What gave you the inspiration to start WAIR?

When I realised how much textiles are being wasted every single day! I had always loved upcycling myself– but seeing piles and piles of perfectly fine textiles destined for incineration or down-cycling, was the beginning of Wair - I wanted to save as much textiles as possible.

Why footwear?

It all started from a key moment of wanting to buy some sustainable sneakers myself, I searched for hours, but I couldn’t find any that lived up to my expectations of style and price. Since sneakers have such a big environmental impact, I wanted to provide people with a sustainable alternative to the conventional sneaker brands that was both affordable and modern.

Are there any other footwear brands you currently admire?

Yes, there are many footwear brands where I admire something specific about what they are doing, like their communication, the designs or some innovative sustainable solutions. There is a really cool sneaker brand called Made2Share, which makes a shoe, where you can create many shoes from only one sole – by changing the upper with a zipper technique – I think this is a great idea!

I also admire the popular “sustainable” shoe brands such as Veja and Allbirds. This is due to the fact that they have managed to become well-known brands and thereby become a real alternative to conventional sneaker brands. I definitely initially had some concerns regarding their material choices, but as long as they are transparent about it, I have a big respect for how they are doing business. Especially now that we have gone through the process of creating a sustainable sneaker ourselves – you realise how many trade-offs there are. Balancing sustainability with other important properties such as comfort and breathability is not an easy task.

As your designs are made from upcycled fabrics do you feel this limits your creativity?

Actually no. For me it might actually be the opposite, I think that it pushes my creativity further.

Maybe it is because I’m not from a design background but having unlimited choices in terms of fabric and design feels like too much for my creativity to handle! That was probably one of the reasons why I liked upcycling so much as a kid, having a big piece of fabric scared me, but having to make the best of an old dress was the best thing I knew.

In terms of accessibility to the fabrics, they are not easily accessible if you do not have a way in, at least not in big quantities! Most people do not see where discarded textiles end up, because they are often hidden away in big warehouses. But as soon as you have found some textile waste suppliers it is relatively easy to get access to the fabrics since it is a waste material for them, which they might actually lose money on.

 How much importance is placed on sustainable practice within the brand
outside of your fabric choices?

We know that using upcycled textiles is not enough in order to achieve a sustainable product. This is why we have considered the whole lifecycle of the shoe and tried to minimize the environmental and social impact at every stage. This includes everything from choosing local suppliers, selecting natural and recycled materials wherever it was not possible to use textile waste (e.g. the laces and the soles) and substituting toxic glue with water-based glue.

What happens to the shoes after use has also played a big role in our design. Most shoes end up in incineration or landfill, because they are made from a variety of different materials making them almost impossible to recycle. Instead we have tried to keep the design simple and limit the amount of different materials. We have e.g. used a textile WAIR detail to hold the laces instead of metal eyelets.

How much impact do you believe a young designer can have?

I believe that they can change so much more than they might think. Everyone has the chance of showing that there is another way of doing things. It might not be their company that changes the future, but they can lead the way by example and then others will follow this is where the real impact happens.

What are your aspirations for the brand ?

Over the next few years we want to upcycle textile waste, through making footwear (we are also planning to launch sandals in addition to sneakers) and through involving the consumers in the production process via workshops and DIY kits. We are very excited!   

For us at WAIR the mission is to ensure a second chance for as much textile waste as possible. We want to do this by proving that it is possible to make fashion upcycling a scalable business model – and we want others to join us on this mission.

Apart from the sneakers, we are also hosting upcycling workshops, where we are including the consumers in the production of an upcycled fashion item. Here we are also joining forces with other small upcycling companies, by having them host some of the workshops. In this way, we can have an even bigger impact, by giving more people the awareness and the skills needed to fight fast fashion.

WAIR are currently crowdfunding! Click this link to find out more.