Davy J at a glance
Founded: 2017
Founder: Helen Lofts (née Newcombe)
Designed in: the South West of England
Made in: Portugal. Our first collections were made in Britain.
Fabric: ECONYL regenerated nylon, made from waste including recovered fishing nets
How we work: one collection a year, sold through the season until it's gone
Where to buy: davyj.com
About Us
Our Origins
Davy J is named after Davy Jones' Locker, the old sailors' name for the bottom of the sea. It was founded in 2017 by Helen Lofts (née Newcombe), an economist who grew up on the Devon coast and was tired of swimsuits that couldn't keep up with actually being in the water.
Davy J was one of the first brands to make swimwear from nylon regenerated from waste. Helen won the Women of the Future Award for Entrepreneurship in 2017, and the brand has since been awarded the Positive Luxury Butterfly Mark and a Royal Society of Arts Catalyst Grant for circular economy work, won the Sustainable Design Awards and shown in the Designer Showrooms at London Fashion Week.
Today Helen designs every piece herself in the South West. We make one collection a year with our factory in Portugal, sell it through the season and then stop until the next one.
Creating Beautiful & Practical Waterwear for Real Women
Life is simply too short to be worrying about where your swimwear is sitting and what's on show!
That's why we are the first choice for those who want to do more than just carefully pose by the pool, we’ve created our collection for women who want to dive in, wild swim, paddleboard, surf, or simply be able to run around after the kids at the beach. As well as sculpting and shaping the body in a way that makes you feel comfortable, confident and looking absolutely fabulous, Davy J suits are designed for timeless style and mix and match designs to suit all shapes and sizes.
Our campaigns champion real women, real bodies and a real love for all things travel, outdoors, wild swimming, paddleboarding, surfing, active holidays and family life. Designed for those unwilling to compromise on style or function - we are the athleisure of waterwear.
Sustainability In Our Supply Chains
Working with suppliers that uphold Davy J’s sustainable practices, the carbon life cycle of each of our styles is taken into consideration. The impact of emission heavy processes, such as yarn processing, fabric production and dyeing, are reduced by vendors committed to innovative environmental policies. Davy J’s fabric mill only uses renewable energy, produces its own electricity internally (enough to light up 12 Eiffel Towers a year), recycles 83% of its water and 99% of waste from production.
Minimum Waste & Recyclable Packaging
Davy J’s beautiful packaging has always been plastic-free, and every element - custom tissue paper, bespoke box and paper mailing bag - is 100% recyclable at home. Opting for grass paper for the mailing bags, uses up to 75% less CO2 than standard paper, and can be composted at home, along with the tissue paper. To further reduce their carbon footprint, Davy J uses local suppliers and raw materials from the UK for the gorgeous printed boxes – carefully designed in the hope they’ll get a second life in the home or for regifting before recycling!
A Drive For Circularity
At the heart of Davy J’s mission is the aim of inspiring authentic connections with the ocean and this entails a close connection with nature our natural resources. Davy J aspires to become the first truly circular waterwear brand.
Our debut range – ‘The Waste Collection’ uses a 100% regenerated nylon yarn made from waste (ECONYL yarn). For every 100 Davy J suits sold, at least 18kg of waste is regenerated, of which 4.5kg are ghost fishing nets collected by volunteer divers and fishing communities in collaboration with The Healthy Seas Initiative.
Pushing the Barriers of Innovation in Waterwear
Our ‘Bonded’ Cold Water Swimming Suits & Tops are a new sustainable alternative to neoprene. Using two layers of knitted recycled nylon fabric bonded together to form a piece that performs half way between a wetsuit and swimsuit – giving a little extra warmth for those chillier dips but without the bulk.
The Zero Trace Swimsuit, launched in 2023, is made using an innovative biodegradable fabric and paired with a belt made of bespoke printed blend of modal and natural rubber and featuring a buckle made from old Davy J suits. At the end of life, the whole swimsuit will decompose into harmless organic matter and biogas within just 5 years. A great achievement in an industry inundated with horror stories about what is happening to textile waste at the end of its life.
Sharing The Love
As part of our mission, Davy J commits funds every year to support empowerment and conservation campaigns - past successful campaigns include our raising funds for Coppafeel through the sale of our ‘Nippy Tees’ to promote breast cancer awareness and ongoing support behind Surfers Against Sewage and their environmental campaigns.
