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IGNITE Start-up, Zirkulu aims to raise €250k
Cork-based outdoor apparel company Zirkulu are seeking to raise €250,000 in external investment for product development & global expansion.
The Cork firm said it would use the funding, which can be matched by Enterprise Ireland and Local Enterprise Office grant funding, to grow its brand name and reach with Irish and UK retailers and expand its online base in Europe and North America.
IGNITE participants and co-founders Jack Norman & Fionn McCarthy first conceptualised Zirkulu in 2020 and began recycling end of life fishing nets to use as a fabric for jacket production before turning to raw materials that are bio-based and renewable.
Zirkulu jackets are created with a technical fabric that is partially made from sugarcane bi-product and recycled plastic. Its three-layered Endurance jackets are waterproof and breathable, and the company has a "significant number of pre-orders" for them. The jackets have been developed with technical performance as "a high priority," and Zirkulu works with a technical designed based in Utah.
“Today, we have no choice about how we respond when it comes to climate change and this includes clothing. Change is no longer a choice, but a necessity," said Jack, director of Zirkulu.
"We believe we have arrived at a near perfect circular solution when it comes to the production of apparel and we are very excited to be at the forefront of sustainable clothing. We have every confidence investors will join Zirkulu on our journey.”
Zirkulu operates as both a B2C and B2B brand, and its online store will launch with its first product offering in June. Notable B2B partnerships will include a collaboration with Sea Shepherd, which will be made available in the winter.
The company recently launched a successful Kickstarter campaign and has been able to commence production, with orders from the campaign to be fulfilled in June.
Source: Business Plus, Journalist: George Morahan