HELSINKI, Finland – Rens Original, the Helsinki-based eco-startup, debuted back in Summer 2019 with the Originals sneaker made from 21 cups of coffee waste and 6 bottles of recycled plastic. Funded via Kickstarter, Rens created the world’s first waterproof coffee sneaker and raised over half a million USD, becoming the all-time most successful Fashion Kickstarter Campaign in the Nordics and the all-time most funded Kickstarter campaign in Finland. This time, the label aims to surpass its own record, raising 1 million USD which will be used to manufacture and distribute the world’s first crowdfunded climate neutral sneaker, NOMAD, specially designed from their customer’s feedback for all performance activities.
Combining sustainability with performance
Rens NOMAD will be the first sneaker born in a Crowdfunding platform to be climate neutral from raw materials, packaging, production, transport, and waste. Specifically, Rens will work with Climate Partner to reduce and offset all the climate emissions at each stage of the process.
Designed with performance at the forefront while remaining fully sustainable, NOMAD strongly supports all activities such as hiking, walking, or trail running under any weather conditions. Created from waste-based and low-impact materials, NOMAD features a fully-recycled waterproof layer and a self-developed ventilation system:
Putting the customer first
After the success of the first Kickstarter sneaker, Rens put customers in the driving seat in the process of developing NOMAD. The Co-founder Jesse Tran, CEO, and co-founder of Rens says: “With the new model, we are continuing our mission to integrate sustainable fashion with technology and innovation. We are particularly pleased to include the feedback from the customers in the development of NOMAD, who explicitly requested a performance sneaker.”
Rens believes that launching again on Kickstarter offers its customers a new opportunity to give real-time feedback while also having a greener and superior purchasing experience as pledging before manufacturing drastically cuts down on the factory overrun, production waste, and transportation emissions.
Backers of the Kickstarter campaign will be able to get their climate neutral NOMAD Sneakers in nine colorways with a super early bird price starting at 89 USD for the first eight hours, before moving to an early bird price of 109 USD.
Sustainability is Rens core value
First and foremost, this sneaker is an environmental statement, designed to combat plastic pollution and food waste. Rens has a mission to extend the life cycle of existing materials while reducing the need for landfills by producing the ultimate sustainable sneaker. So far, Rens has recycled over 250,000 plastic bottles and 750,000 cups of used coffee.
Son Chu, CMO, CTO, and Co-Founder of Rens adds “Shoes made from recycled coffee grounds may seem novel to some, but we wholeheartedly believe that this is just the beginning of a revolution in garment technology and manufacturing.”.
Being sustainable not only remains in the materials used but also in the conditions of their partners and workers. For instance, Rens’ partners are certified by recognized bodies such as GRS, FSC, and RCS and audited according to a global standard such as SMETA to ensure that labor, health, and environmental standards are met, workers are fairly compensated, and no forced labor or child labor is used in the production processes.
About Rens
As a proud immigrant-owned-and-operated startup in Finland, Rens is a business with the environment at its heart. Founded in 2018 by Vietnamese Sneakerheads Jesse Tran and Son Chu, the pair are seeking innovative ways to combat a sad fact: that the fashion industry is the second most polluting industry in the world. By utilizing recycled products and by-products, Rens aims to prove that there is another way – that by showing how it can be done, it will hold the fashion industry to account and make the world a better place for longer.
