The lines between fashion, beauty, and technology, once solidly defined, are becoming increasingly malleable. The consumer demand for more research and innovation is expected in tech, but both the fashion and beauty industries have proven that they, too, have an impressive amount of ingenuity to bring to the table. In recent years, the lines have blurred as technology has become an integral part of two worlds previously considered to be dominated by “style over substance.”
At the forefront of this fusion is husband-and-wife duo Stacy Bennett and Joey Rodolfo, fashion industry veterans. The pair recognized the movement towards tech fashion and tech beauty and thought, why stop there? Enter their brainchild, Buki: a brand of technologically advanced textiles merging fashion-forward designs with beauty-enhancing benefits. “Buki apparel is designed for consumers who expect more from their clothing,” explains Rodolfo. “We design every style with a purpose.”
When the uniquely tech-centric pedigrees of Bennett and Rodolfo are considered, it’s not a stretch to foresee them fundamentally redefining the functionality of fashion. Rodolfo spent much of his career designing strategic sportswear. He outfitted the Ryder Cup competitors in 2001, and went on to become the VP of design at Callaway Golf. His passion for high-performance clothing and Japanese fiber technology led him to the epiphany that all clothing could be working a lot harder.
Bennett racked up years of experience at Amazon and Clarisonic, two industry-disrupting giants that have set new precedents for the future of e-commerce and beauty tools. Coming from the business and strategy side of things, she has unique insight on not just outdoing her competitors, but changing the game entirely. “If you do what other people are doing, ten times better, you’ll have incremental improvement,” she explains. “But if you do what no one else is doing, you’ll have geometric growth.”
With over 50 years of combined fashion industry experience, it goes without saying that Bennett and Rodolfo know what they’re doing when it comes to aesthetic appeal. Their essential designs are tastefully simple, versatile, and luxuriously comfortable. But the real genius is found in their proprietary fabric. Kinoki-3.0, their first foray into tech textiles, is thermoregulating, moisture-wicking, shape-holding, pill-proof, quick-drying, wrinkle-free, and UPF50. But that was just the beginning.
Their ambitious goal to design everyday clothes with an integrated beauty factor is debuted in their Collagen Collection. Yes, the key player in every anti-aging, glow-boosting serum, smoothie, and supplement has now, for the first time, become wearable. Rodolfo describes this trailblazing line as their “most comfortable, hardest-working fabric,” and that’s not an exaggeration. Besides the standard benefits of Kinoki-3.0, the cutting-edge collection physically imbues the skin with collagen peptides for instant supple hydration.
Unlike technical fabrics of the past, which use topically applied chemicals, Buki’s state-of-the-art technology embeds collagen directly into the fibers of their clothing. This ensures the moisturizing benefits are effectively absorbed by the skin. “We define purpose as building wardrobes that benefit people’s everyday lives by combining state-of-the-art fiber technology with luxurious fabrics,” says Rodolfo. “We are excited to extend collagen from the health and wellness category to everyday wear.”
