About AIZOME

At AIZOME, we no longer strive to be ‘sustainable’. 

Instead, our vision to create purely plant-based fabrics of exceptional quality is rooted in Omoiyari – the Japanese concept of honoring our relationship to all things.

Omoiyari - 思いやり- consideration; to anticipate the needs of others with empathy and thoughtful awareness.

Omoiyari anchors our decision-making in intentionality, as humans and as a business.

At AIZOME, we nurture a radical belief in possibility, rooted in respect for tradition, nature, and one another. 

 

Our mission to create healthy, plant-based textiles began as an act of love.

When the mother of our co-founder, Michel, was diagnosed with cancer, treatments caused her skin to become extremely sensitive. As she spent more and more time in bed, unrelenting skin irritation led to tremendous discomfort. A doctor explained that the source of her irritation was likely the dark, synthetic dye in her bed sheets; her weakened immune system could no longer protect her skin from the harsh chemicals embedded in the fibers. Switching her sheets to undyed textile significantly decreased her skin irritation, offering her a bit more comfort along her journey with terminal illness. 

Michel was struck by the impact textile had upon his mother’s quality of life. Driven to learn more, he and his partner (and AIZOME co-founder) Misa began to ask questions, but pulling at the metaphorical threads of the textile industry revealed an alarming lack of transparency that hid substantial environmental and human harm.

 

Our Founders 

Misa is originally from Japan; Michel from Germany. Michel had been living in Japan for 10 years when they met, connecting over a shared love of craftsmanship. Together, they created AIZOME. Now married, they live in Munich with their beloved pup, Ella, and two cats Butter and Marky.

At AIZOME, we believe it is possible to normalize chemical-free, waste-free organic dyes and fabrics. Together, with over 1000 people around the world who bought our first products, we are weaving this reality into existence. 

We are a small but vibrant collection of kind, playful humans with backgrounds in healthcare, traditional Japanese dyeing, dermatology, and textile engineering. We love what we do, and we have quite a bit of fun doing it together.