Silicon Valley-based menswear rental subscription company Taelor has partnered with UK company Tranzend which makes sharp shirts and suits from recycled plastic bottles and coffee grounds.
Waterproof and ultra-stretchable, Tranzend’s Ultra Shirt is described as a modern-day shirt with magnetic cuffs, laser-cut vents, ultrasonic sewing and many advanced technologies, including thermal regulation. The shirt will be available to the public on Kickstarter this month.
“At Taelor, we’re committed to helping make the fashion industry more sustainable by giving people the opportunity to rent their clothes rather than buy them,” explains founder William Chen. “Our goal at Tranzend is to produce stylish yet timeless and sustainable clothing by implementing advanced material technology into unique, versatile designs.”
Crowd-funded startup Tranzend, which has found popularity in Asian countries including Taiwan, creates clothes designed to integrate sports elements and heritage fashion – all from sustainable sources.
Taelor, a women- and minority-owned company is out to help men “look and feel great every day” as well as reduce their carbon footprint, explains CEO Anya Cheng.
For a flat fee of US$69.99 per month, customers get sent two boxes of shirts monthly – with four shirts per box. They can either wear them for two weeks and return them, or purchase them for up to 70 per cent off the regular retail price before they receive another shipment. Dry cleaning and shipping are free both ways.
“We were thrilled to partner with Tranzend to be able to offer their eco-friendly shirts to our customers to do even more to support sustainable practices,” said Cheng.
Taelor’s customers also receive ongoing personal styling from an in-house professional stylist who – with the help of AI – select clothes for each customer based on their size and personal preferences. Its range extends from popular, mainstream menswear clothing brands, to more unique items from independent designers, including Modern Liberation, [Reesedeluca], Barque New York, Tags and now Tranzend.
“Our goal is to provide individuals with stylish, everyday menswear, and help the environment at the same time, as renting items is more eco-friendly than purchasing new items,” says Cheng, a Taiwanese American who previously built and headed up the social commerce product team for Facebook and the mobile tablet e-commerce team for Target.
Fashion pioneers around the world are developing innovative ways to recycle waste into apparel – Ccilu is repurposing coffee grounds into shoes, while Australia’s Beginner Boutique is turning used fishing nets into stylish swimwear.
