of The Ecologist described THTC as an early company to demonstrate that environmentally responsible clothing could also be fashionable and relevant to young consumers. This recognition reflected the brand's position as an early participant in what later became a much larger sustainable-fashion market. A 2011 account described THTC as a small operation with a London-based team of nine employees and annual turnover of £100,000. The available historical reference does not provide audited financial statements or establish whether those figures continued beyond that period. In 2012, the company pursued a more formally documented sustainability project with the Soil Association, Carbon Trust, and Fair Wear Foundation. The resulting shirt line used 100% organic, hand-harvested cotton, was described as wind-powered in production, and was reported to have a carbon footprint 90% smaller than more typically produced alternatives. The available sources primarily document THTC's origins, cultural positioning, collaborations, and sustainability initiatives. They do not provide reliable current information about ownership, leadership after the founding period, present operations, retail footprint, or whether the label remains active. Its contemporary status therefore remains unresolved.

• 2012

  Organic cotton collaboration

  [1]The Hemp Trading Companyen.wikipedia.org

  THTC worked with the Soil Association, Carbon Trust, and Fair Wear Foundation on a lower-carbon organic cotton shirt line.

• 2011

  Small-business scale reported

  [1]The Hemp Trading Companyen.wikipedia.org

  A contemporary account described a London team of nine staff and annual turnover of £100,000.

• 2008

  Music merchandise collaborations documented

  [1]The Hemp Trading Companyen.wikipedia.org

  The brand produced merchandise for Beardyman, Morcheeba, and Braintax, extending its music-culture presence.

• 2006

  Ethical fashion awards shortlist

  [1]The Hemp Trading Companyen.wikipedia.org

  THTC was shortlisted for the Observer Ethical Fashion Awards, increasing recognition for its sustainable streetwear model.

• 1999

  Business founded in Bristol and London

  [1]The Hemp Trading Companyen.wikipedia.org

  Dru Lawson, Gav Lawson, and Dan Sodergren established The Hemp Trading Company after involvement with the Hempology hemp-awareness network.

Ethically driven British streetwear combining hemp and other lower-impact fabrics with political graphics, music culture, and street-art aesthetics.

• Apparel · 1999

  Hemp streetwear

  The brand's core offering consisted of streetwear made partly from hemp, a material central to its identity and environmental positioning. The range used graphic and politically conscious designs to connect sustainable textiles with music, clubbing, and urban culture.

• Apparel

  Bamboo and organic cotton clothing

  Alongside hemp, THTC used bamboo and organic cotton in its clothing. These materials broadened the label's sustainable-fabric proposition and supported its effort to offer environmentally oriented garments with a contemporary streetwear appearance.

• Shirts · 2012

  Organic cotton shirt collaboration

  In 2012, THTC developed shirts made from 100% organic, hand-harvested cotton with the Soil Association, Carbon Trust, and Fair Wear Foundation. The project was described as using wind power and producing a substantially reduced carbon footprint.

• Licensed and collaborative apparel

  Artist and musician merchandise

  THTC produced merchandise for artists and music acts including Beardyman, Morcheeba, and Braintax. These collaborations made the label's sustainable clothing proposition visible within music communities and reinforced its cultural rather than purely retail identity.

• 2012Lower-carbon organic cotton shirt project

  United Kingdom

  THTC partnered with the Soil Association, Carbon Trust, and Fair Wear Foundation to develop a shirt using organic, hand-harvested cotton and production methods described as wind-powered.

  Outcome. The shirt was described as having a carbon footprint 90% smaller than more typically produced equivalents.

  Source
• 2006Observer Ethical Fashion Awards participation

  United Kingdom

  THTC was shortlisted for the Observer's Ethical Fashion Awards, placing its hemp-based streetwear within the United Kingdom's developing ethical-fashion conversation.

  Outcome. Shortlisted; the available reference does not state that the company won.

  Source

• 2012

  Launch a documented lower-carbon organic cotton lineProduct launch

  Background

  THTC sought to make material sourcing and production impact more explicit within its sustainable-fashion proposition.

  Action taken

  The company collaborated with the Soil Association, Carbon Trust, and Fair Wear Foundation on shirts made from 100% organic, hand-harvested cotton.

  Aftermath

  The line was reported as using wind power and having a carbon footprint 90% smaller than conventional equivalents.

  Source

• 1999

  Build a streetwear label around hemp and political cultureStrategy

  Background

  The founders came from a hemp-awareness network and sought to connect environmental concerns with the music, clubbing, and streetwear communities.

  Action taken

  They established THTC as a clothing business using hemp and other lower-impact fabrics while incorporating political graphics and street-art influences.

  Aftermath

  The approach helped the label develop a distinctive identity and gain visibility among musicians, performers, and ethical-fashion observers.

  Source

1. 1The Hemp Trading Companyen.wikipedia.org