For too long, athleisure has just been the sweaty gym clothes you wore into the rest of your day post workout. But now, there’s a new men’s activewear line that wants to change that definition. It’s named Pistol Lake, and it’s not only captured the attention of an adoring public through Kickstarter campaigns, but of financiers through funding rounds as well. The Los Angeles-based company has developed a line of shirts and other activewear that is meant to go from the gym to real life, all without breaking a sweat. It’s all dependent upon a proprietary new fabric known as Eudae. It’s created from a blend of eucalyptus pulp and recycled plastic bottles, and in addition to being eco-friendly, it also promises to be effortlessly comfortable.
The company has been around since 2012, and began with just two pieces: A crew-neck and V-neck T-shirt. But over the course of the last five years, Pistol Lake has added long-sleeve shirts, hoodies, and even shorts and sweatpants. Regardless of variety of product, however, Pistol Lake has maintained its commitment to ethical, recycled fabrics that promise “ultra-functional gear with a natural aesthetic.”
And now, that promise has garnered the company $600,000 in funding from Slow Ventures, whose founder, Dave Morin, has invested in a number of other comfort-focused and highly successful brands, including Casper and Allbirds.
So what makes Pistol Lake’s clothing so different? For one thing, it doesn’t look like clothes you’d wear to the gym. While most workout clothes come with a rather glossy finish that promise to disguise the look of sweat, these shirts and shorts just look like your normal street clothes. In fact, as co-founder William Sulinski told TechCrunch, “I thought, let’s make a fabric that looks like a regular T-shirt but performs like these fitness fabrics.” After after “probably 300 performances fabrics,” the team developed Eudae.
The fabric contains eucalyptus fibers that are said to prevent bacterial growth, and consequently, odor, while looking like the clothing that you’d be comfortable wearing in your day-to-day life outside of the gym or fitness studio. As it stands, Pistol Lake’s line starts at $30, which is comparable to larger brands like Nike or Reebok, and the company offers free shipping over $75. So if you’re looking to stay both fit and fashionable, this may be a good place to start.