Over the next few months while everyone is struggling through this tricky time, the team at Love The Oceans wants to bring you a little bit of good news of awesome environmental movements and brands that our team love and we genuinely believe in. There’s also some goodies to be had – check our instagram out (@lovetheoceans) and enter the draw.
Why have Love the Oceans and Ocean Refresh decided to work together?
Love The Oceans has chosen Ocean Refresh as our shoe brand to talk about because we just LOVE their mission, ethos and, of course, the shoes! They create amazing sustainable flip flops out of ocean trash and our team just love them. They’re an independent start-up with a heart-felt founding story. It’s so important to support independent stores right now and make sure these amazing guys ride out this difficult time! Check out their website oceanfresh.com to buy yourself a pair and continue reading…
So… who is Ocean Refresh?
Ocean Refresh is a sustainable flip flop brand. Their bold, colourful and sustainable flip flops are designed to provide individuals with stylish flip-flops, whilst saving the oceans too.
Bernardo founded the business back in 2019. As the son of one of Brazil’s first female surfers, a love of the Ocean was instilled in Bernardo at an early age. With a childhood spent playing in the seas of Brazil’s iconic Itúana beach, the ocean was practically his second home. Later, with a family of his own, witnessing the scale of destruction of our planet’s oceans became intolerable. Bernardo felt compelled to take action and play his part in turning the tide on this massive but solvable problem. Ocean Refresh was conceived.
Bernardo and his team are on a mission to remove 2 million plastic bottles from the ocean by 2021, whilst also raising awareness of the plastic pollution pandemic.
So why is Ocean Refresh different?
Production Process
One of the things that sets aside Ocean Refresh from other footwear brands is their production process. Their charity partner Route Brazil collect plastic bottles off the coastlines in Brazil. These are then taken to their process plant, where the plastic is cleaned and separated into categories A, B & C. Category A usually goes to car manufacturers to make the dash board and other car parts. Category B is what they use to produce the noodle-like top sole. An ink injection is then then added to give the wonderful colour, and this is made using natural plant pigments. It then gets cut out into the shapes and sizes to make the bases and soles. The remainder of the Category B waste is then use to make the logo and straps. Once it is all attached and assembled it gets packed ready for shipping.
Carbon Offset
Ocean Refresh place the environment at the heart of their brand. Every pair of flip flops has 828g of CO2 offset per pair, meaning that when you buy with Ocean Refresh, you are reducing your carbon footprint and helping fight climate change. Their products are shipped from Brazil around the world whilst ensuring that their carbon footprint is kept down to the bare minimum
360 Degree programme
Ocean Refresh don’t just care about pushing a product out the door, they genuinely care for the environment. Their 360O programme means once their customers have finished with their flip flops, they can return them to Ocean Refresh and they’ll recycle them! Better yet, they’ll receive 25% off their next pair. They are the first flip flop company in the world to be offering this service, which just goes to show how much they truly care about the environment!
Want more info?
To get your hands on your own pair of these awesome Ocean Refresh flip flops visit https://oceanrefresh.com/shop/ ! You can also follow them on social media; Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn (@oceanrefresh) – and make sure to check out the give away @lovetheoceans is doing of @oceanrefresh products on @lovetheoceansorganisation
