Snü nanofibre anti-pollution/virus masks

Women around the world hold up the global fashion industry with their skills. "Fast fashion" supply chains have lead to low wages and automation. Post-Covid19, entrepreneurial opportunities for skilled apparel workers are essential.

Women and girls are empowered by good education and fair work within the fashion industry. Snü – a trendy, comfy nanofibre air pollution-filtering facemask built in to a stretch snood or scarf – is a simple-to-sew product, that can easily be adapted for each cultural context, and for markets as they arise (such as during the Covid19 crisis).

Sustainable Snüs sold in to the international luxury market on a buy-one-give-one basis will enable the funding of regional/local manufacturing of facemasks for general wear. Local manufacturing of Snüs will allow high-tech air pollution-filtering facemasks and scarves to be made and delivered to those who need it most, without depending on large global supply chains.

Women around the world hold up the global fashion industry with their skills. Covid19 quickly decimated the industry, and their jobs – after years of low wages, automation, un-unionised and often dangerous working conditions.

Global air pollution is a deadly problem, particularly in South and South East Asia. While facemasks are becoming more common, particularly following the Covid19 outbreak where they are being used outside of medical settings to avoid the virus in public spaces, there are few companies that make high-quality, reusable, comfortable, breathable masks for both protection from air pollution and Covid19.

Women and girls can be empowered by good education and fair work within the fashion industry. Snü – a trendy, comfy nanofibre air pollution-filtering facemask built in to a stretch snood or scarf – is a simple-to-sew product, that can easily be adapted for each cultural context, and for markets as they arise (such as during the Covid19 crisis). 

An education programme and a simple manufacturing set-up can empower women to build their own franchise manufacturer for Snü, using local materials and artisanal skills, to either sell the product into the luxury global market, or within their own communities of need. Ethical manufacturing partners can provide training for young women and girls to create these simple products, and enable those with ideas for innovations to create their own products, ultimately moving on from Snü to establish their own manufacturing.

The solution targets apparel workers in the Global South where there are large fashion manufacturing industries. Ethical manufacturing partners already exist in a number of these communities, who connect ethical and sustainable manufacturers, often powered by women who make the garments, with luxury fashion brands in the Global North.

In turn, both edtech and filtermask-textile innovations in Europe, such as in Portugal, can provide crucial partnerships in the pilot phase to develop educational materials for ethical manufacturers worldwide. This will enable Snü to create diversified, sustainable supply chains based on the market opportunities available – which are fast-growing due to Covid19. 

Training in how to develop designs and technical drawings of facecoverings for their own cultural contexts, using local sustainable fabrics and accessible sewing equipment, will create entrepreneurial opportunities.

Air pollution-filtering and pathogen-protection face barriers are highly technical products, requiring careful design and manufacturing for their intended purpose. Creating, wearing and using facemasks effectively requires understanding of the behaviour of airborne particles and viruses/bacteria in different hygienic settings.

This will be crucial should there be another viral outbreak, and helpful for daily avoidance of harmful air pollution, high in developing countries.

My startup's product, the Snü, is a highly versatile facecovering with high-tech nanofibre filter technology. The outer, digitally-printed stretchy organic cotton, could be any fabric or design, provided the construction is considered and is a sustainable N95 facemask on account of having a nanofibre filter.

There two main competitors using this technology: Respilon (currently my supplier) and G95. Both make neck gaiter nanofibre facemasks, but they do not have replaceable filters pockets, are not made from sustainable textiles, and come in only one or two simple colours. 

The USPs of my product are: luxury fashion market-appropriate artistic design, sustainable materials, ethical production, starting in London and moving to Portugal. 

Production will then expanding to implement a distributed Buy One Give One model in apparel producing countries worldwide.

Entrepreneurs in textile-producing countries who are in some way skilled in apparel construction, recreating my product under a simple franchise arrangement would then be able to supply high-tech nanofibre air pollution and virus masks in culturally appropriate colours and designs, both in their own markets and to the luxury fashion market in London where Snü is headquartered.

The technology that powers my product is nanofibre fabric technology. It filters 99.9% of pollution, bacteria, smoke and viruses down to anything bigger than 1.0 micron in diameter (capturing 2.5 micron-wide and thus very dangerous haze, dust and smog). The fit and easy handling create a safe covering against respiratory pathogens.

