about us
We are creating a denim world that makes sense, a future we want to see. And we think when you're done reading more you'll want to show you off in your unspuns, too.
⚠️ Warning: You may think we're trying to predict the future below. But really what we are doing is real. now. ⚠️
We started unspun when we realized we could not find a fashion company to lead us into the regenerative, sustainable, responsible, intentional future we want, and quite frankly need. We were inspired to build this change when we encountered two unfortunate and inextricably-linked narratives:
SIZING PEOPLE UP
We have all been forced into the unnecessary and arbitrary construct of sizes, built off of historic [extremely-biased] military data. Have you ever felt like you just don't fit the system? We've talked with thousands of people and they all feel this way. 🙄 It's not you, it's the system. It just doesn't work. Instead, we have built technology that allows you to get bespoke jeans at a tiny fraction of the typical cost of bespoke clothing. This is possible because your jeans are digitally designed around you in 3D: by the time they are made the fit has already been vetted by the computer + our stylists. This is also possible because the design and fit process is automated which means we can scale beyond the painstaking labor of manually-drafted patterns. We do not build around base patterns; instead, we start with your 3D avatar and build around it in 3D. The notion of sizes is outdated and out of style.
TOO MUCH STUFF
Get this: well over 100 billion pieces of clothing are made every year. And then what is even worse is that nearly 60% of that is trashed or burned within a year. A lot of this destruction happens because excess inventory numbers are out of control. Why is there so much excess? Because it's a complete guessing game. No one can predict the future (as we've recently been reminded through worldwide crises) - especially not what people will want to buy, when, where, in what color, and in what size.
What would solve the problem? The way that unspun sells and makes jeans (and it's so simple too 🤦🏽♀️): sell them and then make them. Don't make them and then sell them. You don’t fit it; it fits you. unspun's design tech has finally enabled a perfect match between you and your jeans, with nothing more. This flips how things are done today and it allows everyone to live in harmony, including our dear planet.
Our technology uses algorithms to digitally design and perfectly fit jeans automatically around a your 3D avatar. unspun developed design technology that translates a 30-second body scan into digital jeans. This completely eliminates the need for inventory and dramatically reduces the waste created by current production methods while creating a customer experience that prioritizes emotional experience over consumption.
When you shop, you choose your jean style, fabric, thread color, rise height, and hem length. Next, you take a quick body scan to get an accurate Sims-like character of you that we can design around. The software creates a pattern, which is used to make your size-free jeans.
When you purchase with unspun, you are also supporting our on-going development that pushes us toward our mission to reduce global carbon emissions by 1%. To get there, we have developed tech that is beginning to enable a zero waste and circular fashion industry where nothing becomes trash. No joke! We are developing on-demand additive manufacturing that automatically builds your perfect jeans from your avatar. It's sci without the fi.
inclusive to all people, providing them all what they need
Discrimination and bias are inherently baked into the fashion industry. Sizes are built upon the concept of assumption - assuming how a body should be. There is a lot of institutional and racial bias embedded in sizing, and we need to get rid of sizes altogether and instead custom-fit product around actual people in real time.
where planet and people thrive together
Let’s face it: the fashion industry as it stands today is massively wasteful and unintentional about product lifecycles and resource use. It makes things just to throw them away. This is horrific not just for the waste created but also for the amount of resources and energy put into making the product in the first place: the production of one kilogram of fabric generates twenty-three kilograms of greenhouse gases, and garment manufacturing accounts for 20% of global industrial water pollution. Just one cotton t-shirt requires about 2,720 liters of water for production, about three years’ worth of drinking water for one person. We don't need to make 100 billion pieces of clothing annually and send 60% to landfill within a year. If we are going to make clothing, it should be with purpose: it should immediately have a loving home. unspun starts with a specific customer before it makes a product, not mindlessly mass manufacturing. A solution that is simultaneously without inventory, without waste, custom-fit, and circular is exciting and revolutionary.
analyze actions for potential effect and change accordingly
The current fashion industry life cycle isn’t a life cycle- it’s linear. In addition to rethinking materials, we need to reconfigure the design and production process so that end of use and circularity are actually designed into the products. The fashion industry needs to be thoughtful and intentional. The fashion industry sets the trends: it should really lead the world into becoming the world we want to live in.
In the current production and business model, everyone loses: the retailer juggles excess inventory, devastating markdowns, and waste; the factory gets pushed to make more and more for less and less; the consumer gets frustrated with having to find where they fit the product instead of where the product fits them; and the planet slowly (or not so slowly) gets destroyed by greenhouse gas emissions, never-ending waste, and toxic pollution. All this simply because we make too much stuff and we make it before anyone even wants it.
We exist to celebrate both you + your planet.
Thread color really changes up the looks of the jean.
Navy thread really blends into the fabric for the monochrome look, best for a more serious or professional look. Our favorite combo with navy thread is space blue fabric! It's the cleanest-looking jean you can find.
Gold thread pops against the blue to give a more casual traditional jean look. Our favorite combo with gold thread is unspun blue, or midnight blue for even more contrast.
Cranberry thread adds a little spice to your everyday jean, for the more adventurous. Our favorite combo with cranberry thread is the glow black fabric. If you're adventurous why not go for it?
Black thread is our go-to for both glow black and fuel black fabrics - it's a sleek look.
White thread is our most sustainable option! Once you're done with the jeans, you can return them to us and we can dissolve the thread (at a temperature much higher than your dryer) and recycle the fabric. Our favorite combo with white thread is nova blue fabric, the white thread and white speckles on the fabric go perfectly together. 🤩
Men
A low-rise waist wraps on your hip/hip bone area.
A mid-rise waist rests on top of your hips.
A high-rise waist we'll make on request.
Women
A low-rise waist we'll make on request.
A mid-rise waist rests on top of your hips and clasps underneath your belly button.
A high-rise waist wraps around the curvature between your hips and ribs and clasps at your belly button. You really can't go wrong on this height- it's our most popular.
An ultra-high rise waist wraps right underneath your ribs and clasps an inch and a half above your belly button. Great for showing your curves, and very popular on hourglass shapes!
Photographed in our San Francisco office and retail location in January 2020. We are a quirky mix of product designers, electrical and controls engineers, mechanical engineers, patternmakers, software engineers, computational geometers, and fashion designers.
Once you receive your jeans, we recommend you wear them for a week to work them into their true fit. If the waistband is a bit too tight, just give it a gentle stretch. For a tighter fit, wash and dry them on hot. The more you wear them, the more they mold to your shape. Untreated jeans take some time to come to their true shape, and we factor this into the make of the jeans.
If after this time, you are still not satisfied with the fit, let us know- we'll adjust and rebuild them until you refuse to take them off. Check our customer care page for more info!