Bamboo: A holistic approach to a

renewable fibre for textile design

Dagmar Steffen, Andrea Weber Marin, Isabel Rosa Müggler
Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts, School of Art & Design, Lucerne, Switzerland
[email protected], [email protected], [email protected]

Abstract
The paper presents various findings of an applied research project, jointly undertaken by Swiss
textile companies and Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts in order to research and
evaluate the potential of bamboo fibres for substitution and enrichment of fibre resources for the
apparel production in Europe. The research focuses on natural bamboo yarn and not bamboo
viscose yarn, which is already in commercial use, but is in terms of sustainability questionable.
Since introduction and positioning of a new material on the market is a multifarious endeavour,
the research project took an interdisciplinary approach. Thus, the paper reports the findings of
material research, material processing and the production of prototypes. Furthermore, it
discusses semantic aspects of eco-fashion as well as user’s experience and acceptance of bamboo
products in Switzerland, in order to gain some indication for recommendations for design and
market communication of bamboo textiles and fashion.

KEYWORDS: natural bamboo fibre, fibre research, product

semantics, sustainability, eco fashion, eco label, customer
experience

Introduction
In recent years, the interest in renewable resource based fibres is increasing. The world’s
population is growing and with it, the demand for textile production for apparel and interior
textiles. At the same time, the worldwide production of cotton has reached its limit due to land
and productivity constraints. Polyester production is bound to the consumption of oil, thus its
worldwide availability is decreasing. Therefore the need for new and sustainable fibres such as
bamboo, hemp or nettle is gaining in importance (Fletcher 2008, p. 16).

10th European Academy of Design Conference - Crafting the Future 1 | Page

Currently, there is a growing interest in bamboo textiles. The mass media has joined in the
promotion of bamboo, highlighting it as a fast growing, sustainable resource. In Asian countries,
where bamboo is indigenous, it is widely used as a construction material due to its strength and
high tenacity. Yet its use for textile production is at the very outset and only little research has
been done in order to investigate its textile properties. Nonetheless, some fashion companies
claim without proper proof that bamboo (viscose) garments are natural, sustainable, breathable,
cool, biodegradable and even anti-bacterial (Diekamp & Koch 2010).
This paper presents the findings of the applied research project “BambooSigns”, jointly
undertaken by three Swiss textile companies and the Lucerne School of Art & Design. In order
to pave the way for sustainable textiles out of a new material, various obstacles have to be
overcome. Thus, the project takes an interdisciplinary approach, addressing material research and
processing as well as research into (market) communication issues of eco-clothing and user’s
experiences. In order to launch sustainable textiles, a holistic view and courses of action are
needed. Firstly, investigation into sustainability issues and technical properties of the material had
to be undertaken. Desktop research and basic research on the properties and characteristics of
natural bamboo fibres was conducted in order to evaluate their potential for substitution and
enrichment of fibre resources for apparel production in Europe. The focus was laid on
mechanically processed bamboo or natural bamboo that is extracted from bamboo culms, not on
bamboo viscose. Up to now, on the former there is very little information available while the
latter is already in commercial use. Since the production of bamboo viscose has the same high
environmental impact (due to the polluting effects of carbon disulfide and other by-products of
the process) as conventional viscose from wood pulp, this material is beyond the focus of the
project. Secondly, the cultural acceptance of the material and the garments has to be taken into
account. Thus, semantic aspects of eco-fashion were scrutinized as well as user’s experience and
acceptance of bamboo products in Switzerland in order to gain some indication for
recommendations for design and market communication of bamboo textiles and fashion.

