ETHICAL FASHION WITH AN ITALIAN TWIST

Looking for Vegan shoes in the italian market i remembered Bioworld/Altrescarpe. They are not actually Italian but Spanish artisans and they do not only make Vegan shoes but also vegetable tanned leather ones.

Courbet in Lorica - Bioworld/Altrescapre

Looking more carefully into their Vegan line appears that what is really “Made in Italy” is the high tech leather called Lorica they use. The mystery now was what actually Lorica is? I checked the website of Lorica Sud SRL the company who patented this material and they give this description:

Lorica, initially, appears in raw sheets with a very flexible appearance and with conspicuous puckering: from the initial microscopic section-analysis, it is possible to identify the great similarity with animal hides even though it is an entirely synthetic material. The idea to combine polymer and tanning technologies originated, carrying out the processing of unrefined Lorica (composed of polyurethane and polyamide microfiber) extremely suitable for sustaining the necessary and intense transformation procedure, in order to obtain “real hi-tech leather”. Lorica was designed to satisfy the wide-ranging and demanding requirements of the current market in an environmentally-friendly way. The products used in the various Lorica manufacturing phases are in fact neither toxic nor harmful to man or the environment. Lorica is an innovative material that scores excellent results in bio-medical tests: the analysis carried out in specialized centers firm that Lorica is a non-allergic, non-ssitive and non-irritating product.

The results is probably the most eco-freindly substitute of leather and Bioworld/Altrescarpe turns it into very nice shoes, with a great feel and super waterproof. On top of this let’s not forget: totally vegan.