“Awesome” takes on a nuanced meaning for Osom Brand — and the female-founded sustainable basics company approaches its mission-based operation with an axiom that is blessedly simple: to embrace the idea that we are all one.
Osom Brand — which is endearingly pronounced “awesome” — manufactures its products with Osomtex, the company’s GRS patented upcycled yarns made from 100 percent post-consumer and post-industrial textile blends, or discarded garments, with no water, dyes or harsh chemicals used throughout its process. Ultramodern technologies and clean solar energy power its upcycling operations, and to date, 95 percent of its products are made with upcycled material.
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Beginning with socks, the brand’s start in the basics category is motivated by the state of the industry: Americans throw out nearly 11 million tons of clothing each year, which equates to approximately 70 pounds per American. But the kicker is that nearly 99 percent of textiles are recyclable, all according to Osom Brand.
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And that’s why environmental entrepreneur Patricia Ermecheo, chief executive officer and founder of Osom Brand and Osomtex, has diverted more than 40 million pounds of clothing waste; saved more than 10 million gallons of water, and prevented carbon emissions from polluting the planet through her missions, and Ermecheo has her sights sent on continued impact and expansion.
Here, Ermecheo talks to WWD about Osom Brand’s Ostomtex, its new Miami-based factory, and the changing sustainability landscape.
WWD: What problem did you identify in the textiles market, and why is Osomtex the solution?
Patricia Ermecheo: Back in 2011, I was assigned the mission to find the best quality secondhand clothing in south Florida. The main intention of that mission was to send that clothing overseas to low-income communities in countries with people in need of something affordable to wear. Soon I realized that a significant portion of the sorted clothes was thrown into a big bin destined to a landfill — this made no sense to me, and the vision of transforming that wasted clothing into yarn began. Today, Osomtex is the only mechanical process able to solve this massive problem on a big scale for the fashion industry biggest players.
WWD: Why are Osomtex products distinctive in the textiles space?
P.E.: Our patented waterless process can upcycle full garments made of pretty much any material. Osomtex is a unique sustainable blend that can be seen in some of the most high-quality performance products in the industry, such as the Space Hippie collection by Nike, the Vapormax 2020 uniform for the U.S. Olympic team, the Stella McCartney 2018 sock collection and, of course, our Osom Brand clothing. Traditionally, recycling companies can only process textile scraps and often made of only one material, cotton or wool.
WWD: Tell us about the new Osom factory opening in Miami next month. What can we expect to see, and what is unique about this operation?
P.E.: Our upcycling factory is the first facility of its kind recorded in the history of Florida, and the first factory of its kind founded by a woman is the U.S. We will process up to 1 million pounds of textiles per month, saving more than 10 million gallons of water per year. Our process does not use any water or dyes or chemicals to transform the textile waste into beautiful fiber ready to make high quality yarn. It can also be used as insulation and other home goods.
We are expecting to see a lot [of momentum] in this facility, and our goal is to partner with all brands and really any entity interested on making a positive environmental impact, not just to upcycle their textile waste, but to educate the public on the importance of our upcycling mission, for a better humanity and the health of our climate on planet Earth.
WWD: How is sustainability in fashion evolving, and how have consumers changed?
P.E.: Sustainability is being considered now as one of the main goals for all brands. With 26 billion pounds of textile waste thrown into landfills every year, the fashion industry is the second most polluting industry on the planet after oil, so it is now a big responsibility more than anything else. If we want to have Earth as our home for years to come, we must transition to a circular economy and include upcycled materials in all products.
To achieve this important goal, consumers are probably the most important part of the equation, because without them asking for more sustainable options brands will never make the change that is needed to make the fashion industry transformation we need to see.
WWD: What’s next for Osom?
P.E.: The Milky Way! We are working on very exciting projects right now that includes as far as Space, and other continents (here on Earth) as well. But more than anything, our goal and purpose will always be to expand our upcycling process, the closest to the source of waste to minimize the carbon footprint, and help our planet regenerate back to health, always innovating, evolving and getting better at what we love to do.
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