Size inclusivity drives Lycra to launch Adaptiv
The Lycra company has introduced a new fibre called Adaptiv, saying it will allow brands to make garments that offer a better fit “for various lifestyles, movements and body types”.
It described the polymer from which it has made the patent-pending fibre as “revolutionary”.
Garments that brands produce using Adaptiv will alter their “compressive holding force” to deliver good fit and shape whether the wearer is at rest or in motion. The garments will be durable, the fibre producer said, and even be easier to take off and put on.
“Consumers are seeking garments that offer greater versatility,” said Lycra’s chief brand and innovation officer, Steve Stewart, “from work to leisure to social, and also from season to season and year to year. They want garments that can adapt to their individual needs and lifestyle, as well as ones that can adapt to their unique body type, even when their body size or shape may change or fluctuate.”
Internally, the company has compared the performance of garments containing Adaptive to that of similar garments containing generic spandex. Advantages that this comparison showed included shape retention and greater freedom of movement.
It said “size inclusivity” would be one of the areas in which these benefits would come into play for garment brands, promoting what Lycra called “one size fits more”. It explained that a softer stretch within the wearing zone allows for a widened fit window that covers a broader range of body shapes within a given size.
This will also make possible a potential reduction in the number of individual products that brands and retailers need to design, manufacture, ship, store and display, it said.
