PATCH was born from a desire to create a natural alternative to wound care. How did you come up with the idea to use bamboo fibres for your strips and why did you see this as the perfect material for wound care?

PATCH’s journey began in late 2015 after my youngest son had an adverse reaction to a common wound care product. After doing my research and releasing the magnitude of people suffering just like my son, I went to the drawing board to create a natural, hypoallergenic solution to wound care.

The idea to use 100% bamboo fibre was inspired by my wife who uses the sustainable material in her business to make baby wipes and skincare products. After researching the many benefits, I soon discovered that bamboo fibre is not only a highly sustainable resource, it provides the ultimate wound protection for all skin, especially sensitive skin types. The fibre is breathable and specifically designed to easily contour to the skin for maximum comfort and protection for wounds. The bamboo gauze acts as an oxygen agent that allows the wound to ‘breathe’ and in turn assists with the skin's natural healing process.

We use the most environmentally friendly farming and production process with no chemicals or additional toxins. We think it’s the best material for wound covering because it's comfortable, sustainable, biodegradable, compostable (including the packaging) and breathable to aid recovery.

How do PATCH strips help heal wounds?

PATCH is made with natural and sustainable ingredients that are historically proven to soothe symptoms whilst promoting wound recovery for even the most sensitive skin types. The PATCH range is made up of natural materials, plant and mineral-based ingredients which can assist healing. Our PATCH range includes the added natural goodness of activated charcoal, aloe vera and coconut oil ingredients embedded into the gauze that can support specific wound types. Activated charcoal helps to draw impurities from the skin so is great for grazes, bites and splinters, while Aloe Vera is ideal for soothing cuts, bruises and minor abrasions and Coconut Oil assists in nourishing bumps and bruises for natural skin cell regeneration. 

What inspired you to create strips imbued with healing properties like coconut oil and charcoal and what is each variety's purpose in wound care/healing?

When I discovered bamboo fibre, I began experimenting with various natural componentry for the PATCH gauze and adhesion. This was inspired by my eldest son Xavier, who would always shy away from applying ointments and creams to his wounds. As parents, you can get pretty creative with ways to put an antiseptic/anti-bacterial cream on the plaster, but no matter what was tried, Xavier would always know and often the tantrums would follow. For this reason, I looked into infusing natural ingredients into the gauze such as activated charcoal, aloe vera extract and coconut oil.

Some benefits follow:

PATCH NATURAL is made from 100% organic bamboo fibre that is breathable and acts as an oxygen agent to assist with the skin’s natural healing process and recovery.

PATCH COCONUT OIL is enriched with coconut oil gauze that can act as a natural antibacterial agent for soothing bumps, bruises and minor abrasions.

PATCH ALOE VERA is enriched with aloe vera gauze that can help to soothe skin irritations and promote healing of minor wounds, blisters, burns, irritations and grazes.

PATCH ACTIVATED CHARCOAL is enriched with activated charcoal gauze that can assist with drawing out impurities and infections from minor wounds, cuts and bites.

From bamboo plant to PATCH strip, what does your production process look like?

We use a Lyocell process, which is considered to be the most environmentally friendly method of manufacturing bamboo cloth fibre. This is because it is more sustainable than most common chemical processing methods. According to the Fair-Trade Commission (FTC), Lyocell is defined as a cellulose fabric made by an organic solvent spinning process.

The compounds used in this processing method are non-toxic and much safer for humans than other commercial processing chemicals. About 99.5% of the elements used are captured in a close-loop container, which means they can then be recycled with minimal amounts of them being released into the environment, avoiding air and water pollution. 

We love PATCH's mission to do good for the planet! How does your love for the environment play a part in the production of PATCH strips?

From the beginning, it was imperative to source materials that were all sustainably grown, farmed and tested to meet our organic, compostable & biodegradable desires. The aim is to provide our consumers with a natural, animal-friendly, chemical-free and biodegradable solution all in one! We have achieved this by producing PATCH with only the most sustainable and natural ingredients available.

Our minimal packaging is made from recycled materials and our bamboo fibre strips have documented to break down in the soil within a matter of weeks!

Improving efficiency, reducing wastage and fostering environmentally sustainable resources is paramount.

PATCH have achieved big things since starting out just two years ago! PATCH created the world's first organic, hypoallergenic and biodegradable wound care option, and this year alone you've won three categories in the Australian Brand Awards and were nominated for Organic Product of the Year with the Organic Consumer Choice Awards. What are the brand's major goals for the future?

What began as a need for my young son, has now expanded to a worldwide venture. We’ve seen PATCH go global across 25 countries and in the next 5 years our goal is to see it expand to some of the hardest to reach locations across the globe.

When people talk about ‘wound care’ we want the word PATCH to come to mind. Our aim is to normalise the brand PATCH STRIPS as a new, innovative advancement to the wound care segment.

Ultimately, the plan is to not only help the 25% of the market that cannot wear normal wound care but provide the masses with the ultimate wound care option. For the sensitive, the eco-warriors, the elderly, the trend-setters and the adventure-seekers alike. Patching people up so they can get on with their adventures!

What would you say is PATCH's proudest achievement so far? 

We have experienced many achievements in the short 12 months PATCH has been on the shelves. Aside from going global, I believe our proudest achievement so far has been seeing the many people we have helped through our product. I didn’t realise the magnitude of the ‘allergy issue’ until now and the feedback from some of these people has been astounding, heart-warming and motivating to continue our pursuit. 

I created PATCH to help the 1 in 4 people who cannot wear normal wound care adhesives and now finally have a solution to that problem they have faced their whole lives. It’s a very rewarding feeling.

PATCH embody such admirable ideologies; the strips are good for people, environmentally responsible, and the brand gives back to the community by supporting a range of initiatives among other things. What's your favourite aspect of PATCH's mission to be 'good for you (and) good for the planet'?

Our holistic view on helping people doesn’t just stop at the physical. We want to help in whatever way we can, whether that is physical, environmentally, or through donations to charities and organisations. Our mission is to use an everyday essential product like PATCH to have as much of a positive impact as possible. And I believe we are achieving just that.

Are there any interesting facts about PATCH strips everyone should know?

• PATCH Strips are biodegradable & compostable
• PATCH does not contain any latex, paraben, Merthiolate/thimerasol (or any harmful toxins for that matter)
• PATCH is cruelty-free and vegan-friendly
• PATCH packaging is made from recycled materials
• PATCH strips have actually been documented to break down in the garden soil in 10 weeks!

Are there any exciting new products in the works? If so, can you give us any hints?

Nutricare will be branching out into other wound care solutions and adhesions in the near future! Stay tuned.

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