The business model is currently based on the Buy One Give One model, as even before the coronavirus global pandemic there was a need for air pollution-filtering facecoverings for low-income workers, eg in transport in India's cities. Now due tot he pandemic, this need is even more acute. 

However the Buy One Give One model has been criticised for taking manufacturing opportunities away from the beneficiary group. My adaptation aims to create distributed manufacturing hence increased entrepreneurial opportunities for apparel workers and thereby also expanding the product to include sustainable and perhaps even artisanal local textiles to both local communities and luxury markets.

Nanofibre filter technology is not currently used very widely in facemasks, but it is easily and cheaply available. The key differences with the more commen non-woven meltblown filter material are:

- More efficient filtration.

- More breathable as more air can pass through the small gaps in the nonwoven meltblown nanofibres.

- Nanofibre is washable and reusable, up to around 50 times. (If used outside virus-risk settings it will not need washing every day; for air pollution capture the user can wash when convenient)

Recent study suggesting more nanofibre is used in facemasks:

C. Akduman and E. P. Akçakoca Kumbasar (2018) "Nanofibers in face masks and respirators to provide better protection", https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1757-899X/460/1/012013/pdf

The conclusion to the above study summarises:

"As the fiber diameter decreases, the most penetrating particle size decreases and the capture efficiency of the most penetrating particle size increases. In this point nanofibers could be the key elements for filter materials in face masks or respirators. They have very high surface area per unit mass that enhances capture efficiency and other surface area-dependent phenomena that may be engineered into the fiber surfaces (such as catalysis or ion exchange). They could enhance filter performance for capture of naturally occurring nanoparticles such as viruses, as well as micron-sized particles such as bacteria or man-made particles such as soot from diesel exhaust. We believe respiratory protective equipment developments require more research on advanced nanofibers filtration technology to provide necessary protection from airborne threats."

Inputs:

Education for textile specialists on entrepreneurs on nanofibre facecovering technology for pathogen/pollution protection.

London-based fashion brand able to sell sustainable and fashionable  facecoverings based on a variety of textiles, colours and designs.

Supply of nanomaterial (or establishment of nanofibre production) and business support in a number of aspects of non-medical fashion facemask production.

Outputs:

Fair jobs for apparel workers.

For European market: creative, artistic fashionmasks from different countries with different textiles, designs.

For local markets: essential facecoverings for protection in local textiles, colours and designs.

Outcomes:

Increased entrepreneurial opportunities for apparel and textile sectors all across the globe.

Improve health for wearers of nanofibre, particularly significant for women and girls who are exposed to indoor pollution from cooking etc.

Increased market-share in non-medical yet high-tech fashion facemasks.

Supply of non-medical yet high-tech facemasks for all other industries affected by the Covid19 pandemic, such as tourism.

Currently serving fashion consultants, apparel workers in London and around 80 initial customers (from crowdfunder).

The product will find expanding markets around the world as supply expands, based on the buy-one-give-one model.

Producers & customers are/will be served as follows:

Year 1: Entrepreneurs and apparel workers in Portugal / General public, tourism workers who need masks, UK luxury fashion consumers.

Year 5: Producers in 3+ apparel-producing countries in regions that can serve their local communities with socially/culturally-appropriate masks, eg Bangladesh/India; Vietnam; Mexico/Central America. The work in Portugal could also allow expansion to Lusophonic countries eg Brazil, Mozambique, São Tomé / Príncipe, Angola, Cabo Verde.

In full production buy-one-give-one model will also facilitate masks made from global textiles to enter the luxury fashion market.

Entrepreneurs and their customers all over the world will benefit from high-tech, culturally appropriate, sustainable (reusable) facemasks that work for both air pollution and viruses. 

This small product can show how production and supply into the market can benefit the producers more equally, evening out the current "fast fashion" model.

Entrepreneurs and workers will gain skills, knowledge of textiles that filter pathogens and harmful particulates - and build apparel brands appropriate for their local context and perhaps also into a luxury market that desires artisanal fabrics or designs.

