Sneakers: innovation and sustainability according to WOMSH’s founder

If you love a good pair of shoes but also care about sustainability, you might know that sneakers are one of the most problematic product categories in fashion. Brands like WOMSH were born to tackle this and make combining your love for a good pair of kicks and sustainability possible!

The Italian brand started producing shoes with sustainable materials and processes in 2014 and they have been doing it ever since.

WOMSH: word of mouth sneakers?

“With our shoes we want to combine fashion and sustainability, Italian craftsmanship with ethical production, respect for the environment with respect for people. It’s our mission.” 

It’s from this idea that the acronym WOMSH was born : “It stands for Word Of Mouth SHoes. Our name means that shoes can talk and that they have a message that use “Word of Mouth” to spread respect for the environment.” How cool is that?

Behind the scenes 

The founder of this Gianni has a lot of experience in the footwear sector.

To help him behind the scenes, an all-female team works hard to make WOMSH flourish. It is a small team made up by Giulia the digital marketing manager, Claudia the art director and communication designer, Federica the chain supply manager, and Katiuscia the product manager for special project.

“All of our funny ideas come from a meditation chair in our workplace” Gianni says, “like this prototype of fully material recycled shoes, who is part of a new project for the upcoming season.”

These new shoes will be in their showroom soon, together with their three new collections – Gianni’s eye sparkle with passion.  

Apple skin is the new leather

“This idea comes from Francesca, my daughter, who one day told me that she couldn’t wear my shoes because they were made of leather and she is vegan. It was because of this that I came up with the idea of using alternatives like apple skin.”

“Apple waste is collected and processed until flour is obtained. It’s then mixed with PU and applied on cotton. The final result is an eco-leather-like material called apple skin. This is what we use to produce our vegan line and sneakers.” 

WOMSH and its impact

WOMSH’s innovation journey doesn’t want to stop here. One of their big eco-friendly moves is the possibility to bring your WOMSH’s shoes back! “We reuse old shoes to produce a special material used to make children’s playgrounds. That’s why we joined Giardino di Betty, which is one of the best activities in Italy for recovering old shoes and old materials. It’s very important to us”.

Another cool project according to the team is that WOMSH joined Impatto Zero of Life Gate, a very important and known company in the green economy in Italy. “We love trees and I consider trees our best influencer” explained Gianni. “What “Impatto Zero” does is compensate for the environmental impact generated during the entire life of WOMSH’s shoes production, contributing to the creation and protection of growing forests in Developing Countries.”

Clarity and transparency to you

Making a positive impact towards the environment is at the core of the brand’s ideals, however WOMSH also deeply cares about you. That’s why, starting this season, they have decided to place a QR code on every product: “You can scan it on your smartphone and you will receive all the info about suppliers, transparency, certification, material origin and production.”

Attention! Spoiler Alert!

Finally, as a special surprise to those of us who fell in love with WOMSH already, Gianni shared with a little spoiler: “We are building a new collection that won’t be only about shoes anymore.”. 

Give WOMSH a follow in the app, discover their products and keep watching what’s next for Gianni and team!