Sustainability

Sustainable swimwear that puts our oceans first

Mālama ʻāina is a traditional Hawaiian concept and way of life at the heart of our brand. It essentially means that if we take care of the earth, the earth will provide and take care of us in return. Climate change and the plastic crisis are two causes we're passionate about and have seen the impacts of firsthand. At Kaiona Swimwear, we're determined to provide eco-friendly alternatives to the destructive world of fast fashion by only offering bikinis made from recycled materials that are built for moving in and out of the water and will last for countless summers.

Recycled materials & eco-friendly ink

Swim

Each of our recycled swimwear pieces are handmade and released in exclusive small batches to reduce waste. To achieve its stretch and resilience, swimwear is made from nylon and spandex and what most people don't realize is that these fabrics are synthetic and made from crude oil. They are essentially a plastic. Each Kaiona Swimwear surf bikinis, one piece swimsuits, and surf suits are made from high-quality regenerated nylon fabric. Ocean waste like fishing nets and industrial plastic is stripped down and turned into recycled fabric yarn that will become your Kaiona Swim kini! The best part is that recycled nylon can be broken down, recycled, and recreated over and over again without losing any quality. By using recycled nylon, the amount of oil used and CO2 emissions released is reduced by 80% compared to virgin nylon. All of our fabric prints are printed with low-impact inks that are Eco Passport Certified by OEKO-TEX.

Why do we use sustainable swimwear fabric?

Recycled nylon reduces fossil fuel consumption
Uses less water to create
Meets OEKO-TEX Standard 100 test for harmful chemicals
Uses ink that is eco-friendly and Eco Passport certified by OEKO-TEX
Requires much less energy to produce
Removes ocean pollution and gives it a new life
Reduces air, water, and soil contamination
Has the same quality as virgin nylon

Tees

Our extra-soft tees are made from 50% organic cotton and 50% RPET recycled polyester, giving new life to plastic bottles because we definitely don't need more plastic on this planet. Recycled polyester takes 59% less energy to create than virgin polyester, which is made using petroleum, and helps keep plastic bottles out of our oceans and landfills. Organic cotton is grown without the use of chemicals or pesticides that can leech into the earth and contaminate our waterways and oceans. The comfy t-shirts meet the highest of international standards which ensures environmentally and socially responsible practices are followed and that chemical use is minimized during production. Our shirts are verified and meet the:

Organic Blended Cotton Standard (OCS)
Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS)
Global Recycled Standard (GRS)

Plastic-free & recycled packaging

We aren't perfect, but we have always been conscious about living a low-impact lifestyle even before the birth of Kaiona Swimwear. Since day one, we have made it a point to use plastic-free shipping materials and recycled packaging. To reduce unnecessary waste, products are not individually packaged within the shipping mailers and packing slips for large orders are sent digitally unless customers ask specifically for it to be printed.

Hang tags - Printed on 100% recycled paper and attached with natural hemp twine.

Plastic-Free Mailers - Our unbleached kraft mailers are made from 100% recycled materials with 90% post-consumer content. They are fully recyclable, compostable, and naturally biodegradable. Branding is printed with algae ink.

Thank you cards - Cards are printed on FSC® certified, 100% post-consumer recycled card stock.

Inner bags - Each suit is placed in an inner plastic-free transparent bag made from organic cassava starch for protection. These bags are compostable and biodegradable and will biodegrade similar to food.

Tissue paper - Acid-free and made from 100% recycled material. It is biodegradable, recyclable, and compostable (but be sure to reuse it first!).

Shipping labels - Printed on unbleached, natural kraft paper.

Manufacturing

We carefully scrutinize every company that we partner with to make sure they uphold the high ethical and environmental standards that we do. Our bikinis and surf suits are handmade by a group of artisans in Bali who are provided a living wage and have working conditions that far exceed global labor standards. This includes a competitive salary, free comprehensive medical insurance, year-end bonuses, career development, and training opportunities, among others. They also:

Make prints using only eco-friendly inks that aren't harmful to the environment or workers.
Recycle fabric scraps and other waste.
Package and ship products in bio-degradable cassava bags.
Minimize single-use plastic on the premises.
Donate 10 cents for each bikini sewn to non-profits focused on reducing ocean pollution.

Our t-shirts are made in the USA by a company that is mindful of their social and environmental impact. These are a few ways they are turning the fashion industry green:

There is zero water waste. All water used during manufacturing is recycled.
Fabric is colored using eco-friendly dyes that have less runoff and require less water.
All products are certified and meet global eco-friendly manufacturing standards.