Fall - InsideOutdoor Magazine

A Healthy Dose of
Textile TechnologY
Fabrics and constructions offering
‘health and wellness’ benefits
represent a new
opportunity for outdoor
by Martin Vilaboy
It’s not very often that a truly “new”
category appears within a mature
market or industry, but an emerging,
albeit loosely tied, group of
“medically beneficial” fabrications
may just be one of those rare cases.
And while there could be all sorts of
outdoor performance applications at
play, this “category within a category” behaves and is
merchandised in ways that outdoor retailers haven’t
before seen among apparel products.
True, garments that protect us from the elements,
prevent chaffing, regulate body heat, even fight off bugs
and shield us from the suns rays all offer “health” benefits
and certainly are all familiar territory. What we’re
starting to see now, however, goes one step further, more
toward wellness and even the therapeutic, often combined
with performance enhancement, as well.
Indeed, fabrics and constructions have come to market
with the power to release moisturizers when signaled by
body heat or friction, that support or warm joints on command
and monitor physiological functions. There’s even one
fabric technology that is flexible under normal situations but
seizes up on impact to absorb shock like a solid pad.
Mind you, these aren’t 10-year out, seen in medical
and the military market examples; we’re talking technologies
that are on store shelves right now.
Macy’s, for example, this summer introduced a line
of women’s undergarments embedded with microcapsules
that “continuously moisturize and smooth the skin
while helping to reduce the appearance of cellulite.” The
new line of Skineez Skincarewear comes with a bottle of
Skintex skincare spray to replenish the fabric after every
six to 10 trips through the wash.
“Women will be able to give their body a slimmer, more
contoured look, while helping to smooth the appearance
of cellulite and moisturize their skin, all at the same time
and with one garment,”
the company says.
Sales of these so-called
“shapewear” garments grew
more than 36 percent between
April 2006 and 2008, says NPD
Group, with dollar value for the most
recent 12-month period reaching $718
million, says the market research company.
A bit closer to home, this fall Optimer announced
that its Dri-release technology has been
combined with Celliant in socks aimed at the athletic
market. Celliant is a material that when added to textile
products and worn or placed next to the skin reportedly
will enhance oxygen levels in the body from 8 percent
to 25 percent, according to Ao2, the exclusive global distributor
of Celliant, and Hologenix, which holds the patent
to Celliant. The technology is marketed as a way to
help regulate body temperature, boost energy, accelerate
muscle recovery after exertion and aid in wound healing,
say the companies.
Critics argue that any material in contact with the
skin will lift blood flow and oxygen levels at the skin
surface, but Ao2 and Hologenix say Celliant works by
modifying light, altering its energy and transmitting it
to the body through textiles in contact with the skin.
30 | InsideOutdoor | Fall 2008