Gucci launches the innovative Demetra, the culmination of two years of research and development

Gucci launches a new groundbreaking luxury material with an eco friendly ethos: Demetra. Three sneaker models have been introduced to mark Gucci’s first products made with the innovative material. 

Demetra is "the culmination of two years of research and development by Gucci’s own technicians and artisans" underline the fashion house.. Produced entirely in Italy in Gucci’s factory, the new material is created using the same expertise and processes for tanning thereby achieving characteristics that give Demetra a distinctive, pliable and resilient performance, with a supple and luxurious finish. The eco innovation behind Demetra combines efficient processes with animal free raw materials that are primarily from sustainable, renewable, and bio based sources. "In our 100th anniversary year, Demetra is a new category of material that encapsulates Gucci’s quality and aesthetic standards with our desire to innovate, leveraging our tradi-tional skills and know-how to create for an evolving future,” said Marco Bizzarri, President and eo CGucci. “Demetra offers our industry an easily scalable, alternative choice and a more sustainable material that also answers the needs of animal-free solutions". Demetra is suitable for a wide range of product categories. Unlike the majority of new materials being developed there are no impediments to scalability or limitations on volume, which often is a challenge for brands searching for scale and quantity. In the spirit of open innovation, Gucci will also make Demetra available to the fashion industry as a new material source that can be customized to offer exclusive finishing, further facilitating application and differentiation. Meanwhile, as a next step to support a circular economy, Demetra scraps during manufacturing will be upcycled and reused by Gucci through an extension of its Gucci Up program. The Gucci Basket, Gucci New Ace and Gucci Rhyton sneakers are the first Gucci products made with Demetra. They are animal--free and other components contain organic cotton, recycled steel, and recycled polyester. T