Italian fashion brand Max Mara has teamed up with eco-fabrics company Saluzzo Yarns for a new four-piece collection made from a special high-tech yarn called Newlife; available in 1500 of the brand’s stores in 50 countries, from this month onwards.
Titled Weekend Max Mara, the new line features four garments produced from recycled fabric. Newlife, an arm of Saluzzo Yarns, is a fibre created by converting post-consumer recycled plastic bottles into a polymer which has many applications-from outdoor clothing to home furnishing as well as interior and outdoor design applications.
The manufacturing process is highly innovative, fully traceable, entirely mechanical (versus chemical) and 100% made in Italy where the plastic bottles are also from, helping to create an even smaller and more manageable carbon footprint.
Stefanio Cochis, Director of Italy-based Saluzzo Yarns and Newlife says Max Mara‘s initial positive reaction to the New Life yarns wasn’t just because they were interested in sustainability but because they were moved by the innovation of a new fiber.
“We are very satisfied with this project, which is innovative, responsible, fashionable and proudly Italian,” Max Mara Group fashion director Laura Lusuardi told WWD.
Max Mara said we’re not going into sustainability unless we have excellent customer experience when it comes to our product’s beauty and innovation. The customer is going to be committed to sustainability by beauty first not the other way around,” says Cochis.
Newlife is about new materials and new concepts. Sustainability is the base and innovative products make us able to attract attention. Unfortunately there’s still a perception being marketed that doing anything sustainable you have to compromise on quality and we are here to prove otherwise,” says Cochis.
The pieces include a flared trench coat, a collarless jacket, a T-shirt and a pencil skirt.
In addition to implementing a sustainable textile to their collection, Max Mara, also located inItaly, has already installed 11,000 solar panels for the production of electricity at their facility.
In addition to current collaboration with Weekend Max Mara, Newlife is also starting initial research and development stages with fashion brands Eileen Fisher and Burberry.
via Ecouterre
