HTnaturals
Encyclopedia
HTnaturals is a Canadian
clothing and accessories company based in Vancouver
, BC
. The company focuses mainly on wholesale sales to third party retailers but also operates a factory outlet in Vancouver and an online store. Founded in 1998, HTnaturals has grown from a fledgling home-based business to a thriving leader in the natural and organic
clothing industry.
' “My Starbucks” T-shirt program.
HTnaturals closed their doors in the summer of 2009. This allowed them to focus all of their attention on the hemp fibre technology that they're working towards. It became clear early on that the quality of eco apparel, specifically hemp apparel, needed to be improved before consumers, farmers, and politicians could be enticed to promote the growing of hemp in North America. In 2004 they partnered with the National Research Council of Canada and the Alberta Research Council to develop new processes for transforming Canadian-grown hemp into a soft cotton-like alternative called CRAILAR. They've been successful in reaching this goal and have spun fibres on regular cotton-spinning equipment, resulting in cloth with applications ranging from T-shirts to carpet. They are now in the midst of commercializing this technology and exploring partnerships with some of the world's leading brands. They have recently signed a multi-phase Joint Development Agreement with Hanes (www.hanes.com).
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
clothing and accessories company based in Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, BC
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
. The company focuses mainly on wholesale sales to third party retailers but also operates a factory outlet in Vancouver and an online store. Founded in 1998, HTnaturals has grown from a fledgling home-based business to a thriving leader in the natural and organic
Organic cotton
Organic cotton is generally understood as cotton and is grown in subtropical countries such as America and India, from non genetically modified plants, that is to be grown without the use of any synthetic agricultural chemicals such as fertilizers or pesticides. Its production also promotes and...
clothing industry.
History
Jason Finnis and Larisa Harrison, founders of HTnaturals, began working in the hemp industry after meeting at the University of Victoria in 1994. They started by selling hempen goods such as paper and clothing at folk festivals and other events. Later deciding to concentrate purely on apparel, they opened Hemptown Clothing Inc. in 1998 after the production of industrial hemp was re-legalized in Canada – a legislative measure which Mr. Finnis had been publicly supporting throughout his career. In 2006, the company changed its brand name to HTnaturals to reflect the incorporation of other natural materials, such as bamboo and soy, into its products. In 2007, HTnaturals provided all of the garments for StarbucksStarbucks
Starbucks Corporation is an international coffee and coffeehouse chain based in Seattle, Washington. Starbucks is the largest coffeehouse company in the world, with 17,009 stores in 55 countries, including over 11,000 in the United States, over 1,000 in Canada, over 700 in the United Kingdom, and...
' “My Starbucks” T-shirt program.
HTnaturals closed their doors in the summer of 2009. This allowed them to focus all of their attention on the hemp fibre technology that they're working towards. It became clear early on that the quality of eco apparel, specifically hemp apparel, needed to be improved before consumers, farmers, and politicians could be enticed to promote the growing of hemp in North America. In 2004 they partnered with the National Research Council of Canada and the Alberta Research Council to develop new processes for transforming Canadian-grown hemp into a soft cotton-like alternative called CRAILAR. They've been successful in reaching this goal and have spun fibres on regular cotton-spinning equipment, resulting in cloth with applications ranging from T-shirts to carpet. They are now in the midst of commercializing this technology and exploring partnerships with some of the world's leading brands. They have recently signed a multi-phase Joint Development Agreement with Hanes (www.hanes.com).