Explorations Company teams up with Love Brand & Co to save the manta rays
LOVE BRAND & Co founder Oliver Tomalin
Sustainable travel meets swimwear in a partnership hoping to raise awareness for the plight of one rare species facing possible extinction.
Sustainable luxury travel brand Explorations Company is teaming up with LOVE BRAND & Co. swimwear to raise awareness of our delicate ocean ecosystem and the impact of unsustainable fishing practices on the wildlife living there.
A capsule swimwear collection, called Which Way to the Tropics, is partly inspired by the sparkling azure blue of the Indian Ocean and will feature two exclusive designs by LOVE BRAND founder Oliver Tomalin.
Over-fishing and targeted fishing have seen the manta ray population around the world fall into sharp decline over the last 75 years and the two luxury brands hope this collaboration will draw attention to their plight.
In the Seychelles, home of the Seychelles Manta Ray Project (SMRA) which will receive support from the brand partnership, mantas are not so seriously impacted by fishing practices, representing an exciting opportunity to understand more about this enigmatic species, and to develop effective conservation strategies to protect them from future threats the world over.
Says Tomalin, “We are delighted to partner with the impact-led luxury travel brand, Explorations Company. With a shared love of luxury travel and shared values and respect for the natural world, our collaboration [sic] highlights the ongoing need to protect our oceans, and the breath-taking world within them.”
Nicola Shepherd, Founder of Explorations Company agrees. “Conscious travel that allows one to make a direct contribution to the region is at the core of what we do at Explorations Company…It’s a joy to join forces with a like-minded, responsible brand like LOVE BRAND & Co. to help raise awareness of the brilliant work currently being undertaken as part of the Seychelles Manta Ray Project.”
The SMRP was established in 2013 by the Save Our Seas Foundation and The Manta Trust and, in partnership with The Alphonse Foundation and has now identified over 470 individual manta rays using photographs of the unique pattern of spots present on the belly of each creature.
They monitor movement patterns, population size and connectivity of manta rays across the Seychelles and have also conducted studies using satellite and acoustic tagging.
As part of Explorations Company’s commitment to philanthropic travel, for each trip booked to the Seychelles through Explorations Company, the firm will donate 2.5% of the trip value (over the next 12 months) to the Alphonse Foundation for the Seychelles Manta Ray Project. Likewise, LOVE BRAND & Co. has pledged to donate a minimum of £1,000 this year tp aid the charity in its vital work.
The Which Way to the Tropics collection will be available across LOVE BRAND & Co boutiques from 10 July 2024 and available to purchase online from 12 July 2024. Men’s shorts from £150 and children’s from £90.