Stella McCartney’s kelp-inspired gowns from Paris Fashion Week were made in a Morrisville, North Carolina factory. Kelp is a form of seaweed. Kelp is a giant algae that grows abundantly in dense underwater forests near shore. Keel Labs converts kelp, one of the fastest-growing and most renewable creatures on Earth, into usable textiles that can be utilized for clothes, accessories, and footwear.
COO and co-founder Aleks Gosiewski describe this as “just the jumping off point” for Keel Labs (previously known as AlgiKnit), a startup working to turn seaweed into sustainable fabrics.
Stella McCartney’s choice to show garments created with the company’s new kelp-based “Kelsun yarn” during the recent Paris Fashion Week represents a watershed moment for the growing business, according to Gosiewski.
Keel Labs, established in 2017, has been operating out of the Triangle since last year and hopes to expand, doubling its present office space.
According to Gosiewski, the partnership with English fashion designer McCartney results from prolonged, fruitful discussions. After a year of “increasingly progressive conversations,” Gosiewski and his team decided to make this Paris Fashion Week the “official launch.”
McCartney, drawn to the yarn for its sustainability, told The Guardian that items made with Keel Labs’ technology represented a “moment for a community who care about fashion and environment to come together.”
When asked about his time with McCartney’s company, Gosiewski used the word “incredible.” She said, “There are no words to sort of encompass the feeling behind everything; this is a moment we’ve been looking forward to for the last little bit, as soon as we knew we were working toward it,” adding that the response after the show, when people came up to her, felt the fabric, and asked questions, was the most meaningful part. We consider this a significant accomplishment, helping us expand product sales.
