Black Algae Dyed Polo Shirt

The original polo shirt, reinvented with the world’s first black algae dye.

$195.00 $39

Model is 6ft 1 / 185cm with a 39 inch / 99cm chest, and wears size Medium.

  • Dye made from algae waste
  • Garment dyed for softness
  • Buttons made from plant waste

The colour black is everywhere. From our phones to our cars to the ink in our pens. But black has a dark side. Every black thing you own is likely to contain carbon black – a pigment derived from petroleum. The way carbon black is made isn’t sustainable. Vast tracts of land called tar sands are stripped of all life and vegetation to extract the heavy petroleum, while the production process creates significant greenhouse gases. So we’re on a search for the new black.

Over 5 years of R&D have gone into creating the first ever black algae dye. And now we’re using it to recreate one of the first pieces of sports gear ever made – the polo shirt. Each shirt is built from a textured, breathable cotton and two bio-resin buttons made from plant waste, before being garment dyed in black algae dye for a soft and relaxed feel and finish.

Technical Details

Material made in Portugal: 100% cotton piqué
Shirt garment dyed with black algae dye
Soft and breathable
Two bio resin buttons
Shirt weighs 260 grams
Material weighs 198g/m2
Machine wash inside out at 30°C
Constructed in Portugal
01 02

One of the first pieces of sports gear. Reinvented

The polo shirt was one of the first pieces of high performance sports gear. And we’ve stayed true to its roots by using the same base fabric as the very first ones invented in the 1920s – cotton piqué. But we’ve brought it into the next century by dyeing it in the world’s first black algae dye that starts life in giant ponds.

Garment dyed for softness

While most clothes are dyed with a process called piece dyeing – where huge rolls of fabric are dyed, before being cut and sewn to make clothing – we garment dye every Black Algae Polo Shirt by fully submerging it in dye to give it its dark grey colour. Garment dyeing makes the shirt look and feel lived-in from the day you get it, with the colours building up in the stitching and creases while coming out paler at the edges.

Buttons made from plants and vegetables

The shirt fastens with two buttons made of buffalo imitation bio-resin – a natural, non-toxic and water-based material we’ve produced by combining plant and vegetable waste with a polyester resin used by the aerospace industry.

Built with carbon capture technology

After it’s harvested, the algae by-product is heat treated to concentrate it into a black powder which we use as pigment. This treatment seals in carbon dioxide which has been absorbed by the algae during its lifespan, preventing it from making its way back into the atmosphere. Once the shirt has been built and dyed, the black algae dye continues to lock in the carbon dioxide that it absorbed when it was alive. And it will do this for over 100 years. So the shirt you’re wearing is storing carbon emissions. This is known as carbon capture technology and it means that rather than producing emissions, the Black Algae Polo Shirt does the exact opposite.

Size + Fit

The Black Algae Dyed Polo Shirt is designed with a regular fit.

Size XS S M L XL XXL
Fits chest 83 - 90 91 - 98 99 - 106 107 - 114 115 - 122 123 - 130
Fits waist 71 - 76 76 - 81 81 - 86 86 - 91 91 - 96 96 - 101
Size XS S M L XL XXL
Fits chest 33 - 36 36 - 39 39 - 42 42 - 45 45 - 48 48 - 51
Fits waist 28 - 30 30 - 32 32 - 34 34 - 36 36 - 38 38 - 40