WildWestDesigns
Active Member
For those that deal with screenprinting, thoughts on this?
The Seaweed Revolution
Mark Fishbein aspires to build a $100 million clothing empire on seaweed. After much experimentation, Fishbein developed an eco-friendly seaweed-based dye that he uses to screen print fashionable designs onto apparel made from organic cotton. Not only are the garments and prints 100% “green,” the clothing for Fishbein’s year-old IMAGINE GreenWear is produced in Virginia and South Carolina. “The sky is really the limit for us,” says Fishbein. “You have a whole generation being raised with ‘green’ in mind. They’re getting it from parents, from schools, from television. People are looking for green in the clothes they wear…I could see this growing into a $100 million business.”
IMAGINE GreenWear isn’t there yet, but the Fairfax, VA-based company has had a strong first year. “We’re four times larger now than we were six months ago,” says Fishbein, noting the business' line is in 200 specialty stores nationwide, as well as Canada, China and Japan. Fishbein has no plans of slowing down. In November, IMAGINE GreenWear will move into a new 40,000-square foot facility. The company is also expanding its line, which started primarily as children’s wear, to include more offerings for men and women. IMAGINE’s bread-and-butter business has been selling its brand to retailers, but the eco-innovative company plans to expand into selling to distributors of promotional apparel and to the private label market. “If Nike wants us to do private label shirts for them, we’ll be happy to take that business,” says Fishbein.
Frustrated by the limitations and negative environmental impact of the plastisol and water-based inks available to screen printers, Fishbein, a 62-year-old life-long printer, decided to develop something new. He began experimenting with dyes several years ago, and ultimately created a seaweed-based dye, which produces an attractive, durable print that is dyed directly into a garment. “They’re safe, soft and allow the garment to breath,” says Fishbein, noting a patent is pending on the seaweed dye process. “With what we do, you create a permanent bond between the fabric and the dye. You don’t get the cracking you would with plastisol or the fading you would with water-based inks. It just feels better, and you can see the difference.”
The IMAGINE GreenWear fall Kids Collection includes short/long sleeved rompers for infants, T-shirts, dresses and leggings. The Ladies Collection features tunic-length scoop neck or cowl neck tops, camisoles and leggings. The Men’s Collection includes polo shirts and both short and long-sleeved T-shirts mostly with surfing and outdoor themes. A short-sleeve children’s shirt sells for about $30, while a typical ladies’ garment goes for $40 to $45, says Fishbein.
What’s also exciting is that the clothes are cut, sewn and printed in the United States. Fishbein is adamant that production happen stateside after his former business shuttered when much of the textile industry moved offshore. “I was in business for 40 years, printing 100,000 shirts a day, and I lost my business because I couldn’t sustain the volume as times changed,” says Fishbein. “So when we decided to start (Imagine GreenWear), I said, ‘Enough is enough. We can do this and we can do it here. I don’t want to go offshore like everyone else.’”
In the months ahead, Fishbein and his IMAGINE GreenWear partner Cas Shiver hope to expand the line and replicate – if not surpass – the meteoric growth of the last half-year. In so doing, Fishbein aspires to not only provide people with great clothing, but to be a leader in the movement to provide affordable apparel and embellishment that’s produced with minimal environmental impact. Says Fishbein: “Ultimately we’re hoping to set a new standard.”
The Seaweed Revolution
Mark Fishbein aspires to build a $100 million clothing empire on seaweed. After much experimentation, Fishbein developed an eco-friendly seaweed-based dye that he uses to screen print fashionable designs onto apparel made from organic cotton. Not only are the garments and prints 100% “green,” the clothing for Fishbein’s year-old IMAGINE GreenWear is produced in Virginia and South Carolina. “The sky is really the limit for us,” says Fishbein. “You have a whole generation being raised with ‘green’ in mind. They’re getting it from parents, from schools, from television. People are looking for green in the clothes they wear…I could see this growing into a $100 million business.”
IMAGINE GreenWear isn’t there yet, but the Fairfax, VA-based company has had a strong first year. “We’re four times larger now than we were six months ago,” says Fishbein, noting the business' line is in 200 specialty stores nationwide, as well as Canada, China and Japan. Fishbein has no plans of slowing down. In November, IMAGINE GreenWear will move into a new 40,000-square foot facility. The company is also expanding its line, which started primarily as children’s wear, to include more offerings for men and women. IMAGINE’s bread-and-butter business has been selling its brand to retailers, but the eco-innovative company plans to expand into selling to distributors of promotional apparel and to the private label market. “If Nike wants us to do private label shirts for them, we’ll be happy to take that business,” says Fishbein.
Frustrated by the limitations and negative environmental impact of the plastisol and water-based inks available to screen printers, Fishbein, a 62-year-old life-long printer, decided to develop something new. He began experimenting with dyes several years ago, and ultimately created a seaweed-based dye, which produces an attractive, durable print that is dyed directly into a garment. “They’re safe, soft and allow the garment to breath,” says Fishbein, noting a patent is pending on the seaweed dye process. “With what we do, you create a permanent bond between the fabric and the dye. You don’t get the cracking you would with plastisol or the fading you would with water-based inks. It just feels better, and you can see the difference.”
The IMAGINE GreenWear fall Kids Collection includes short/long sleeved rompers for infants, T-shirts, dresses and leggings. The Ladies Collection features tunic-length scoop neck or cowl neck tops, camisoles and leggings. The Men’s Collection includes polo shirts and both short and long-sleeved T-shirts mostly with surfing and outdoor themes. A short-sleeve children’s shirt sells for about $30, while a typical ladies’ garment goes for $40 to $45, says Fishbein.
What’s also exciting is that the clothes are cut, sewn and printed in the United States. Fishbein is adamant that production happen stateside after his former business shuttered when much of the textile industry moved offshore. “I was in business for 40 years, printing 100,000 shirts a day, and I lost my business because I couldn’t sustain the volume as times changed,” says Fishbein. “So when we decided to start (Imagine GreenWear), I said, ‘Enough is enough. We can do this and we can do it here. I don’t want to go offshore like everyone else.’”
In the months ahead, Fishbein and his IMAGINE GreenWear partner Cas Shiver hope to expand the line and replicate – if not surpass – the meteoric growth of the last half-year. In so doing, Fishbein aspires to not only provide people with great clothing, but to be a leader in the movement to provide affordable apparel and embellishment that’s produced with minimal environmental impact. Says Fishbein: “Ultimately we’re hoping to set a new standard.”
