António Moreira Gonçalves
They are the perfect combination of innovation, performance and environmental accountability. Not even the jury of the ISPO Textrends Forum resisted A.Sampaio’s work and included four of the company’s knitted fabrics in the Forum’s top 10, one under the Membranes & Coating category and three under Accelerated Eco.
Acknowledgement which comes as no surprise to A.Sampaio. Since 2014, the company has been a regular at Textrends, ISPO’s trends forum. “It’s always useful, firstly because we get feedback from a specialized jury and, furthermore, customers take notice”, highlights Miguel Mendes, manager of the company. In the forum’s last edition, besides the four knits on Top 10, the company also had five products in the Selection board.
In the Membranes & Coating category, the highlight is an ultra-light and elastic membrane, made of a very thin recycled polyester mesh combined with another mesh of normal polyester on the outer layer, and an inner layer enhanced through a flocking process. “Usually these membranes are used to make those very thin jackets that can be folded and carried in a pocket”, as Miguel Mendes illustrated. The flocking process – “it’s not a recent invention, but its use is still very rare in these items” – provides more comfort for the user since it prevents the fabrics from sticking to the skin.
Nevertheless, Accelerated Eco is the category in which A.Sampaio excelled the most, featuring three knits in the Top 10. The first is a combination of two highly sustainable raw materials: Tencel Refibra, made from old textile fibres, and PLA, a polymer with a lower environmental impact in terms of energy consumption and CO2 emissions. “More than sustainable, this blend provides a fabulous feel to the touch, very soft and enjoyable when in contact with the skin”, underlines Miguel Mendes.
The second item chosen by the jury is a knit composed of recycled polyester and hemp. “It’s for an outer layer, clearly more directed toward sportswear than for sporting attire per se”, clarifies the company’s manager.
Last but not the least comes a knit that merges organic cotton with recycled polyester. “The core concepts for this garment are versatility and personality”, reveals Miguel Mendes. Presented with a type of stripe on each side, the knitted fabric was made as a fashion detail and added value for the clothing with which it’s used.