Bamboo – a renewable resource

Bamboo is indeed a fast growing and renewable resource. Classified as a grass, it comprises more
than 1400 species worldwide; some of them grow a height of 35 meters and a diameter of 30 cm
or more. Bamboo grows mostly and most rapidly in the tropical and sub-tropical zones of Asia,
Africa, Australia and South America and also in the colder environments. The plant regenerates
itself every five years (Liese, in Vegesack 2000). After three years of growth, the stems can be
harvested for production purposes. Since bamboo is a perennial plant, it can be harvested
continually without the need for new seeding (Liese, in Vegesack & Kries 2000). Furthermore, it
should be emphasised that is a valuable plant in the ecosystem. Due to its rhizome it provides a
positive influence on soil erosion and water conservation within the ecosystem (Yu 2007). Last
not least, it fixes CO2 very efficiently through photosynthesis (van der Lugt 2008).

10th European Academy of Design Conference - Crafting the Future 2 | Page

In Asia bamboo is used mainly for construction and household purposes, for nutrition, and for
the production of paper and cosmetics. As a construction material, bamboo has excellent
properties; with respect to flexibility, strength, elasticity, and lightness (Yu 2007). Bamboo
consists mainly of cellulose, lignin and hemi-cellulose, also smaller parts of resin, tannin, wax and
inorganic salts (Yu 2007).
Concerning the ecological footprint, there is some data available, which has been collected by
Pablo van de Lugt (2008). On the base of the life-cycle-analysis (LCA) method, he compared
bamboo stems and various kinds of European and tropical hardwood. He pointed out, that the
eco-costs of bamboo are lower than those of tropical hardwood, but – due to the fossil fuel
inputs for shipping the bamboo materials from China to the Netherlands – they equal those of
European hardwood. However, growing bamboo in Europe, as is already done in the South of
France and North of Spain, could circumvent these eco-costs.

Natural bamboo fibres: Processing routes and

properties
While there is much knowledge available on bamboo as a construction material in architecture
(von Vegesack & Kries 2000; van der Lugt, van den Dobblesteen & Abrahams 2003; Yu 2007),
in interior and furniture design (Ranjan, Iyer & Pandya 1986; Yu 2007; van der Lugt 2008) and in
household equipment (Ranjan, Iyer & Pandya 1986), research in and utilization of bamboo as a
resource for textile fibres is at the very outset (Fletcher 2007, p. 32f). Such a usage goes beyond
the traditional and well-established application of bamboo in the many bamboo cultures of Asia.
Industrial uses of bamboo include the conversion of culms into pulp for paper and in the
production of viscose fibre, but there are only few manufacturing plants in China that process
bamboo culms into the basic raw material for natural bamboo fibres for yarn production.
According to Felix Stutz, CEO of Litrax, who joined the “BambooSigns”–research project as the
main commercial partner, the natural bamboo fibres used in this project were extracted from
Guizhu bamboo species from a sustainably managed forest in central China. The fibres were
extracted by mechanically splitting the bamboo culms into smaller fractions followed by rasping
off the woody parts by semiautomatic mechanical treatment. Then the cellulose fibres were
separated from the remaining stem-parts by enzymatic treatment (Litrax 2011) (Image 1-7).
This included a series of precisely timed alternate water-washing and enzyme treatment cycles,
which also act on the vertical and horizontally aligned lignins of the resulting fibre bundles.
Peroxide was used for the final bleaching and refining of the fibres.
The resulting natural bamboo fibres have variable lengths between 2mm and 150mm with a
relatively wide Gaussian distribution. The cross sectional structure ranges from individual fibres
with diameters of 4 microns up to fibre bundles with cross sections of as much as 150 microns
(average textile dtex of 5,8). The material subsequently required sorting and selection for target
applications and an additional slow carding was required to remove process residues and waste
fibres. After compressing into bales, the material was shipped to Europe where it was further

10th European Academy of Design Conference - Crafting the Future 3 | Page

refined by double carding or combing and cutting to staple of 65mm or 50mm for finer spinning
results. Finally, NM 10, NM 28 and even NM 40 of worsted 100% bamboo yarns were produced
(catalogue Schöller 2011), and even finer spinning results were achieved with blended yarns, such
as bamboo/tencel or bamboo/cotton (up to NM100). (Figure 8-9)

