In December, Brazilian stylist Caio Von Vogt will be exporting his first load of cloth produced from jute fiber, made from a plant grown in the north of Brazil for the production of food storage bags.
Vogt, who is from the southern Brazilian state of Paraná and lives in the southeastern state of São Paulo, completed the project for development of the cloth, which he called “ecovogt”, in October, after six years of research.
The entire production process of the cloth is ecological. Jute is grown without chemical additives, threading is done using scentless vegetable oils, instead of chemical products, and dying is also natural.
Macela tea and saffron, for example, are used to dye the cloth yellow. Brazilwood and castor seeds are used to dye the cloth red, purple and brown. The looms were also adapted for production of jute cloth.
The company to administer export of the cloth is Capelin Exportadora Ltda. The trading company has offices in Turkey, France and Mexico. The first sale will be to Europe.
The volume, however, has not yet been defined. “Our market is the European, but we have interest in selling to all the countries, including the Arab countries,” stated Vogt.
Cia Têxtil do Castanhal is responsible for production of the cloth. At the beginning of last month, the company started producing 100,000 meters of cloth per month. The intention, however, is to reach the volume of one million meters a month, according to Vogt.
There have already been some attempts to produce clothes out of jute fiber, but the fabric was never produced in large scale or with concerns about the environment.
Social Responsibility
So as to supply raw materials, around 20,000 families in the northern region of the country are planting jute.
“The project has a noble cause, which is to provide work to families that plant jute,” stated Vogt. Jute for production of bags is being replaced by cheaper raw material, polypropylene.
“These people would be unemployed,” stated Vogt. The stylist’s intention is to inform people who buy clothes made out of jute that they are wearing a product made with social and environmental concern.
There is currently a laboratory at the Textile Engineering College (Unifei), in São Bernardo do Campo, part of Greater São Paulo, in southeastern Brazil, which is working on improvement of the production process of the cloth.
Around 20 professionals are working in the area. The college signed a partnership with Vogt around one year ago.
Apart from producing the cloth, stylist Vogt also has a showroom in São Paulo, where he makes clothes out of jute fiber. For the time being, the items are only sold custom made, at his studio, and at some boutiques around the country.
Starting next year, however, Vogt intends to open an exclusive store under his brand and to present the clothes in Europe. “I have already been invited to participate in a fashion show in France.”
Vogt also produces other kinds of clothes in the sports, streetwear and casual lines, under brands “Von Vogt Brasil” and “Caio Von Vogt”. The clothes are sold at three exclusive stores in shopping malls in São Paulo and at multi brand retail stores.
The stylist, born in a small city called Planalto, in the southeastern Brazilian state of Paraná, arrived in São Paulo while he was still a teenager, about to finish high school.
Vogt never took a fashion course, but he worked for large companies. He develops collections for Vicunha, a large clothes manufacturer in Brazil, and up to last year the company produced for jeans brand Etoile. Their private brand was established eight years ago.
Contact
Caio Von Vogt
Tel.: (+55 11) 3742-2880
ANBA ”“ Brazil-Arab News Agency