Luxury fashion house Louis Vuitton has entered the rapidly growing sustainable shoe market. With its new Charlie sneakers, the French brand is utilizing 90% recycled and bio-sourced materials, including Biopolioli – a corn-based plastic.
Featuring a unisex design, Charlie is Louis Vuitton’s most eco-friendly sneaker offering to date; the laces are made from recycled fibers, the soles are composed of 94% recycled rubber, and the tongue is from Econyl – a renewable nylon fabric. Every pair of Charlie sneakers is produced in Louis Vuitton’s workshop in Fiesso d’Artico, Italy, and come in low and high-top versions.
Biopolioli is just one of the latest biomaterials to be changing the world of fashion as the concept of “luxury” seems to be changing in the face of the climate crisis. UK fashion house Stella McCartney recently showcased a handbag made with vegan mushroom leather on the runway at Paris Fashion Week, whereas luxury fashion group Kering has announced that none of its fashion houses will use real animal fur, including Balenciaga, Bottega Veneta, Alexander McQueen, Brioni, and Saint Laurent.