Figure 1-9: Bamboo culms; mechanical splitting of the bamboo culms into splits; mechanical
shaping of the bamboo splits; the natural bamboo fibres; bath for enzymatic treatment; manual
separation in the enzyme bath; bamboo fibre length view; Bamboo fibre cross section (figure 1-7:
Felix Stutz, figure 8-9 Lenzing)

The chemical compounds analysis shows that the natural bamboo fibre can be classified as
Ökotex 1 except for the lead value, which is higher than the Ökotex 1 limit and therefore falls
into the Ökotex 2 category. Compared with Lenzing Tencel, the fibre tenacity is similar but the
elongation is much lower (Table 1). The natural bamboo yarn is more regular than linen with
respect to thins, thicks and neps. However the hairiness is high and dust formation and fibre
contamination during spinning, weaving and knitting can therefore be observed.

Natural bamboo fibre 5,94 dtex

tenacity mean value 32 – 35 cN/tex
elongation mean value 2,9%
module mean value 9 –11 cN/tex
Table 1: Natural bamboo fibre properties (standard testing Lenzing SA/Litrax 2007)

10th European Academy of Design Conference - Crafting the Future 4 | Page

 Natural bamboo yarn 14,75 tex
tenacity mean value 13,0 cN/tex
standard deviation 1.12
elongation mean value 18,1%
standard deviation 1.56
incineration/ mean value 0.23 %
ashing standard deviation 0.0001

Table 2: Tenacity, elongation and incineration behaviour of natural bamboo yarn (standard
testing EMPA April 2011)

The dyeability of bamboo fibres with standard cellulose dyes is good, although the colourfastness
seems to be a little lower than with cotton fibres (figure 10). Bamboo fibres incinerate with
practically no residue. They also dry more slowly than other cellulose fibres. The tenacity value is
comparable with cotton yarns; the elongation value of natural bamboo yarn is much higher
compared with cotton yarn.

Figure 10: Dyeing samples of bamboo textiles, various weave constructions (EMPA 2011)

A special aesthetic property of bamboo yarn is its sheen, which is distinct and resembles that of
silk. This fact is confirmed by the bamboo textile prototypes, manufactured and presented in the
next section.
Natural bamboo fibre slivers must be washed before spinning in order to remove residual
additives, which are introduced during sliver production. Spinning is carried out in wool spinning
process lines. Bamboo dust presents a problem during spinning, weaving and knitting and has to
be effectively dealt with during production preparation. Otherwise production and dyeing can be
carried out following standard procedures.

10th European Academy of Design Conference - Crafting the Future 5 | Page

Bamboo textile prototypes
First textile prototypes were developed by an expert panel, taking into account natural bamboo
fibre and yarn properties together with the design briefings. The option of blending bamboo with
other sustainable fibres (such as GOTS certified silk in order to accentuate its sheen, or with fair
trade organic cotton) was also explored. Prototypes were accordingly defined and developed
together with the textile project partners and these included textiles for ladies’ outer garments.
Figure 11 shows a production sample, a seamlessly knitted summer sports pullover by Traxler. In
order to keep the shape of the garment, the natural bamboo yarn is blended with organic cotton.
Figure 12 shows front- and backside of two double-face textiles out of natural bamboo yarn (red
coloured) and silk (white respective black) by Weisbrod Zürrer. The combination of natural
bamboo and silk enhances the sheen of the bamboo yarn; the design supports the exclusive
appearance and the contemporary look of the produced fabric.

