Next steps for ‘biocircular’ footwear brand
Following the launch of its debut shoe this summer, Swiss footwear brand Solk has expanded with new colours and the launch of a consumer-facing web shop.
Founders David Solk and Irmi Kreuzer have used their 30 years of footwear sector experience to design and create a “biocircular” shoe, where every element is “compost compatible”.
The shoes are produced in a company-owned factory in Vietnam, and at the end of life, can be returned to be composted in a company-owned composting facility in Germany.
“We actually started out trying to make the shoe without leather,” David Solk told World Leather. “We explored a range of non-leather alternatives and really pushed to make one of the newer bio-based materials work. But at the time, none of them could meet the performance demands of footwear without relying on plastic. That’s what eventually led us to take a closer look at leather – and to ask whether it could be produced in a way that aligned with our biocircularity goals.”
The team worked closely with a German tannery on a tanning process developed specifically for Solk products.
The first design, the Fade 101, is now available in an expanded palette and retails at €285. Alongside ember, black, ivory and sand, the collection now includes navy, stone and olive.
The Fade 201 (pictured) is a new low-profile silhouette with a slimmer fit, available in ivory, sand, navy, black and dusty rose, claret and tan. The Fade 201 retails at €265.
Read more from our interview with David Solk in the upcoming issue of World Leather magazine.
