E110: Simplifyber and a plastic-free textiles future

This week on Everybody in the Pool, we’re rethinking how clothes, shoes—and even car interiors—get made without plastic. My guest is Maria Intscher-Owrang, CEO and co-founder of Simplifyber. Her innovation takes plant fibers + water, then forms finished 3D shapes in a single step—skipping spinning, weaving, cutting, and sewing. We get into:What’s broken about fossil-based textiles (cost curves, subsidies, and why polyester took over)How Simplifyber’s cellulose slurry + compression molding works—and why it cuts waste dramaticallyEarly results: an LCA showing up to 30× lower impact for shoe uppers vs. standard constructionPerformance and durability (including why these parts can survive sun/heat/humidity in car interiors)Unit economics: cost parity at scale via tooling (and why higher volumes matter)Beachhead products: GANNI “moon shoe” uppers and a Kia EV2 concept interior, now moving toward productionWhat this could mean for labor, local supply chains, and using regional feedstocks (cellulose everywhere)Links:Website Simplifyber: https://www.simplifyber.com/LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/maria-intscher-owrang-3278a07/All episodes: https://www.everybodyinthepool.com/What you can do to help: Subscribe to the Everybody in the Pool newsletter: https://www.mollywood.co/Become a member and get an ad-free version of the podcast: https://everybodyinthepool.supercast.com/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.