COPENHAGEN – Danish apparel brand Only is launching a new black jeans collection produced with sustainably sourced wood-based fibres and designed to maintain their true black colour forever. The aim is to vastly increase the lifespan of the jeans, thus boosting their sustainable credentials. Only, a Bestseller brand, has linked up with innovative Pakistan-based denim mill Soorty to create the ‘Forever Black’ collection in collaboration with Lenzing, the Austrian wood pulp-based fibres business.
Lenzing’s Tencel Modal fibres in black, the primary component of Forever Black, are pre-dyed in the process of turning the wood pulp into fibre.
Tencel Modal fibres are certified with the EU Ecolabel, which is awarded to products that meet high environmental standards throughout their life cycle.
“It is vital that Bestseller’s brands work with sustainability leaders like Lenzing because their products are backed up by credible data and certifications,” said Bestseller’s sustainable material manager Camilla Skjønning Jørgensen.
Working with Soorty, Only is now also scrutinising its entire denim production process in the search for more sustainable solutions. For one of its 2019 collections, the business has recently ordered 40,000 pairs of jeans that will use recycled polyester for stitching. On average, each pair will use the equivalent of four 500ml plastic bottles, meaning Only’s order will effectively recycle 160,000 plastic bottles to produce enough thread.
“When a brand like Only takes another step towards a more sustainable future, it will always have a significant positive impact due to the brand’s size and the volume of their orders,” added Skjønning Jørgensen.
Kenneth Bennetzen, product manager at Only Blue Denim, believes Forever Black will become the market leader in terms of holding its black colour.
“Besides the more sustainable benefits of Tencel Modal fibres compared to cotton, we are bringing a fabric, which will truly be black forever, creating a life-long partner for our consumers,” said Bennetzen.
Only Forever Black will be available online and across all European stores from July.