The Timberland X Thread collection is a new line of boots that carry an interesting backstory. While the pieces of the collection may appear like normal pairs of Timberlands, the boots are actually comprised of recycled plastic bottles salvaged from the beaches of Haiti. This unique construction comes from Thread's involvement in the collaboration, as the brand works with about 1,300 bottle pickers in Haiti. Thread's use of plastic comes from an innovative technique that has the plastic bottles broken down into flakes, heated up, passed through and extruder, rolled up into threads and spun into fabric.
Colleen Vien, Timberland's sustainability director, spoke about the Timberland X Thread collection and explained that the idea was to tell a story about the brand and its history with Haiti. Timberland has been working with Smallholder Farmers Alliance and the Clinton Global Initiative in the country for quite some time now, and has recently committed to buying organic cotton from Haiti in a blockchain-powered project.
Plastic Bottle Boots
The Timberland X Thread Collection Supports Locals in Haiti
Trend Themes
1. Recycled Plastic Fashion - The use of recycled plastic materials to create fashion products opens up opportunities for eco-friendly innovation.
2. Circular Supply Chains - Creating a circular supply chain in which materials are sourced from local communities and then recycled can help create sustainable manufacturing processes.
3. Blockchain-powered Sourcing - Using blockchain technology to trace and verify the origin of materials can increase transparency, accountability, and trust in the sourcing process.
Industry Implications
1. Fashion - The fashion industry has the opportunity to lead the way in using recycled materials and developing circular supply chains for sustainable production.
2. Environmental Conservation - The initiatives to collect and recycle plastic materials from local communities highlight the importance of environmental conservation towards achieving sustainable development.
3. Blockchain Technology - Blockchain technology can disrupt industries in many ways, including providing transparency and traceability in supply chain management to ensure fair trade and ethical sourcing practices.