A Colombian company that was born to manufacture and sell sportswear and swimwear redirected its strategy towards protective clothing against the coronavirus. The store is called Maaji, it is located in the department of Antioquia, one of the most important in Colombia, in the northwest, and has 25 employees.
In April, Maaji launched the Protective Wear – 1WorldTogether line, with pieces made from recycled fabric from plastic bottles (PET: polyethylene terephthalate), which, according to the company, meets the standards for protection against the coronavirus.
They have the same vivid print as the garments in their regular collection: motifs of Colombian fauna and flora, greens, yellows, dark blue, sea blue, guava, pink. But in this series there are reversible masks; jackets with hoods and masks up to the nose, backpacks that are also protective vests for the chest, face and head; protective garments that look like balaclavas helmets because only the eyes and forehead can be seen from the head; jogger pants and overalls.
The collection is adapted to the needs of the pandemic and shows a style at the same time
According to Fashion Radicals, the creation of this line began in March, when there was a shortage of masks in Colombia and the world. “Maaji looked for ways to help alleviate the high demand. That’s how the idea of using our capabilities to donate them came about.”
“We quickly realized that this need is not going away anytime soon given the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has recommended we all wear cloth face coverings to slow the spread of the virus. We’ve created a sustainable way to help not just now but through the duration of this pandemic and beyond,” says a statement on Maaji’s website.
They began by donating 10,000 “non-medical” masks to three hospitals in Medellín, the capital of Antioquia.
This was the result of an investigation undertaken by Carolina Restrepo, Maaji’s director of Innovation, Sustainability and Development, continues Fashion Radicals, which included advice from the private hospital Pablo Tobón Uribe, as well as laboratories.
“We developed masks by devising ways to create the necessary protection with anti-fluid fabrics and closed-weave polyester. We used two layers and also tested them to make sure there was no filtration,” Restrepo explained, as quoted by Noticias Caracol.
Then they developed the rest of the garments they offer in the Protective Wear collection. Maaji currently produces about 10 thousand of these pieces a day, the according to the Noticias Caracol report, which highlights that the launching of this line has been for Maaji “an opportunity not to stop the machines and to continue producing.”
“Since the appearance of the coronavirus, we have called our team to join forces and using our creativity and agility. We are bringing to the market a special proposal using the fabrics we used before, to achieve presses that will serve to protect us in these times,” Restrepo continued.
Maaji was already working with principles of sustainability, for the earth and for their employees, according to their website.
Colombia’s Minister of Energy and Mines, María Fernanda Suárez, recently appeared on television wearing one of the jackets from the Protective Wear collection.
According to Fashion Network, for every sale the company makes of the Protective Wear collection, they will continue to donate masks to hospitals and essential workers.
“By providing the opportunity to purchase, as well as donating masks to those in need, we hope to alleviate the demand on medical grade masks, ensuring those masks are available for healthcare workers whose lives literally depend on them,” the website says.