What are Helios Eyewear’s eco-friendly sunglasses made of?
What if buying eco-friendly sunglasses actively contributed to reducing ocean waste and your environmental impact?
Helios Eyewear, a pioneer in sustainable eyewear frames on the island of Mauritius, offers high-quality polarized and 100% UV-protected sunglasses to perfect your individual fashion style and help you to positively reduce your carbon footprint!
From innovative manufacturing and recycling processes to eco-responsible materials used to craft the sustainable collection, discover what the eco-friendly sunglasses from Helios Eyewear are really made of.
Grilamid
Grilamid is a revolutionary bio-based plastic polymer! Thanks to its high bio content made up of 58% vegetal extracts, it significantly contributes to the reduction of CO2 emissions…which is truly remarkable! 80% of Helios Eyewear‘s production consists of frames made from Grilamid.
There is also the manufacturing process (known as Triflex Technology) that consists of layering the materials in the following order: Grilamid TR 90 Green, Griflex and Grilamid TR 90 Green, resulting in more durable frames that will last longer longer allowing the product to have a prolonged shelf life.
Recycled Eyewear
We have eco-boxes in our Helios Eyewear stores all across the Mauritian island! Our local customers are encouraged to bring in their broken or old eyewear (of any brand) that they wish to get rid of, which they can simply drop off in one of our eco-boxes instead of creating waste on the island. In return, we give them a discount of 15% off on a brand new eco-responsible Helios Eyewear.
These old or damaged pairs are given a second life by being broken down into small chunks and re-injected into new eyewear! Our recycled eyewear is known to be more durable than organic materials and they conscientiously contribute to the island’s circular economy.
Recycled Production Plastic Waste
Islanders at heart, Helios Eyewear understands the importance and the urgency of making sustainable decisions when it comes to the natural resources they use. These values can be seen in action where the plastic production waste from the factory’s manufacturing processes is grinded into smaller pieces and used to inject new eyewear. Although these sunglasses come in limited color options due to its origins, they undoubtedly reduce plastic waste in the production line.
Recycled PET plastic bottles
Did you know that around 5 recycled PET plastic bottles are used for the creation of 1 eyewear? Yes, that is all it takes!
To make this project successful, a collaborative approach has been embraced with different local companies and individuals. This collaboration allows Helios Eyewear to source the PET plastic bottles in Mauritius, get them cleaned and grinded into pellets to then create a unique collection of recycled sunglasses.
Recycled Fishing Nets (Coming soon!)
Creativity and thinking out of the box is the root of our environmental and social practices. With this in mind and always pushing the boundaries when it comes to finding more eco-friendly alternatives to plastic, we decided to embark on a new eco-responsible adventure with the material Nylo®. Nylo® is the first French recycled polyamide6 made from 100% used fishing nets. Following the same process for our recycled eyewear, recycled plastic production waste and recycled PET plastic bottles, the granules derived from used fishing nets will be injected into new frames to join our eco collections. Stay tuned for more!
Tell us, which of these eco-friendly sunglasses do you fancy the most? Share with us in the comments below! We would love to hear your thoughts.
Written by Tasha Ayacanou-Bundhoo aka The Lovely Brunette