February 5, 2020 The Jacket of Our Future

Kulkija is the jacket of the future: Made from mono-material, built to last, easily recycled back to fibres that can get a new life in new products.

Since industrial-scale textile recycling is still in early stages of development, Reima realized a few years ago that circularity in kids’ clothing needs to start at the designer’s desk. Circularity is possible, but one needs to start thinking about the end of the product’s use life, before it even goes into production. That’s how Reima came up with its mid-season shell jacket Voyager and its winter version, Kulkija (Finnish for “one who travels”).

All layers of Kulkija, including the membrane, are made of 100% polyester. This makes it possible to recycle the whole jacket – apart from the unavoidable metal zipper lock and one piece of elastic in the powder skirt. Reima is committed to taking back every Kulkija jacket at its end-of-life, and delivering them to a partner waste management company for recycling back into fibers.

However, Reima also believes that reuse is an important part of sustainability and clothing should be durable enough to be used by several kids. In Kulkija, Reima maintained its high standards of durability, water-repellency and windproofing, in addition to recyclability. Reima figured it would also be fun for kids and their parents to see where their jacket has been and where it ends up after them. Therefore, Reima encourages all families to register their Kulkija jacket’s unique code online, where they can follow the story of their jacket.