Figure 11-12: Casual wear, summer sport pullover. Material: natural bamboo and organic cotton.
Manufacturer: Traxler, (Photo: Dagmar Steffen); Foulards, double-face weaving, Material: natural
bamboo and GOTS-certified silk. Manufacturer: Weisbrod Zürrer, Hausen am Abis (Photo: Isabel
Rosa Müggler)

Product semantics of eco-fashion

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, when the environmental impact of the entire production chain
of textiles became obvious, the demand for environment friendly textiles increased rapidly. Eco-
fashion pioneer companies such as Hess natur, Waschbär, Albnatur, or Panda took the initiative to
ecologize textile production. At that time, efforts to make textile production greener resulted in
garments with characteristic bulky appearance and chunky knitted or woven materials with muted
colours. On the one hand, this can partly be due to the fact that technical know-how in the field
of environmental friendly production was limited (for example, the narrow range of colours
resulted from the avoidance of dyes incorporating heavy metals. On the other hand, the
companies fostered this very style, since it corresponded to the predominant fashion style or
rather anti-fashion style of the proponents of the green movement (Fischer 2001, 124). At that

10th European Academy of Design Conference - Crafting the Future 6 | Page

time, this societal group wanted to declare their eco-values and lifestyle with their clothes and
accessories. Shopping bags decorated with the slogan “jute instead of plastic” became emblematic
for the so-called tree-huggers.
Indeed, the pioneer companies, which established sustainable eco-fashion have learned the lesson
that garments are a means of communication: They serve as a non-verbal medium by which
various meanings and values are represented and exchanged (Sommer 1992; Barnard 2001;
Steffen 2009). The increasing social and cultural differentiation and segmentation of society were
reflected in clothing, fashion, and accessories in various styles, looks and implicit agreement
about ‘in’- and ‘out’-brands in communities. These items served in order to construct and
communicate identity, values and even the political standpoint to the members of one's own
group and also to members of other groups. In the 1960s, the hippie- and the student movement
were amongst the first, which connected the concept of fashion or rather anti-fashion with non-
conformist values, a sub-cultural lifestyle and a political and cultural position. Certain garments
such as jeans, parkas, and colourful, richly ornamented shirts symbolized specific content, and
wearing these garments became a statement (Dietrichsen 2003). Thus, fashion and anti-fashion
became part of a sign system (Sommer 1992). This was also the case with eco-fashion and the
green movement.
However, later on, fashion industry exploited the fresh, creative expression of sub-cultural anti-
fashion codes of mostly young sub-cultural groups as a source of inspiration and turned it into a
commercially exploitable fashion. Thereby the link between visual symbols and its original
meaning eroded (Steffen 2000). Eco fashion became, as Fletcher put it “more a stylized reaction
against simplistic perceptions of chemicals and industrial pollution than a conversion to
sustainable values (…) Eco chic was shape and surface detailing, image layered on top of fibre
and garment” (Fletcher 2007, p. 119).
Subsequently however, various studies indicate that consumers still associate the term “eco-
fashion” with the above-described original visual code of sustainable garments. Furthermore, this
visual code is responsible for the bad image of sustainable garments and hinders a broad
dissemination of eco-fashion beyond a certain societal group (Fischer 2002, p. 121f). At present,
a majority of consumers appreciates sustainable products (at least when they are interviewed).
But, as Niinimäki (2010, p. 159) found in her survey: “When asked whether eco-clothing should
be the same in appearance and aesthetics as all other clothes (cannot be distinguished from other
clothes in style, design, material, colour etc.), 70% of all respondents in general agreed with this
statement”. The group of ‘ecological hardliners’, who make purchasing decisions indeed on the
base of their ethical convictions and who also “want to show their own ideology in their
appearance” has diminished during the last decade and represents only a niche market (ibd., p.
161). The ‘eco style’- and ‘eco chic’-trend faced a downturn.
After decline in sales and undergoing a crisis, leading eco-fashion pioneer companies such as the
German company Hess Natur started to uncouple sustainable optimization of the garments and a
clearly identifiable symbolic eco-style (Fischer 2002, p. 127). A rapprochement with current
trends was made. Thus, at present, in terms of style the Hess Natur fashion line does not differ
from conventional fashion any more. Same is true for the Swiss brand Coop-Naturaline, launched

