If there’s one thing we wear all year long, it’s socks; sure, maybe not with 40 ° C but socks with sandal, until some time ago expression of a not really elegant fashion, it ended up becoming a chic combination, because the designers, who have also brought back the waist pack, want so. But trends aside, even in the summer, especially if the weather acts up like these days of sudden downpours and temperature changes or for types who feel the cold like me, some socks at hand are always convenient.
Gorilla Socks is an Italian-American company founded as a startup last year in New York, which produces a line of socks made of a special fiber extracted from the bamboo plant; its founder, Gianluca de Stefano, a Neapolitan emigrated to the Big Apple, had the idea to create this innovative product after a trip to Asia, of which bamboo – or Bambuseae scientific name – is native. He returned to New York, with the collaboration of his partner Gavin Kamara and with an initial investment of 15.000 euro, he built the business of sustainable socks that has been immediately linked, and the name of the brand is proof of that, to The Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International, American foundation that also has offices in Rwanda and Congo and is responsible for the conservation, protection and study of mountain gorillas and their habitat.
The zoologist Dian Fossey, brought to the screen in 1988 by Michael Apted in the movie ‘Gorilla in the mist’, with Sigourney Weaver in the role of Fossey, devoted much of her life to the study of gorillas in the mountains and forests of Rwanda, ending brutally murdered in 1985 in her cabin in the Virunga Mountains in circumstances never really solved. According to the most probable version, it seems that to kill Dian Fossey would have been the poachers, since the zoologist posed a serious threat to the illegal hunting of gorillas, given her many interventions in their defense but even today even that remains unfortunately only a hypothesis.
Fossey has left a great legacy that the foundation carries on and, returning to socks, Gorilla Socks gives, for each sock sold, 10% for the defense of this endangered species.
Colorful and with catchy patterns, the socks are precisely made of bamboo viscose that ensures resistance and perfect adaptability to all seasons of the year, while simultaneously performing an aseptic and antibacterial function. The secret of this fiber, in addition to sustainability, is its ability to maintain warm while allowing transpiration, while the elastic component makes the sock soft and suitable for any type of shoe.
Made in China exclusively for the difficult availability of raw materials in Europe, the socks of Gorilla Socks are OEKO-TEX® certified, an independent test and certification system for textiles. Initially sold on the American market, eco-friendly socks have also landed in Italy and can be purchased both on the website of the brand and on other platforms such as Amazon.
“Sustainability is an aspect in which we believe a lot” says Andrea Salvia, head of Gorilla Socks for Italy “true innovation is not just about developing a potentially new product for a market, but making sure that it also generates social value. Our next goal is to forge partnerships with other associations that deal with the same purpose, in order to generate a truly important impact on our planet “.
So if the socks with sandals have become even elegant, choosing a pair of socks that are 100% eco-friendly, high design, that protect the environment and an endangered species of animal, can give the purchase a sense that goes far beyond the mere trend. And then, remember that the socks are worn all year long! 😉
