We believe in celebrating women's achievements year-round, but during Women’s History Month, we focus closely on recognising their vital roles. As a female-led team, RCYCL is driven by our passion for sustainability and our unique skills to create meaningful change in the fashion industry.
This year, we were privileged to interview Monique Montfroy, a truly inspiring entrepreneur and educator. As the founder of Texcoco Collective, a plant-based cactus leather handbag brand, Monique champions thoughtful consumption, environmental preservation, and the empowerment of future designers. More than simply selling handbags, she promotes a vision of humanity striving for positive change.
Could you describe the experiences that have shaped your career to this point?Starting from a place of love for the environment, a passion for design and a concern for the earth. A mixture of life events has led me to where I am now. I've always been deeply passionate about the human condition and caring for our natural world. I've been a practising documentary photographer since graduating with honours in photojournalism in 2015. In 2017 I went to Mexico for a 3-month artist residency program with an environmental NGO group. I photographed, lived and worked in far corners of the Gulf of Mexico. Here I witnessed firsthand the detrimental impacts of plastic waste and overconsumption on underdeveloped communities.
In 2019 I travelled through Mexico again and then to Guatemala, where I helped a friend start a small volunteer abroad company. I was back in Australia for some months, working online to build the business. I was planning on travelling back to Central America to live in Mexico in the middle of 2020. Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, obviously, plans had halted. The volunteer company that we had been building crashed, I lost work as a freelance photographer, and my casual hospitality job had come to an end.
Through this change I had more free time allowing me the opportunity to research this idea that lay dormant for many years; to make handbags in collaboration with artisans and skilled workers. After seeing a small video clip about this new vegan leather alternative made from prickly pear cactus from two Mexican innovators the idea grew to make handbags utilising this new material.
I moved from Gold Coast to Melbourne to build my business and connections. shortly after I was introduced to Collarts where I was asked to give a guest lecture, and from there I moved into the education space.
When did you realise you had to make a difference in fashion sustainability?
I have had experience in documentary photography, and I have always been driven to try my hardest to do good for people and the planet. On my first trip to Mexico, I had brought a cow leather handbag as a memento of my time there. I found out these bags were mass-produced, and the vendor couldn't tell me where or who made it. I had a passing thought of ‘how can these beautiful bags be made and give credit to the skilled people making these bags.’ My aim is to show a different way of doing business that celebrates every person in the supply chain. I feel strongly about supporting creative and skilled craftspeople.
What are the toughest challenges you have faced in your journey and what achievements are you most proud of?
Starting a sustainable fashion brand during a pandemic has been an incredible and crazy journey. When I finalised the samples and received them here in Australia this was a pivotal moment. Having the finished, physical product in my hands, being able to touch and feel the bags cemented that this was what I was meant to be doing. Coming from a creative background, I had little business experience, the challenge was to learn every process of starting a small business from admin, to web design, building a strong network and finding investment opportunities, to marketing and sales. These are challenges as much as they are highlights, having learned everything along the way and producing everything with this outcome is a great achievement.
What women inspire you?
Always first are the women in my family. My Mum, Sister, Aunties and Grandmother, they have all shaped me and supported every step. I’ve had an admiration for Frida Kahlo, I’ve read her biography and visited the Casa Azul - her blue house in Mexico.
Estee Lauder is a recent figure of inspiration after hearing and learning more about her tenacity and determination to start her name brand and then take it to where it is today. Also, Emma Watson has been a fierce campaigner for environmental issues, sustainable fashion, gender equality and animal welfare.
Monique exemplifies the driving force behind a more conscious and sustainable future in fashion. As the Fashion Marketing program coordinator at Collarts, she is shaping the minds of future marketers, entrepreneurs, and designers to prioritise ethical and environmentally responsible practices. Learn more about Monique and the Texcoco Collective here.
Wishing you a Happy Women’s History Month, and encouraging you to express your gratitude to the remarkable women in your life. Take the time to learn from them, their stories and what shapes them; not only the women around us but also those striving for change. To further support sustainable practices and conscious consumerism, you can also learn more about RCYCL and our contribution to this cause here.
