What Our Mill Partners Are Saying About Matte TENCEL™
For decades, denim mills have been using TENCEL™ fibers in their fabrics, but there was always a design limitation holding back wider adoption: luster. TENCEL™ is soft and sustainable, but it was also historically shiny. Sheen works for some applications—such as women’s wear—but it is less appropriate for vintage and men’s looks.
With the introduction of matte TENCEL™, we helped companies overcome this hurdle, and many mills around the globe have taken up these fibers. We recently partnered with 15 of them on a Matte TENCEL™ Collection that showcases what is possible with this innovation.
Below, 13 of these partners share their thoughts on matte TENCEL™, including the opportunities it presents for their businesses.
ADVANCE DENIM
Mark Ix, marketing director of North America
“You already have the sustainable story with TENCEL™, you already have the soft, silky hand and drape, but there was a certain shine to the fiber. So by adding the mineral content into the fibers, it dulled down that shine to create a more cotton-like look. You can use that matte TENCEL™ in more vintage styles.”
AGI DENIM
Ali Tekin, research and development director
“Nowadays, we are looking for some alternatives for cotton fibers because of environmental consciousness. I believe that matte TENCEL™ is one of the best options for a cotton alternative. It can easily cover the natural aesthetic or the cotton nature, together with the softness which is good for the man and woman market, both of them.”
ARTISTIC FABRIC MILLS
Sabur Qureshi, general manager marketing and sales
“Brands and consumers loved the product which they got from a conventional TENCEL™ Lyocell. With the help of matte TENCEL™, it opens up a new product range with respect to especially the lighter weights…It keeps the product more authentic, especially when you’re going with a denim fabric, like deep dark indigos.”
BEXIMCO
Junaid Safdar, chief operating officer
“We have been using a lot of TENCEL™ into our denim collection, but there was always the question from our customers, they wanted to have something less shiny. So I think matte TENCEL™ has this natural less sheen, when we mix it with the cotton or other blend for denim, and this adds a new life into our denim collection.”
BHASKAR
Matteo Vallarsa, business owner at Studio MV
“Many designers which I talk to don’t like how much the TENCEL™ sheen that is coming from the finish…Generally the TENCEL™ is having more luster. And with matte TENCEL™, it will give more confidence for the brands to adopt so on the largest scale of volume, I think TENCEL™ matte can be a very important pillar of the business.”
CRESCENT BAHUMAN LIMITED
Imran Tanveer, assistant vice president, research and development
“When we are going with increased [TENCEL™] content to achieve some softer hand feel on the fabrics, we tend to lose the authentic character. It gives undue shine, which is sometimes not required, onto the fabrics or it does not go with the aesthetic appeal of the fabrics. So using matte TENCEL™ has given us a leverage to incorporate and build the authentic character at the same time a more softer hand feel onto the fabrics, and because of its nature, it is giving us a more conventional look.”
INDIGO TEXTILE
Nauman Ahmad, general manager product development
“For the older consumers, it is going to give them the same…vintage appeal of an authentic 100 percent cotton jean. And for the Gen Z or the younger generations, the more conscious consumer, I believe that it is going to add the transparency and the sustainable values into their product.”
KASSIM
Arsal Kassim, creative director
“We’re always on the lookout for the next new thing, and I think matte TENCEL™ is one of the products that gives us that edge…The fact that it’s matte and its durable and it’s versatile gives us the opportunity to create lots of different styles. So we’re not just using them in our bottoms, but we’re also using them in dresses, in jackets, in tops, and it’s an integral part of our next fashion season campaign.”
LNJ
Ashish Bhatnagar, senior vice president and marketing head
“Previously, TENCEL™ has been known because of the sheen as primarily a top weight fabric, but with this TENCEL™ matte finish, it is just the hand feel of TENCEL™ and then look like a 100 percent cotton fabric in terms of the sheen.”
NAVEENA DENIM LIMITED
Faisal Yaqub, AGM business development
“In fashion, the consumer preferences are very diverse. So there are people who are after matte finish and there are people who are after very shiny and a different kind of look. So matte TENCEL™ and the regular TENCEL™, they both give us the opportunity to cater to both market segments.”
PANTHER DENIM
Tim Huesemann, director of Panther Denim/Tat Fung Textiles
“We talk about traceable raw materials, and…we have Lenzing as a big partner, and we know where it’s coming from and that the whole process is actually very well controlled and sustainable in terms of the production. Every time when we have matte TENCEL™ in our denim, we already have that part definitely traced.”
SM DENIM
Ali Kazmi, director marketing and sales
“The best part about matte TENCEL™ is, coming from Lenzing, it is completely closing the loop, keeping the resources optimized and it is traceable. At the same time, it addresses the issue…of luster. So now, the variety is there, the choice for the designers to incorporate this product into the mainstream product line, keep the product super soft, luster-free and authentic at the same time.”
US DENIM MILLS
Intizar Ali, general manager research and business development
“There is a need of alternate fibers as of cotton because there is a huge load on cotton consumption. So we need to balance that load of cotton. These regenerated fibers, especially this matte TENCEL™, which is less shiny, more soft, more authentic and near to cotton. So this can be the biggest opportunity in the market to offset that cotton consumption load.”
To dive deeper into this topic, listen to the Blue Cast podcast episode about the Matte TENCEL™ Collection here.