The luxury brand Balenciaga has just fallen under the spell of Bananatex, a biodegradable and now vegan abacá canvas, since its beeswax coating was replaced by plant-based ingredients.

By Ludmilla Intravaia

After the Swedish brand H&M (more information in this Boudoir numérique article) and the British designer Stella McCartney, it is Balenciaga's turn to fall under the vegan and more sustainable charm of Bananatex, an innovative material developed by the Swiss bag brand Qwstion.

The French house is proposing two pairs of Triple S sneakers for women in beige and black, in Bananatex canvas, an alternative material to petro-sourced synthetic materials and animal-based leather, made from a herbaceous plant, the banana tree. More precisely, with a specific species of banana tree, called abacá, from which a very resistant natural fiber is extracted, Manila hemp, used to make twine and rope. Abaca cultivation does not require pesticides or fertilizers. This plastic-free and biodegradable material, launched in 2018, is designed from these fibers which are woven into a fabric, the result of three years of research by Qwstion, in collaboration with farmers in the Philippines, as well as spinning and weaving factories in Taiwan.

Previously covered with a layer of beeswax to give it its finish and water repellent characteristics, Bananatex is now a vegan material, its coating now being made from plant-based ingredients. Bananatex has thus benefited, since 2023, from the Vegan Trademark label from the british vegan association The Vegan Society, which guarantees consumers that there are no animal-based ingredients in a product and that these ingredients have not been tested on animals either. The two pairs of Triple S shoes are already available on the Balenciaga website and in its physical stores for 875 euros.

* Learn more about innovative vegan and cruelty-free fashion and beauty, by exploring the Boudoir Numérique special file there.

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