The Cityer Commuter Jacket is born, in collaboration with MATERFAD

Cityer is a fashion start-up, a new brand created in Barcelona for bike-loving urbanites. Its goal is a very clear one: to create fashion products that you can wear from the bicycle to the boardroom yet are also environmentally friendly. The perfect product for the most active commuters, those who are committed to mobility on two wheels. According to its creative director, Edgar Carrascal, “they are neither a technical nor a sports brand but casual wear made from technical fabrics and in a design that takes very much into account the way the body moves on a bike”. The company is keen to redefine urban mobility, contribute to generating a shift in thinking in regard to friendlier, less congested and healthier city environments. Their strong point for achieving this is their extensive experience in fashion and audiovisuals.

This is the premise that led them to MATERFAD. They were searching for a technical fabric for their star product, an outdoor jacket with a highly specific set of characteristics: it had to be light, water-resistant, wind-resistant, breathable, sustainable, washable, comfortable and aesthetically attractive as well as available in different colours. Plus the material needed to be already in the market so that production could start as early as possible.

At MATERFAD we undertook a search for materials that would meet all of these requirements. Different possibilities were selected and finally the choice was made for Sympatex, a material made from recycled garments, re-laminated to create a membrane that is in turn recyclable. The material’s characteristics are a 100% match with the needs set out by Cityer, as the material is resistant to water and wind, breathable, possesses dynamic climate regulation, is durable and strong, light and extremely thin and flexible. Sympatex membrane is 100% climate neutral as well as fully recyclable. Furthermore, it has a highly reduced carbon footprint and its production is free of the toxic fluorocarbons used in water-repellency treatments.

Robert Thompson Casas, MATERFAD scientific director, adds that Sympatex is a well-consolidated material that was launched in the footwear industry. “It was used for the inside of mountain climbing footwear since it has a minimal vapour barrier yet provides maximum protection against water. Now this fabric has been readied for use in other products and, due to its characteristics, is especially suitable for sportswear”.

The final design of the Cityer star product, its Commuter Jacket, has integrated heat-sealed zippers and light-activated labelling in a fabric with a sober, matt appearance. Navy blue was chosen as the colour for this first product. “We collaborated with the illustrator Ale Alonso to design the jacket’s light-activated labelling, distinguishing it from other proposals and giving it a more artistic touch”, says Edgar Carrascal. The luminous marks are only visible when a light is focused on them in the dark, whereas during the day they go unnoticed.

In November Cityer will launch its first capsule collection through a crowdfunding platform that will include not only the Commuter Jacket but also other products. In addition, the collection will be available to view and touch in the MATERFAD showroom, also from that time onwards.

A MATERFAD consultancy

Robert Thompson Casas, scientific director of MATERFAD, directed the entire Cityer consulting process. “It is an example of a standard consultancy in which the material was not created but found, in other words, we made a search for a material with specific characteristics among materials already on the market that may originate in that same sector of activity or in other sectors”.

MATERFAD acts as a nexus between materials, production and brands. “We provide integral solutions, which means that they also take into account how the material is brought into the production and design processes”, explains Thompson. “And if the material doesn’t exist, we can help in creating it”, he concludes.

For more information on the MATERFAD consultancy service, click here.
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