Lete: Sustainable, environmentally conscious activewear

Fast fashion is destroying the planet. But one New Zealand company is moving the activewear industry towards a more sustainable future.

Fast Fashion: An Environmental Disaster

Fast fashion is defined as the low-cost, mass production of garments that borrow style ideas from catwalk fashion. These mass-produced garments are sold at high street clothing stores and online retailers and are available almost immediately. The immediate availability of these garments is great at satisfying consumer demand but is a disaster for the environment and the people who make and sell them.

Consumer habits are changing

More often, we want values for money rather than value for money. In 2018, Dan Wilson and Paulina Ciurzynska founded the active and leisurewear company Lete to meet the needs of humans and the environment.

They make their products from bamboo rather than cotton. It is the most sustainable fabric for clothes because it uses three times less water than cotton when growing. In addition, nearly 90% of Lete products are made from a type of bamboo called tanboocel – a biodegradable fibre that possesses anti-bacterial qualities that prevent germs and bacteria from making themselves at home in the activewear.

Lete has both men’s and women’s collections. However, they also sell a bamboo coffee cup and a sleek glass water bottle with a bamboo head. Check out their collection on KIWIFRENCH.

Lete Connect and Protect and Foundation

In addition to selling sustainable activewear, coffee cups and drink bottles, Lete is also helping to replenish tropical rainforests around the world. Dan and Paulina teamed up with HalfCut, an organization that is committed to reversing deforestation.

For every sale, Lete will donate $2.50 towards buying back forest. HalfCut matches that $2.50, resulting in $5.00 going towards buying back the equivalent of two square meters.

Last year, HalfCut raised $348,096 and protected 139,238 square metres of the Daintree Rainforest in Queensland, Australia.