icebreaker - MOVE TO NATURAL

icebreaker means breaking the ice. First and foremost, of course, it’s about producing clothing. But behind that lies our fundamental goal: to break the ice, develop new ideas and create new relationships between people and nature.

THE UNCOMFORTABLE TRUTH OF WEARING PLASTIC

icebreaker’s latest global campaign, “The Inconvenient Truth About Plastic”, puts this issue in the spotlight and informs consumers not only about the plastic in their clothing, but how they can reduce their plastic consumption through conscious choices.
Behind the campaign is the realisation that few people are aware that the clothes they wear are one of the biggest contributors to plastic waste. The dramatic actor “Plastic Man” embodies the fact that many consumers still wear plastic every day, while drawing attention to one of the biggest contributors to plastic waste on earth: the clothes we wear.

Icebreaker founder Jeremy Moon tells us how it all began:

“As so often in life, the best things happen unplanned. It all started with icebreaker in 1994. I was 24 years old and my American girlfriend had just returned from a stay on a sheep farm on Pohenui Island in New Zealand.”

The experiences and impressions she had gathered on this farm were deeply impressive to her and she persuaded me to meet the sheep farmer myself. A week later, when I actually had lunch with the farmer, he slipped me a T-shirt made of wool: “What do you think?” I immediately tried it on. It was very different from what I had expected. It felt silky soft and was incredibly comfortable – very different from the scratchy, heavy wool I knew from my childhood. It was knitted from ultra-fine merino wool that came from the sheep on Pohenui Island. I left it on right away for lunch and have never returned it since.

A few months earlier I had been on a five-day kayak tour wearing polyester. At the time, it was the so-called “technical” outdoor material. It looked cool, but it felt unnatural and felt like plastic. By the second day, I smelled like sweat. When I heard that all synthetic outdoor materials – like polyester or polypropylene – are made of plastic, I was shocked. It just seemed crazy to escape into nature wearing a plastic bag.

Over the next few days and weeks, the T-shirt and I became inseparable. I went running and biking in it, wore it under my shirt to work, to go out in the evening and I even slept in it. It was so wonderfully soft, never too warm and didn’t smell even after days of wear. I could also just throw it in the washing machine and unlike other outdoor clothing it was 100% natural. My American girlfriend went back to the US, but the T-shirt had become my new passion.

That’s exactly what I was looking for: a great idea with global potential. Following my gut feeling, I quit my job in market research and moved my house to raise 25,000 New Zealand dollars – telling the bank that I needed money for a new kitchen. With the money, I bought the concept behind the prototype. It didn’t seem risky to me – rather, I felt I had no other choice.

Our company purpose was clear and could be formulated as a simple question: How can we offer consumers a natural alternative to synthetic outdoor clothing?

Everyone who wore the product was amazed. I was convinced that it would be a success – as long as I didn’t mess anything up. For me, it was flying blind, so I enlisted a lot of help. I worked out a business plan, found eight investors through my friends’ parents who were willing to advance money and formed an advisory board with entrepreneurial spirit and experience. We had a clear vision and so icebreaker was born in 1995. We were the little ones with the big idea: to connect people with nature while wearing a product from nature. Before the year was out, we were led by 14 brave outdoor shops across New Zealand. They were the first to be willing to take on a young guy with a dream and a suitcase full of merino base layers.

Move to Natural

Today – 25 years later – icebreaker is represented in many countries around the world. The core idea of enabling a natural alternative to synthetic clothing is still anchored in the brand’s vision. With their slogan “Move to Natural”, they describe their ambition to be part of a movement dedicated to a sustainable lifestyle – a desire that is more present than ever in today’s world. More and more people are starting to question their own lifestyle and behaviour as consumers: “What materials are my clothes actually made of and under what conditions were they produced?” With icebreaker products, the company wants to offer all these customers an alternative, away from plastic on the skin towards more nature – in the spirit of “Move to Natural”.

Here you can find the icebreaker Transparency Report!

Plasticfree by ´23

Move to Natural is no longer just a slogan. For icebreaker, it is rather a benchmark that the company can use to question its current sustainability status and continue to work on it. As of today, 87% of the entire fibre composition is of natural origin. A success that icebreaker is proud of, but they don’t want to rest on their laurels. The company continues to work on researching new innovative natural fibres in order to gradually replace the plastic content of clothing that has been necessary up to now. In doing so, they have made it their goal to completely replace all remaining synthetic components in the collection by 2023: Plasticfree by ’23.

discover the Shell+ Kollektion by icebreaker

The Icebreaker Shell+ is a versatile, very weatherproof Softshell apparel. It is made of 100 % merino wool and has a durable, PFC-free water repellent finish. So you’ll stay warm and dry no matter what the conditions.

Shell+ by Icebreaker is a woven material that protects you against wind and light rain. The seams are fully sealed and the seams are also articulated, so you enjoy absolute freedom of movement. The hood is adjustable at three points and has a back vent that allows it to be worn with or without a helmet.

The design is rounded off by offset shoulder seams to prevent friction, a two-way water resistant zipper with storm flap and zipper chin guard to prevent friction and zippered hand pockets. The Icebreaker softshell jacket has internal dump pockets that fit a pair of gloves and a secure pass pocket.