What if the clothes touching your skin every day are quietly exposing you to chemicals you never agreed to wear? In this eye-opening conversation, Chris Kolbe pulls back the curtain on the plastic-heavy clothing industry, revealing the hidden chemicals, questionable dyes, PFAS, and “recycled” materials that can turn your closet into a potential source of exposure. We dive into the most important swaps to make, how to identify truly cleaner fabrics and underwear, why European standards often differ from those in the U.S., and whether you really have to sacrifice performance to choose healthier clothing. Plus, Chris explains the science behind HyperNatural’s innovative Hyper-Cool Jade™ technology and shares his vision for transforming the apparel industry from the inside out.
Chris Kolbe is the cognizant founder of HyperNatural, which he launched in 2022 after recognizing the overlooked health potential of bio-based materials in an apparel industry dominated by plastic-heavy synthetics. He saw what consumers were up against: the “Perfect Problem” of opaque systems pushing chemical-loaded performance fabrics into closets and onto skin with little awareness.
Through HyperNatural, he is building a premium wellness apparel brand and bio-based materials platform powered by patented nano fiber technology called Hyper-Cool Jade™ to create a cleaner, higher-performing alternative to the synthetic / chemical status quo.
With more than 30 years of experience across apparel, retail, merchandising, design, and brand building, Chris has held senior executive leadership roles at some of the industry’s most recognized brands and retailers, including Polo Ralph Lauren, Urban Outfitters, J.Crew, and Kohl’s, as well as serving as President of Lands’ End.
SHOW NOTES:
0:38 Welcome to the podcast!
4:23 About Chris Kolbe
5:32 Welcome him to the show!
6:30 The state of our clothing supply chain
8:42 The real problem with plastic
12:38 Beware of the $20 t-shirt
15:16 The most important swaps to make
17:15 Can you avoid PFAS?
19:06 European vs American standards
23:50 Natural “biomaterials” to look for
26:24 Hypercool Jade
27:44 Toxic vs safe dyes
30:11 Hypernatural philosophy & health benefits
32:05 Safe standards to look for when shopping
37:45 Clean underwear
40:10 Golf + feedback from our husbands!
42:15 Why you can have both performance and clean
45:29 What we want in clean athleisure
48:25 How to create change in the industry
49:25 Is “recycled clothing” clean?
54:34 More about Hypernatural
55:43 His final advice
58:05 Thanks for tuning in!
RESOURCES:
https://hypernaturalstyle.com/
TikTok: @hypernaturalstyle
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