A Partnership Where Luxury is Laundry Done Well

 

When the stars – and value systems – align, collaborations can become powerful conversations about how we want to live.

That’s exactly why we’re so excited to be launching our new collaboration with BENA; a South African luxury sleepwear brand whose approach to softness, comfort, natural fibres and thoughtful living is deeply connected to everything we believe at GoodBasics. At first glance, probiotic cleaning and elevated sleepwear may seem worlds apart, but the more we spoke with BENA founder Xan Fraser, the clearer it became that we are both ultimately interested in the same thing; creating healthier, more intentional environments for people to live within.

For Xan, BENA began through a very personal frustration. “I just wanted nice, classic, chilled PJs,” she explains. “I especially disliked all the cartoons on children’s sleepwear!” Xan longed for pieces that felt calming, beautiful and enduring rather than disposable or trend-driven, and much of that inspiration came from her grandmother, who she remembers vividly “swanning around in her silk PJs and gowns,” embodying a kind of effortless femininity and self-care that stayed with her long after childhood.

Over time, BENA evolved from its initial offering as childrens wear into womenswear too, alongside Xan’s own growing awareness of the relationship between clothing, comfort and health. “Ten years ago I would wear polyester and I wouldn’t even think about it,” she explains.

“Now, going through perimenopause and getting older, I realise the value of natural fabrics. It really does make a difference to the environment, to sweating, to health — everything.”

So much of modern life has normalised low-level discomfort; harsh synthetic fragrances, chemically-loaded products, fabrics that don’t breathe, homes filled with things that look “clean” but don’t necessarily support our wellbeing. Increasingly, many of us are beginning to realise that wellness begins in the environments we move through every single day; what touches our skin, what lingers on our clothes, what we spray onto our floors, and what circulates through our homes.

For Xan, this awareness intensified profoundly during her own health journey following chemotherapy treatment. She describes developing an almost visceral sensitivity toward harsh cleaning chemicals and artificial fragrances. “I just knew we had to stop all of this in our house,” Xan says candidly. “Even the smell — it was just too much.” Like many people exploring healthier alternatives, Xan initially found herself drawn toward “natural” products that often amounted to little more than essential oils and good branding, and it wasn’t until discovering probiotic biotechnology through GoodBasics that her understanding of the possibilities in cleaning was completely shifted.

At GoodBasics, we similarly found ourselves acutely aware that the world of alternative cleaning is often dominated by essential oils, earthy branding and products that smell beautiful, but aren’t always convincing that anything has actually been cleaned. One of the things that felt revelatory in speaking to Xan — and reflects so much of our own journey at GoodBasics — was this realisation that effective cleaning and gentler formulations are possible. The emergence of our probiotic biotechnology offers something entirely different; products capable of deeply cleaning and breaking down odours, dirt and bacteria without relying on the harsh chemical overload that so many of us have simply accepted as normal. As Xan put it, “You don’t actually have to compromise. This new form of biotechnology exists and it has no harsh chemicals in it.” 

One of the things we loved most about our conversation with Xan was hearing how closely garment care and clothing longevity are linked in her mind. For her, caring properly for clothing is part of the entire philosophy behind investing in better pieces in the first place, and she feels strongly that her customers should be thinking about how best to care for their BENA pieces. “If you’re going to buy our garments, especially when we work in nearly all natural fibres, then look after your garment,” Xan emphasises.

“Do your own skin justice. Do the environment justice. Do your family justice by cleaning with no harsh chemicals.”

Xan is the perfect partner for us because she’s self-admittedly fastidious when it comes to laundry; joking that no sooner are they home from a trip than the washing machine is already running, much to her husband’s shock. So really, her sign-off means everything to us!

It also makes her one of the most enthusiastic converts to our laundry range, and speaking about the GoodBasics Odour Remover and Laundry Liquid, Xan describes finally being able to remove deeply embedded winter smells from garments without damaging delicate natural fibres. “If you wash it with any conventional products, the smell doesn’t go away,” she says. “But I cold wash my favourite pieces with your Odour Remover and Laundry Liquid, and it comes out and it is gone. It’s incredible.”

We completely understand her obsession with the Stain Remover Pen too.

“I bring out my little pen at every dinner, every lunch,” Xan laughs. “Everyone’s looking at you and I’m like, ‘Well, just watch and learn!’ I’ve gifted it to my mom and sisters and now everyone’s obsessed with it too.”

Suffice to say, we’re so excited about the launch of this collaboration, which will see every BENA customer receiving a complimentary GoodBasics Stain Remover Pen alongside an exclusive discount code for our entire range. This collaboration is a meaningful extension of the shared values between our brands, and a testament to both BENA and GoodBasics’ belief that caring properly for the things we own — our clothing, our homes, our environments and ourselves — begins with everyday habits. Ultimately, it’s about creating rituals and routines that are healthier, more conscious, and more supportive of us becoming our best selves. Luxury is laundry done well; the GoodBasics way.