Grape leather sneakers: the perfect plant-based and eco-friendly alternative to traditional leather.
Making plant-based sneakers: the culmination of our eco-responsible approach.
At the base of the COG project, our wish to become actors in a more ethical and responsible fashion by offering vegan and eco-responsible shoes and sneakers. Since our launch in 2020, our range of ethical shoes consists of 100% cruelty free shoes, without any animal material, made in the respect for nature and humans, free from products that could harm living things.
Since the end of 2022, we have been using in the production of our Topsy vegan sneakers, a completely new material composed of 80% grape marc and recycled plastic, produced in Italy. A plant-based solution, perfectly in line with our aspiration to spread ecological, local and virtuous fashion.
Through this article, we tell you a little more about this eco-responsible alternative, and the values supported by our brand.
Sneakers made from plant-based materials: our definition of eco-design.
Preserving life, favoring recycled materials, ensuring that artisans work in good conditions, this is our definition of ethical fashion, and our conception of luxury.
Our creative process is based on reducing our environmental footprint, as well as considering the health, social and economic resonances of the shoes we produce. For this, we use innovative alternatives, in order to offer a solution that respects the planet and individuals.
- Manufacture of vegan shoes, exclusively free of leather or other materials of animal origin, 100% cruelty free and certified Peta Approved Vegan.
- Use of eco-responsible and recycled materials (recycled PET, plastic bottles fished out of the Mediterranean and reused [Seaqual], cork, recycled rubber).
- OEKO TEX 100 certified materials.
- European production handmade in Portugal, within small family workshops, in which workers work in good conditions and in complete safety.
Leather made from grapes: a step further in eco-design.
Faux grape leather is a synthetic material that imitates natural leather (animal skin). Today used for making shoes - like our Topsy model, our women's city shoes Aiko And Laika, or even our Wallace black grape high top sneakers - this material produced from grape waste is also used to produce items in the leather goods sector.
This eco-friendly alternative is made from a blend of grape marc (dry residue collected after the harvest), vegetable oils, polyester and water-based polyurethane.
An innovative solution produced by a company based in Italy in the northern region of Milan, this material allows limit waste and to give a second life to grape marc (the remaining skin, seeds and stems are crushed after the juice pressing process), because this material, when not transformed for use in the cosmetics sector, is generally thrown away.
The second advantage of opting for this solution: in addition to being produced less than 500 kilometers from our premises, it perfectly meets our desire to preserve animal life, since it does not require no breeding, no slaughtering.
Finally, thanks to the use of recycled polyester mixed with a water-based PU, this material turns out to be extremely durable and manages to wonderfully render the aesthetic characteristics (texture), flexibility and resistance animal leather.
Grape leather, a flagship European vegetable material of vegan innovation.
Launched on the market in 2020, this new alternative to animal leather, imitation leather made from grape waste, is currently produced by only one Italian company.
A major wine-growing region, this is where the fruit is harvested, harvested, and then the recovered marc is transformed to become this innovative material.
Although there are other alternatives such as imitation leather made from plant-based materials, such as imitation leather made from pineapple (pinatex), cactus, mango, mushrooms or apple, our team has chosen to turn to this grape-based solution because, in our opinion, it is the option that best meets our aesthetic and ethical expectations: regional fruit And local transformation, sustainable and responsible solution.
The 6 stages of transformation of the grape marc into vegan leather.
- The grapes are harvested and then pressed.
- The grape marc, which is the residue (skin + seeds + stems) that remains after pressing the grapes to extract the juice, is collected and then dried.
- The waste is crushed and sieved.
- The material is then mixed with vegetable oils, recycled polyester and water-based polyurethane to form a paste.
- This paste is then spread on a support to form a sheet, then dried, textured and tinted.
- Next comes the step of cutting the material whose pieces will be used to make our shoes.
Zoom on our vegetable shoes in grape leather!
Topsy grape leather sneaker: the perfect plant-based sneaker.
At the end of 2022, after more than a year of research and development, COG launched its very first sneaker to use an upper made of this plant-based material: the vegan sneaker. Topsy.
With this new vegan sneaker, our team goes further in its desire to be part of an ecological approach, since in addition to not using any animal material, and being provided with a grape stem, the inner lining and laces of this casual sneaker are made of recycled plastic bottles, and that its insole is made of cork also recycled.
In terms of design, we focused on simple lines and striking geometry, thanks to clean lines and our clearly identifiable bird's foot logo, which sets the tone by combining with our different colors.
The sneaker is available in black, white, beige, red, cobalt blue, black & white, passing through the timeless blue, white, red, for the “French touch” side.
Comfortable and durable, we have made sure that our eco-friendly sneakers become your best ally on a path to protecting the planet.
Topsy, a tribute in the form of a plant-based sneaker.
Our vegan sneaker is not only eco-responsible, but also a tribute to animal life.
You know our commitment to animal welfare. Well, it is in memory of one of them, who did not have the chance to be considered as she should have, that we named our Topsy sneaker.
Topsy, an elephant born in 1867, only knew life in a circus. Exploited and mistreated by her trainer, the end of her life was as tragic as her existence.
In 1903, after suffering yet another abuse, Topsy was sentenced to be electrocuted for turning on her trainer and taking his life while defending herself.
This is why our team wanted to pay tribute to the elephant Topsy, so that her story is not forgotten, and that her name resonates with each of our steps for a more sensitive and moral reality.
Our goal is to make our Topsy the new emblem in terms of ethical sneakers for committed fashion, and a shoe that not only preserves nature, but also advocates the cause of life.
Our city shoes in vegetable leather.
On the city shoe side, the black versions of our Aïko women's Richelieu and our Chelsea also for women, Laika are also made from grape marc, and will charm you with their feminine and elegant lines.
Plant leather and eco -virtuous materials, for an ecological fashion turned to the future.
Over the years, more and more ethical and eco-responsible alternatives have emerged, offering us the opportunity to create models that are more in line with our values, as well as our expectations in terms of respect for the environment.
Since February 2023, another of our star models has been available in a new plant-based version: our unisex high-top sneaker, Wallace black grape ! This new version of our high-top sneaker is the perfect compromise between style, comfort and ecology.
And since eco-responsible alternatives continue to flourish, today we use, in addition to grape marc, revalued inedible cereals (recycled corn) in many COG models including our White Wallaces, our Winton white-red, white green And white-gold !
Produce in Europe and in small quantities, shoes designed with respect, from recycled materials, It's our way of leaving a clean footprint on the planet.
Incorporating plants to gradually try to replace plastic fiber is the challenge we want to take up. The path to a 100% plant-based shoe is long, but we are already very happy to present our new models of vegan, designer and ecological shoes.
Please feel free to share your opinions, ideas and impressions with us.
