Oliver Co's Infinite Card Holder: The Future of Sustainable Wallets?
CO.LAB's first product is a cardholder made from a single, infinitely recyclable material.
I always have great respect for a brand that puts the environment and ethics at the forefront of its business practices. In the wallet world, for me, only a handful of brands qualify for this high accolade with one of them being Oliver Co. I stumbled across Oliver Co many years ago due to their unusual choice in leather - an apple leather. If you've not heard of this weird yet wonderful type of leather before, as the name suggests, it's in part made from actual apples. In this article we're going to disuss a new experiental initive from the brand and look at the results of their first experience - The Infinite Card Holder.
Oliver London Co earned the right to call itself a sustainable brand through and through, is a member of B Corp a member of 1% of the Planet and even won the ‘Best for the World’ B Corp back in 2022. Their environmental practices aren’t just admirable but it’s also their commitment to quality, and for many what’s most important, great wallet designs. I’ve reviewed many of their wallets in the past including the Oliver Co. Compact Wallet which is a personal faviourite of mine. We also had the opporunitiy to sit down and talk with founder Matt in a interview you can read here.
Recently Oliver Co announced a new initiative that further cements their place as one of the top brands for sustainability in the industry and that’s their new CO.LAB, a so-called experimental studio that aims to create products that are end-to-end sustainable from start to finish. This essentially challenges us to rethink how we view products and starts a conversation about what we, or in this case, businesses can do to create a more sustainable world.
”Often products are created with little thought as to what happens after they’ve reached the end of their useful life. We simply take from the earth, create, use and dispose”.
This quote from Alex, founder of Oliver Co, really made me think about the products I take for granted, their costs and where they’ll end up after they’re broken or thrown out. As a fashion brand, Oliver Co knows too well the pitiful catastrophe which is the fast fashion industry and it’s down to brands and consumers to find a way to strike a balance between sustainability.
For brands - it’s taking the time to review and challenge the norms of typical supply chains where profits always take priority. And for us consumers? Well, we have to care more and hold companies to account for shady practices.
Unfortunately this all takes time but I’ll give props where they’re due with Oliver Co - at least they’re trying. Anyone can say they’re trying to be sustainable but the proof is in the pudding and look too deep and the flaws begin to show.
”Products are made up of complex compositions including linings, stitching, glues, leathers… the list goes on. This makes it nearly impossible to disassemble them after their useful life, leaving little chance of recycling or returning the materials back to the earth”. - Oliver Co.
So how does this all tie into the title - the new Infinite Card Holder? Well, this unique cardholder is CO.LAB’s first product with the philosophy talked about here in practice. This cardholder was built from the ground up from start to finish to create a card holder from a single, infinitely recyclable material. That doesn’t just mean the one material, it means all the materials used including linings, stitching, glues, leathers, etc.
3D Knitting technology: the machine that does it all
That material? Rilsan, also known as PA11, a 100% renewable polymer derived from castor beans. After six months of research, Oliver Co partnered with Arkema, the leading producer of PA11, to bring their vision to life.
The manufacturing process is equally impressive. Using 3D knitting technology, typically found in running shoe production, they worked with Stoll to develop a seamless net-shape that can be folded and stitched into the card holder form. No glues, no complex linings, just one single material throughout.
What excites me most about this project isn’t just the end product but what it represents for the industry. When a product reaches the end of its life, it can be fully recycled and remade into something new. No landfill, no waste, just a continuous loop. As Matt, Oliver Co’s founder, puts it - they want designers to see what they’ve done and explore ways to take it further.
Is this the future of wallet design? Perhaps not tomorrow, but it’s a glimpse of what’s possible when brands actually commit to sustainability rather than just slapping a green label on their marketing. The infinite card holder proves that with enough thought and collaboration, we can create products that don’t cost the earth.
So the question I’ve been asking - will the Infinite Card Holder ever be for sale? Maybe, or perhaps in the future, but I can only assume it’s very early days for a concept like this. But I am optimistic. There’s a big market for something like this marketed to the right people and its stripped-back futuristic look is something I feel will sell well. Learn more and keep up to date with CO.LABS but visiting Oliver Co’s official website using the link below.