Fancy a vegan reboot?

By Renee Fortune

How it happened, I do not know, but 2022 has crept up on us. And that means that after a long 12 months, we get to do Veganuary. It’s the time of the year when people all over the world show solidarity to the cause by skipping out on meat and products derived from animals. If you’re participating, we salute you. 

For those of you who may not be too keen on “embracing the bean”, we thought we’d add our own spin to this auspicious month. One way you can own Veganuary 2022 is by giving your wardrobe a vegan revamp. And if you’re browsing Plain Tiger, you’ve come to the right place. 

But first, a bit of history…

Just a decade ago, Veganuary wasn’t even a thing. It began in 2014 as a non-profit organisation based in the UK that was founded by vegan entrepreneurs and husband-and-wife duo, Jane Land and Matthew Glover. Before he founded the movement, Glover was a “fast cars and big houses” kind of capitalist who became disillusioned with the high life and turned to veganism as a lifestyle shift. 

Originally, Veganuary was a challenge, issued by Jane and Matthew for people around the world to try veganism for a month. Initially, 3300 people signed up for the challenge. By 2021, 600 000 were signed up, with thousands of others taking the challenge in an unofficial capacity. 

Today, the Veganuary NPO works to raise awareness around the viable alternative that veganism presents to eating meat and animal-derived products. Under its influence, over 800 new vegan products and menu options were launched in almost 200 countries across the world. It went from being something that people were curious about, to something people incorporate into their lives, year after year. 

Thankfully, since 2014, the vegan industry has mushroomed to include a number of fledgling sectors that are claiming their place in the sun. Some of these include fashion, pet food and cosmetics. 

The vegan women’s fashion market size alone, was valued at USD 396.3 billion in 2019 and is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 13.6% from 2020 to 2027. The US, UK, Germany and France are leading the charge but the rest of the world is fast gaining traction, and we’re here for it. 

We’ve made it super easy for you to join the cause this Veganuary, by supporting brands that take a strong vegan stance and are innovators in the space. Here are our top 6 Veganuary picks (narrowing it down was quite a difficult but here they are):