Candiani Denim teams up with Madh to launch first regenerative cotton jeans

Madh, a Swedish denim brand with sustainability in its DNA, has teamed up with Italian producer Candiani Denim to launch the first jeans collection made using Europe-sourced, non-GMO regenerative cotton, derived from the Blue Seed cotton variety for which Candiani holds the exclusive rights. Blue Seed is a non-GMO hybrid cotton variety that has been developed by Candiani, based in Robecchetto con Induno, near Milan, Italy, with the Gowan Seed Company, an international agricultural group.

The Blue Seed cotton used by Madh is grown by Algosur in Andalusia, Spain, using regenerative agriculture techniques. Having exclusive access to Blue Seed cotton enables Candiani to trace its output from the initial cultivation stage, and to be fully transparent throughout its entire supply chain.
   
“Hybrid seeds, such as those of Blue Seed cotton, generate a phenomenon known as hybrid vigour or heterosis, meaning that a hybrid offspring’s biological traits are enhanced as a result of mixing the genetic contributions of its parents. The new hybrid plant has stronger biological traits than the individual plants from which it originates, yielding a fibre with superior physical characteristics,” said Simon Giuliani, head of marketing at Candiani Denim. “Blue Seed cotton fibres are longer and more resistant than normal. The fabric derived from this crop is a higher-quality product, 30% more resistant than generic cotton and more durable. This is a key feature in terms of sustainability, and the exact antithesis of a fast-fashion approach,” he added.
 
Blue Seed cotton is a tougher crop than generic cotton. It requires a lower amount of water and chemicals to be cultivated, and is an excellent rotational crop, ideally suited to regenerative agriculture. It was in fact specifically conceived for arid soil conditions.

“Technology and innovation are at the heart of this collaboration,” said Giuliani. “In the last four years, the world has radically changed many times, and in this context, it is virtually impossible to plan ahead or make predictions. Setting up a new jeans brand today is especially tough. I believe a novel manufacturing approach is needed, based on principles that we must now regard as essential: innovation, sustainability and durability. The collection we have created with Madh, with products priced between €190 and €220, is based on circularity and a less-is-more philosophy. Thanks to an intense R&D effort, we have found a way of producing jeans using extremely high-quality cotton fibres,” added Giuliani.
 
He went on to say that “in most cases, a fabric’s durability is directly proportional to the length and resistance of the cotton fibre. Candiani usually works with long and extra-long staple fibres. To obtain an even better performance, we’ve done something a little crazy: we developed our own cotton seeds. Besides, since Blue Seed cotton is more resistant, we can use it in conjunction with weaker fibres, compensating for their inferior thickness. This means that instead of having jeans made with 5% recycled fibres, we can reach up to 30%.”

“Madh is a global collective working to spearhead innovation, pushing the denim industry’s boundaries towards a sustainable culture by means of technology, transparency and creativity. We set up [Madh] in 2023, we’re still very young, but there is a highly experienced team behind us,” said Martin Gustafsson, Madh’s creative director. Gustafsson has worked for over seven years at Swedish label Acne Studios, and then for nine years as product and design manager at Norwegian fashion company Varner, where he launched the Karve and Never Denim brands. He has co-founded Madh with designer Nhu Duong, also formerly with Acne Studios. “We believe we are a unique entity on the international fashion scene, because we’re challenging the traditional way of building a brand and presenting collections. If you look at our collections online, you’ll see that 80% of our products are made using this innovative fabric. This project will kickstart a long-term partnership, and Candiani Denim fabrics will become an integral element of our DNA,” said Gustafsson. 

Madh’s founders think that “jeans are seasonless, and they must be long-lasting. We don’t believe it’s necessary to introduce new skinny or flared models every season, and we’re only producing indigo and black jeans, with two different dye shades.” Gustafsson added that “our collaborations with artists and designers have spawned various capsule collection, but our business model will always be fundamentally sustainability-based.”

The collection created by Madh in collaboration with Candiani Denim will be available on Madh’s e-shop, at the Candiani Denim Store in Piazza Mentana 3, Milan (home also to Candiani Custom, the first urban micro-factory making customised jeans), and at select international retailers: a store in Malmö, another in Berlin, and several multibrand retailers in Japan.

“By the end of spring, Madh jeans will be available on Hypebeast’s HBX.com e-shop, and very likely at the HBX Hong Kong store too. We are also looking to expand in the DACH region, and we’re always searching for suitable distribution partners,” said Gustafsson.
 
Candiani Denim is based near Milan and also operates an R&D centre in Los Angeles. The company owns the patent for Coreva, the first and only biodegradable, compostable bio-based stretch denim on the market. In fiscal 2022, Candiani recorded a revenue of €105 million, €15 million higher than in 2021. The Milanese company experienced a slow-down in fiscal 2023, an extremely tough year for the entire fashion sector, but Giuliani is confident that, in 2024, Candiani will reach again, at the very least, its 2021 revenue level of over €90 million. “In the first three months of 2024, we recorded remarkable growth compared to the same period in 2023. We’re cementing our position again, and remain confident about the future,” he concluded.