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RÖJK Superwear is a young, Swedish brand established in 2010, dedicated to creating highly sustainable, innovative and functional products for outdoor enthusiasts.
With the company’s focus on “products made with love for the planet”, it was very apt that RÖJK’s Badland jacket won the 2018 ISPO Eco Achievement Apparel Award and the Scandinavian Outdoor Group's Sustainability Award.
It also won an ISPO Award for Outer Layers in the outdoor segment.
The Badland jacket uses the water and wind resistant Neulana Protect fabric, which is a result of development by the Wool Development Centre set up in 2013 by AWI and Chinese company Nanshan.
The fabric is made with OptimTM technology from 100% Merino wool and without any chemical treatments. RÖJK announced six months ago that it will be making its entire product range 100% biodegradable and natural by 2020.
“Other brands fight over who can bark the loudest about using recycled synthetics, and sure, they may be better than nonrecycled ones, but they are neither biodegradable nor natural and they still contribute to demand from the supply chain. This is not the way to rid our oceans and forests, or even food, of microplastics,” said RÖJK marketing director Linus Zetterlund.
“Unlike our competitors, we are fully determined to do whatever we can for the benefit of our planet, even if it costs us a little profit.”
THE ECO AND SUSTAINABILITY AWARDS
In awarding RÖJK the ISPO Eco Achievement Apparel Award, the jury stated: “A small company challenges an entire industry by going into 100% sustainable innovation.
RÖJK Superwear's focus on bio-based and biodegradable parts is a great example that creativity paired with a sustainable mindset and profound design knowledge can result in desirable products for ambitious athletes.”
Consumers seem to like the product too. Launched in March, the Badland jacket was virtually sold out in a just a few weeks.
In presenting the Badland jacket with the Scandinavian Outdoor Group Sustainability Award, the jury stated: “RÖJK Superwear presents a wind and waterresistant shell made from chemical-free, super tightly woven and supple Merino wool.
It is very impressive how well the fabric sheds moisture without the use of water-repellent chemicals.
The testers were also excited about how well the Badland Jacket regulated the body temperature while cross-country skiing and snow-shoeing.
It is a great alternative to softshells made from petroleumbased fabrics.”
WATER AND WIND RESISTANT FABRIC
The fabric is constructed at very high levels of thread density in warp and weft using fine Merino wool yarns that have been stretched, but not set, during Optim processing.
It is only when the fabric is wet-finished that the stretch is released causing the yarns to contract, thus leading to an extreme tightening of the fabric structure and the creation of the immensely dense fabric.
After optimising the spinning, weaving and finishing processes, the fabrics made from these elastic Merino wool fibres have enhanced water and wind resistant properties (while retaining all Merino wool’s fine properties such as breathability), without any chemical treatments.
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