10th European Academy of Design Conference - Crafting the Future 7 | Page

in 1993 by the Swiss retailer Coop, which successfully offers basics (T-Shirts, pullovers, dresses,
trousers, jackets, underwear etc.) out of fair trade organic cotton.
In conclusion, it can be said, that garments made out of natural bamboo must firstly not show
any signs of “eco-fashion” such as particular colours or shapes in order to reach the mass market.
Secondly, the link between sustainable textile and fashion production on the one hand and a
specific visually recognizable eco-style or eco-look on the other was based on the simplistic belief
that sustainability is a visible quality of items. But this is not the case. The end products do not
indicate an environmentally friendly production of the materials or ethical working conditions in
the textile industry. Rightly, Fletcher remarks:
Today, it is difficult to see or sense sustainability in many of the fashion and textile products available.
(…) most fibres can be processed to look ‘pure’, ‘natural’ or ‘recycled’, regardless of their true provenance.
Indeed, perhaps as a reflection of the fact that fibres can look identical (…) most sustainable fashion pieces
are aesthetically indistinguishable from everything else on the market. (Fletcher 2007, p. 127)

Relevance of Eco-labels for market communication

Given that environmentally friendly produced materials, fair trade, and ethical working
conditions in industry are not visible in the end product, it becomes obvious that marketing of
green products must employ alternative strategies. In order to inform customers reliably and to
enable them to make a sustainable choice eco-labels and certificates are a useful and powerful
communication tool. Over more than two decades they have become of great importance for
establishing transparency with regard to eco- and sustainability issues. In other words: Signs and
symbols are capable of simplifying complex facts in such a way as to inform customers efficiently
(Schulz & Kreeb 2002).
In the case of marking garments made out of sustainable natural bamboo and distinguishing
them from bamboo viscose garments, labels are also beneficial. In the US the Federal Trade
Commission (FTC, 2008) has denounced the practice of “bamboozling the customers”, since some
marketers play on the fact that bamboo is a quickly growing plant with little or no need for
pesticides in order to market “bamboo” textiles to customers who are looking for
environmentally friendly choices. But as mentioned above most of these “bamboo” textile
products are viscose or rayon (except from Hess Natur, which offered a natural bamboo
collection for one season). According to the FTC, rayon “typically is made using environmentally
toxic chemicals in a process that emits hazardous pollutants into the air. While different plants,
including bamboo, can be used as a source material to create rayon, there’s no trace of the
original plant in the finished rayon product.” Thus, green customers are misled, and
consequentially FTC advised the companies: “If your product isn’t made directly of bamboo fibre
– but is a manufactured fiber for which bamboo was the plant source – it should be labelled and
advertised using the proper generic name for the fibre, such as rayon, or “rayon made from
bamboo” (FTC 2008). One year later, the German Industrievereinigung Chemiefaser (IVC), the
Bundesverband des Deutschen Textileinzelhandels (BTE) and GermanFashion (2009) issued an identical

10th European Academy of Design Conference - Crafting the Future 8 | Page

statement. Thus, in order to emphasize sustainablility and high quality of natural bamboo textiles,
they should be marked with an exclusive label.
Since there are very many different eco-labels in use, the research project aimed at identifying an
appropriate label for signifying natural bamboo textiles. Supported by the Institute for Marketecology
(imo), Weinfelden/Switzerland, several labels and signs such as OekoTex 100, OekoTex 1000,
OekoTex 1000 Plus, GOTS, FSC, For Life, and Fair for Life (figure 13-19) were scrutinized.

Figure 13-19: Eco-labels: OekoTex 100, OekoTex 1000, OekoTex 1000 Plus, GOTS, FSC,
For Life, and Fair for Life.

To begin with, the three Oeko-Tex labels warrant rather low standards and have no good
reputation from the ecologists point of view. GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard) is
internationally well approved and guarantees the adherence of ecological and social standards
through the entire textile production chain. Also the FSC (Forrest Stewardship Council) is well
approved, but on the one hand it is rather unusual for textiles, and on the other it could be
applied to viscose textiles as well. For Life and Fair for Life are two new labels that are still more
or less unknown and it is unsure whether they will succeed. Thus, GOTS turned out to be the
most promising label for signing natural bamboo textiles, and recommendations were given.
However, it lies in the responsibility of the companies to take actions.

