Outdoor fashion brand Kathmandu is taking a significant step on its sustainability path by launching a new innovation – a biodegradable jacket made from a material it calls BioDown. 

Part of the company’s ambition to achieve zero waste by 2025, the BioDown jacket was recognised with an award at the fourth annual Outdoor Retailer Innovation Awards.  

“As a brand, Kathmandu has the goal to have 100 per cent of our products designed, developed, and manufactured using elements of sustainability principles by 2025,” said Robert Fry, general manager of product at Kathmandu. 

“The BioDown jacket shows how deeply committed we are to this goal.” 

To promote the new jacket, Kathmandu built an installation in Melbourne’s Federation Square using more than 3000kgs of fashion waste sourced from Upparel – designed to demonstrate the amount of fashion waste discharged by Australians every five minutes. 

Customers can access the BioDown information by scanning a QR code. In addition, large screens in Federation Square show educational videos about the issue of apparel waste. 

“Kathmandu has always been about using our business as a force for positive change. BioDown supports the forward-facing vision of the business to pave the way for a better future for all,” said Reuben Casey, CEO at Kathmandu.