Expanding training and production will be expensive and difficult without funding - the challenge has always been to start as Snü means to go on.

Technical and legal issues might arise, as the nanofibre is a new technology with potentially insecure supply.

Market barriers might include a lack of interest in facemasks once Covid-19 is no longer a concern; air pollution masks will be still very much needed though, and virus protection will at least be ready for any future respiratory illness pandemic.

Equity crowdfunding is a next step for building the company once in production.

Production in Portugal of nanofibre fabric might be a solution to the supply issue.

WHO figures on air pollution and links to Covid-19 will show there is a market for this product. Also local entrepreneurs should be able to assess need and desire for such a product in their communities.

Full time: 1 (me)

PT/contractors: Fashion/textile consultant. PR/Marketing/Social media role in underserved community in UK/Portugal.

Local research hub and fabric/supplier in Portugal.

Apart from my nanofibre supplier, I am the only company creating a fashionable nanofibre facemask. Unlike my supplier, my product is ethically and sustainably made and wishes to have a distributed production and supply to underserved communities.

As I am have a PhD in human rights, with a focus on environmental human rights, I understand very clearly the sustainable development goals and the need for a social enterprise that can create a product and franchise that can serve local and global markets.

I work with sustainable fabric suppliers around the world currently, and local fashion designers and artists in London.

I would like to start working with a technology hub (Citeve) and textile suppliers in Portugal, and of course manufacturers with lower order due to Covid-19 in the first instance, before expanding production to ethical factories that have the scope to teach entrepreneurial skills to underserved apparel workers and fashion designers.

The basic model is Buy One Give One, where sustainable fashion customers in Europe/USA spend slightly more on an ethically made, sustainable product.

The difference with previous iterations of this model (eg Toms Shoes) is that the production is eventually distributed - so entrepreneurs across the world can create the products for their own communities themselves. If the manufacturer/franchisee would like to make directly for the sustainable fashion market with their own textiles, they can learn about the international market to supply into. They can use artisanal and local craftpersonship, design, colours and sustainable textiles, trims and patterns as appropriate to to both local and global markets.

Covid-19 and the ongoing air pollution scandal worldwide shows that facemasks will soon have to become accessories as widely used as umbrellas or even one day shoes, for example.

Initial funding will come through the Buy One Give One model.

It will work on a Market Intermediary model: As well as providing the product to franchise, the social enterprise will provide services to clients to help them access markets, supply apparel companies with the designs, access to local markets and eventually global fashion markets.

I am applying with Snü to Solve because I have created a sustainable fashion product - a nanofibre air pollution and virus filtering facemasks - which needs to be made and sold across the world as quickly as possible.

Beyond a local business accellerator, I've had little business help, although I am an expert on social justice and business and human rights.

I need help establishing partners in Portugal, and using this as a pilot to work with entrepreneurs in other apparel and textile producing countries, all of which need these masks in their local markets. Apparel producers need a post-Covid market to work within that can elevate their skill and provide fair work that supplies globally, but which also benefits their local markets.

Snü is a venture testing its product and modification of the buy one give one business model. There are ample areas in which help is needed, although business model, product distribution and funding and revenue are the main ones.

If there is potential however, I would like to partner in Portugal with textile and apparel producers for innovating the supply fo the nanofibre fabric - and my research has shown that this is possible, provided that there are no legal/regulatory barriers.

Initially I would like to partner with a textile technology hub https://www.citeve.pt/ in Portugal, to develop this idea of "social masks" they are already inviting partners.

In terms of Solve, I would like mentorship from anyone in the following:

ethical/sustainable fashion

market intermediary business model

buy one give one model and its adaptations

global franchise for social enterprise based on the above model

local business acceleration in underserved communities

Upskilling entrepreneurs worldwide to create and sell social masks for protection against viruses and air pollution is the main goal.

This can start in Portugal, given its excellent apparel and textile sector which is likely to require a pivot to making this kind of product. Digital literacy is already high, but given the edtech startup partnership potential in Portugal, linguistic links with Brazil (the highest Covid-19 count country, also with a large textile/apparel sector), the potential for implementing educational opportunities based on upskilling apparel workers to make social masks is large.