Customer experience of bamboo

While in Asian countries bamboo has played an important role in everyday life, culture, art,
literature and philosophy for thousands of years and people are closely connected to the plant
because of its practical utility, its symbolic meanings and its elegant shape, this is not the case in
Europe (Yu 2007). Here people have little experience with the plant and with the material.
Furthermore, for utilizing the bamboo stems in the industrial context of textile fibre and yarn
production, the stems are treated in such a manner, that a beholder is unable to link the final
product with the basic raw material. That is to say, the material does not indicate its origin. Thus,
additional communication is needed to sensitise customers to the material and its benefits as a
renewable, sustainable and widely available resource. In order to lay the ground for product

10th European Academy of Design Conference - Crafting the Future 9 | Page

designs and a communication and customer experience strategy, the research project included an
investigation into currant customer experiences.
The aim was to generate insights in personal perception and to identify relevant issues of bamboo
and bamboo-based products from the perspective of people in Switzerland. Six participants of all
ages (between 12 and 80 years old, 3 female and 3 male), who are living in the city and
agglomeration of Zurich, belong to the social middle class, and showed readiness to explore this
topic, took part in the research. All participants were recruited through social networks. The
research applied qualitative and ethnographic methods. Each person participated in an hourly
ethnographic conversation, conducted at his or her home or office (Spradley 1979). They were
asked open-ended questions and were encouraged to spontaneously express what they associate
with ‘bamboo’. The journey started with notions about the bamboo plant and the different
bamboo materials. It continued with mental connections referring to the production, the design,
and the aesthetics of bamboo products, and what all this means to the interviewee. Last not least,
various contexts where one came across the plant or the material as well as stories, experiences,
and ideas that came to the mind were broached (figure 20).
Parallel to the interview, a selection of 20 photos of modernistic bamboo-based products were
shown to each participant and she or he was asked to select spontaneously three most interesting
product cards and to describe what or why they were appealing. Table 3 reports some of the
notions and comments of the participants during the conversation.

Figure 20: Stages of the bamboo experience journey

Stage of the bamboo Answers of the participants

experience journey
1. plant - it grows exuberantly; not sympathetic: the plant hurts
- symbol of human life, Buddhism
- romance and adventure, holidays
2. material - why bamboo? what is the advantage?
- an exotic material in Switzerland
- it does not belong here
- a regenerative/ renewable resource

10th European Academy of Design Conference - Crafting the Future 10 | P a g e

 3. production - where and how is it produced?
- labour conditions in China?
- a wide spectrum of applications
4. design - exotic, colonial style designs
- until now unsophisticated manual designs artisanal
- cool, nonchalant designs
- minimalistic, stylish, extraordinary, sophisticated, refined designs
- a piece of art, aesthetic
- multilateral, inventive, unconventional designs
5. context - adventurous, exotic, nature, Safari
- not for everyday
- would like to buy bamboo terry towels
- comparable with Naturaline (i.e. a Swiss trademark for organic cotton)
6. communication - bamboo forest
- a retreat for meditation

Table 3: Participants associations with regard to the various stages of a bamboo experience
journey

