{"id":180230,"date":"2021-09-23T20:14:39","date_gmt":"2021-09-23T19:14:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.theindustry.fashion\/?p=180230"},"modified":"2021-09-23T20:28:27","modified_gmt":"2021-09-23T19:28:27","slug":"the-interview-jessie-tran-and-son-chu-co-founders-of-sustainable-performance-sneaker-brand-rens","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.theindustry.fashion\/the-interview-jessie-tran-and-son-chu-co-founders-of-sustainable-performance-sneaker-brand-rens\/","title":{"rendered":"The Interview: Jessie Tran and Son Chu, co-founders of sustainable performance sneaker brand Rens"},"content":{"rendered":"
Rens Original was founded in 2018 by two Vietnamese Sneakerheads Jesse Tran and Son Chu in the heart of Helsinki. The two co-founders created innovative ways to combat a sad fact, that the fashion industry is the second most polluting industry in the world. By utilising recycled products and by-products, Rens aims to prove that there is another way.<\/p>\n
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Rens NOMAD is the the first sneaker born in a Crowdfunding platform to be climate neutral from raw materials, packaging, production, transport, and waste. Specifically, Rens will work with Climate Partner to reduce and offset all the climate emissions at each stage of the process.<\/p>\n
They talk to TheIndustry.fashion as the\u00a0brand prepares for the imminent launch of its second waterproof coffee trainer.<\/p>\n
Could you tell us about your exhilarating journey in creating the concept for the brand and what made you go down the crowdfunding route?<\/strong><\/p>\n
My co-founder Son Chu and I founded Rens back in 2018. We are both sneakerheads and we have actually known each other for quite some time. One day, we met up in a coffee shop and talked about our favorite topic: sneakers. We realised how there are so few options of sustainable sneakers that actually look good. Most of the time, sustainability equals sacrificing style and vice versa. That\u2019s when we decided to create the pair of sustainable sneakers that not only we ourselves, but also sneakerheads we know, would want to wear every day. After months of trial and failure with different materials, we came across the innovative coffee yarn with all the cool functions and features. Turns out, where we met up was quite prophetic, the idea of Rens coffee shoes came out of a meeting in a random coffee shop.<\/p>\n