Outdoor companies are continuing to reduce their carbon footprint, and ISPO Munich has highlighted Vaude for its innovative and sustainable products.
The Tettnang, Germany-based company took home five of the ISPO trade fair’s awards at the activewear fair held in Munich at the end of January, including the Eco Achievement Brand Award and the ISPO Gold Award. Vaude impressed the jury with its Green Shape Core Collection, an eco-friendly gear line that features bio-based, recycled and natural materials. While Vaude received the ISPO Gold Award for its innovative Trail Spacer 8 backpack, three of the ISPO Awards went to products from the Green Shape Core Collection.
The goal for Vaude, is to provide the outdoor industry with functional and eco-conscious products for consumers that minimize pollution and provide materials a second life.
“Vaude has made a bold statement regarding the sustainable development of functional products. Honesty and fairness are at the heart of the Vaude brand and its core business, within its supply chain and in delivering sustainable innovation to a broad audience,” said the jury at the Eco Achievement Brand Award ceremony. “In honoring this strong performance, the jury would like to motivate Vaude interdisciplinary design and product development team to continue along this path.”
Vaude’s Green Shape Core Collection offers 19 products, including apparel, shoes and backpacks, that are sustainably designed for many outdoor activities. Roughly 90 percent of the textile materials used to produce the collection’s products are bio-based, recycled or purely natural, including raw materials like cow’s milk, wood and castor oil. Three of the collection’s products—the Green Core M backpack, the Green Core Mid Shoe and the Green Core Fleece Jacket—received the ISPO Award for their eco-friendly elements. The jacket featured a newly developed material with Tencel fiber that’s completely biodegradable and doesn’t release microplastics into the world’s oceans.
Following its debut at ISPO last month, the collection will be available at specialist sports retailers in August.
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“Our Green Shape Core Collection impressively proves that sustainability promotes innovation. For this collection, Vaude has developed innovative materials that are high performing and environmentally friendly, while at the same time offer solutions for global environmental challenges such as microplastics pollution,” said Antje von Dewitz, Vaude’s chief executive officer. “In this fashion, the company has emphasized its pioneering position and demonstrated the scope of possibility for the future of outdoor gear.”
Vaude was also recognized by the ISPO Munich awards jury for its innovative Trail Spacer 8 backpack. For the backpack, Vaude created a seamless knitted back section that adapts to the person wearing it. The backpack’s 3-D stretch knit construction offers comfort, freedom of movement, physical support and ventilation for outdoor adventures. The ISPO jury selected Vaude’s backpack for its functional and sustainable properties—including enabling people to have better excursions and using less materials in the manufacturing process. Consumers can purchase the backpack on Vaude’s website.