Even if the number of participants was very limited, the ethnographic research revealed several
insights. First, it became clear that the affection – either positive or negative – depends on
previous personal contacts and experiences with the plant. There is no unifying or overarching
attitude like in Asia. Since the plant and the material are not rooted in Western culture, people
expected a profound explanation why bamboo is or should be used. The fact that it is a
renewable or sustainable resource is not sufficient. Additional arguments are required why this
material was used instead of a ‘traditional’ one. With regard to labour conditions in China,
interviewees mentioned high ethical concerns. Most revealing was the fact that the modernistic
products were well received. Furniture and interior design products as for example those
designed by Dutch designers during the research workshops “Dutch Design meets Bamboo”
conducted by Pablo van der Lugt (2007) rouse astonishment about the broad spectrum of
applications, the various processing techniques, and shapes full of imagination. Those
outstanding product designs evoke wow-effects and put the material in a positive light, beyond
stereotypical associations such as colonial style furniture and poorly made products from cottage
industry. Nonetheless one should keep in mind that even the most convincing bamboo artefacts
were considered to be a sort of substitute for other objects, which are already there. Furthermore,
they compete with similar alternative offers. These barriers have to be overcome if the material is
to be introduced in the European mass market. The ethnographic conversations indicated clearly,
that much depends on sophisticated and persuasive product designs. In addition, the creation and
implementation of a customer experience strategy should complement the introduction of the
material on the European market in order to sensitize and familiarize Western customers with

10th European Academy of Design Conference - Crafting the Future 11 | P a g e

bamboo plants, bamboo-based materials and a range of products from the various application
fields.

Conclusion and outlook

Although there are still few hard facts on natural bamboo fibre properties, the product
development within this project shows that the fibre has definite promise and could be a valuable
add-on for the apparel and interior textile markets. Bamboo fibres could be one solution in the
quest for new fibres, because of the abundance and availability of bamboo as well as its
favourable fibre properties. It is an attractive fibre with respect to touch and feel and noble
appearance.
The physical characteristics will have to be further researched and optimized in order to produce
standard high quality yarns and fabrics. Since there are only few manufacturing plants in China
processing the natural bamboo in small quantities the prices are still two to three times higher
than those of linen, hemp and other renewable fibres. Thus, industrial upscaling is needed in
order to reduce the production costs. A textile production chain will have to be established in
order to secure mass production on a high quality level.
Although as observed in the customer survey, bamboo has a somewhat negative image, the
people interviewed very well received the bamboo prototypes and products based on
contemporary designs. One can conclude that people would buy bamboo-based products, not
because they are made out of bamboo, but because they like the contemporary product design.
This represents an important opportunity for the introduction of natural bamboo fibre fashion to
the market. Given that the garments show an attractive design sustainability- and fair-trade-
aspects can add value. However, further research is needed to ascertain the ecological footprint
of natural bamboo in comparison with linen, hemp and other renewable fibres. Since
environmental friendly materials, fair trade and ethical working conditions in industry are not
visible in the garments and – according to customer research – eco-clothing should be the same
in style, design and colour as all other clothes, there is a need for an eco-label in order to enable
customers to choose green products.
The media has already taken up the topic and companies have launched marketing campaigns for
the “new” sustainable bamboo fibre. Although this is a positive development, there is an
important information gap in that the bamboo yarns currently produced and marketed are
bamboo viscose yarns and not mechanically processed natural bamboo yarns. From the point of
view of sustainability and material properties, this represents a completely different situation,
which should be labelled and communicated accordingly.

Acknowledgements
The research project “BambuSigns” is funded by the Swiss Commission for Technology and
Innovation (KTI Kommission für Technologie und Innovation) and carried out by the Lucerne

10th European Academy of Design Conference - Crafting the Future 12 | P a g e

University of Applied Sciences & Arts, School of Art & Design in association with four textil and
product companies in Switzerland, i.e. Litrax AG, Weisbrod Zürrer AG, Traxler AG and ChemAxis
GmbH. Many thanks go our colleagues Hans Kaspar Hugentobler and Nina Gellersen, who were
part of the research team and conducted the customer experience research.

