bleed – cruelty-free brand
Text: Anna Plaszczyk, photos: press release
2 April 2016
The name says it all – bleed; because for entire product-line no human, animal or aspect of mother nature has had to suffer. A claim, as simple as it could be. No harm, no poison, no murder...that’s the only, even if unwritten, law at bleed, and therefore it is part of everything they do, anchored within the production of their goods through the entire supply-chain.
Ecological, vegan and fairly produced, GOTS certified sport- and streetwear straight from the heart of Upper Franconia. The brand sticks to its roots, located in the beautiful countryside of Helmbrechts, where it all began. Founded in 2008 by CEO and head of design Michael Spitzbarth, who worked as a Freelancer for a couple of years after he studied textile design. During this period of time he got a close look behind the machinations of the textile industry and knew, it was time to change something. The nature had already bled enough and it had to stop. Therefore not only the name, but also the whole brand was born.
Meanwhile the team grew with seven dedicated employees, who not only design and sell all these great products, but are also their toughest judges ensuring they test every new piece for themselves knowing they can provide their customers with the best products. Also transparency is really important at bleed - they don´t put on a poker face, they always play with open cards! This is why brand sets value upon the certification of its products (GOTS), to make sure customers can have confidence in what they are wearing.
Even more important to bleed is the desire to push the research and development of new and more sustainable fabrics. Biological cotton for instance is produced 100% chemical free, yes, but it still wastes gallons of water. At bleed, they increase the use of sustainable materials like TENCEL, a cellulose fiber made out of eucalyptus, even if that means missing out on certification in some cases. But in the end, the relief of the environment, having used a fiber consuming less water and no pesticides or herbicides during production, is significantly more valuable than any certificate.
Everyone at bleed also wants to help reducing the enormous demand for crude oil by using only recycled materials for all functional fabrics. With this approach they not only abstain from “wasting” any more crude oil but also reduce energy consumption during production and thus emissions. Another obvious advantage of using recycled materials is less waste making its way to our garbage dumps. All of these benefits, to recycled Sympatex fabrics have meant they mainly use in their functional jackets, which have been awarded for their outstanding eco friendliness with the “ÖkoTex Standard 100”, as well as with the “bluesign-certificate”.
Furthermore they see great potential in the use of cork – not just as an alternative for leather, but also as a sustainable substitute for already existing, toxic imitations. That´s why bleed created the Montado Black Edition, a fashion- and accessory collection with cork as the main constituent, which became the most successful fashion crowdfunding in Germany. The highlights of this collection are the two vegan cork jackets.
Everything, from the initial idea, through the sale of the products to their own endurance testing – bleed is realizing in a small team of just seven people. Because one thing was pretty clear right from the start - bleed is always going to be an self-dependent company. A small and self-contained team, working due to their own ideal of an sustainable and vegan production without any investor behind it.