Textile Insight

36 • Textile Insight ~ January/February 2018 textileinsight.com FOOTWEAR | FALL '18 OUTLOOK All About the Blend Working in partnership with American Woolen Mills, Stratham, NH-based Timberland is debuting NXTWool across footwear and apparel for Fall '18. The material is made from a yarn that blends Merino and nylon (for footwear) and merino, nylon and elastane (for apparel) to make a wool that's extra durable and has the stretch apparel needs. A felting process makes it soft, and a finish- ing process that layers the fibers creates a smooth surface that encourages water runoff. And since the final product is treated with DWR, it's waterproof as well. For its debut season, NXTWool is used in a men's bomber jacket and parka, as well as in footwear styles for men and women, including the $170 Jayne Warm Gaiter 10" lace-up boot. Inov-8tion Isolating graphene — an allotrope of carbon that is the thinnest and strongest material yet discovered — was a breakthrough that won researchers at the University of Manchester the Nobel Prize for physics in 2004. And for 2018, British brand Inov-8 is banking on it for footwear, infusing the material into outsoles in its new G-Series family of performance shoes. Inov-8 worked with a research team from the University of Manchester for the past year to create a footwear application of the material. And according to Dr. Aravind Vijayaraghavan, reader in Nanomaterials at the University of Manchester, the resulting compound is worth the wait. "Our unique formulation makes these outsoles 50 per- cent stronger, 50 percent more stretchy and 50 percent more resistant to wear than the corresponding industry standard rubber outsoles without graphene," he said. For Fall '18, the brand will use the compound in three styles: a trail runner designed for long distances on hard- pack trails; a style designed for soft, muddy surfaces or obstacle courses; and a trainer made for Crossfit or the gym. More styles will follow in 2019. Calling it a "key growth driver" for the brand, Inov-8 product and marketing direc- tor Michael Price said, "By 2020, 50 percent of the inov-8 footwear range will be graphene-enhanced. The potential of graphene really is limitless." Unlocking the Hexagon Hot on the heels of DNA Amp, the advance concepts team at Seattle-based Brooks is bringing a second new midsole material to market in the second half of 2018. Called DNA Loft, the new foam is infused with rubber that gives its cellular walls more strength, which lets the brand blow even more air into the material for a super-plush, soft feel. The proprietary cushioning is debuting as a full- length midsole on the Glycerin 16, which delivers in June for men and women at $150, as well as in the heel of the $120 Ghost 11, which launches in August. A honeycomb pattern on the midsole adds structure — debossed on the lateral side, it gives room for compression; embossed on the medial, it gives support — but also pays homage to the new material. The hexagonal shape mirrors the foam's cell structure when seen in cross-section under a microscope. O Above left: Inov-8 is infusing graphene into outsoles in its new G-Series family of performance shoes. Below left: Brooks' new midsole material called DNA Loft is infused with rubber that gives its cellular walls more strength, which lets the brand blow even more air into the material for a super-plush feel.

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