References
Barnard, M. (2001). Fashion as communication. New York: Routledge.
Bitner, M. J. (1992). Servicescape. The impact of physical surroundings on customer and
employees. In: Journal of Marketing, 56, pp. 57-71.
Bureau of Consumer Protection Business Center (2008). How to Avoid Bamboozling Your Customers.
Retrieved 8/20/2012 from http://business.ftc.gov/documents/alt172-how-avoid-
bamboozling-your-customers
Coop Naturaline (2012). Retrieved 8/20/2012 from
www.coop.ch/pb/site/common/node/7243/Lfr/indes.html
Diekamp, K. & Koch, W. (2010) Eco Fashion. München: Stiebner.
Dietrichsen, D. (2003). Radical chic. In: Die Zeit, No.37.
EMPA (Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology) Testing Reports, 2011.
Fischer, D. (2002). Das Wollsocken-Image überwinden! Sozialpsychologische Funktionen von
Bekleidung und das Marketing von Öko-Textilien. In: G. Scherhorn & C. Weber (Ed.)
Nachhaltiger Konsum. Auf dem Weg zur gesellschaftlichen Verankerung. Munich: ökom.
Fletcher, K. (2008). Sustainable fashion and fextiles: A journey. London: Earthscan.
Hess Natur (2012) Retrieved 8/20/2012 from http://www.hessnatur.com
Industrievereinigung Chemiefaser (IVC), Bundesverband des Deutschen Textileinzelhandels
(BTE) & GermanFashion (2009). Press report “Bambus”-Textilien. Frankfurt am Main,
23.4.2009.
Institute for Marketecology (IMO) (2011). Retrieved 8/20/2012 from http://www.imo.ch
Lenzing (2007). Fibres. Technical report on bamboo stem fibres (confidential).
Litrax SA, Felix Stutz (2011). Process and picture information.
Niinimäki, K. (2010, March). Eco-clothing, consumer identity and ideology. In: Sustainable
Development. Vol. 18, p. 150-162.
Ranjan, M.P./ Iyer, N./ Pandya, G. (1986). Bamboo and cane craft. National Institute of Design
Ahmedabad. Bombay: Tata Press Limited.
Schöller Spinnerei (2012). Retrieved 8/20/2012 from http://www.schoeller-wool.com
Schulz, W. F., Kreeb, M. (2002). Unsichtbares sichtbar machen – Die Bedeutung der
Umweltzeichen in der Nachhaltigkeitsdiskussion. In: G. Scherhorn & C. Weber (Ed.)
Nachhaltiger Konsum. Auf dem Weg zur gesellschaftlichen Verankerung. Munich: ökom. P. 159-170.
Sommer, C. (1992). Medium Mode. Eine Sozialpsychologie der Kleidermode. In: Medienpsychologie.
Vol. 4, No. 3, pp. 205-233.
Steffen, D. (2000). Design als Produktsprache. Frankfurt: form Verlag.

10th European Academy of Design Conference - Crafting the Future 13 | P a g e

Steffen, D. (2009). Categorizing product meaning: An investigation into the product language of
clothing and fashion. In: DeSForM 2009. Proceedings of the International Workshop on
Design and Semantics of Form and Movement. Taipei 2009. P. 73-81.
van der Lugt, P., van den Dobbelsteen, A. & Abrahams, R. (2003). Bamboo as a building material
alternative for Western Europe? A study of the environmental performance, costs and
bottlenecks of the use of bamboo (products) in Western Europe. Journal of Bamboo and Rattan
2(3): 205-223.
van der Lugt, P. (2007). Dutch design meets bamboo. Eindhoven: ZOO producties.
van der Lugt, P. (2008) Design interventions for stimulating bamboo commercialization. Dutch
design meets bamboo as a replicable model. Ph.D. thesis, TU Delft. Retrieved 8/20/2012
from http://www.bambooteam.com/pablo/
von Vegesack, A. & Kries, M. (Ed.) (2000). Grow your own house. Simon Vélez und die
Bambusarchitektur. Weil am Rhein: Vitra Design Museum.
Yu, X. (2007). Bamboo: structure and culture. Dissertation University Duisburg-Essen. Retrieved
8/20/2012 from
https://portal.dnb.de/opac.htm?method=showFullRecord&currentResultId=Bamboo+Struc
ture%26any&currentPosition=1

10th European Academy of Design Conference - Crafting the Future 14 | P a g e