Salt & Acid

Fashion

Strategy, Branding, Design Research, Prototyping

Emma Kowalczyk Pattra Sikkamann

Industry

Expertise

Team

A new model for color in fashion emerges from waste.
By transforming discarded organic matter into dye, the process shifts from extraction to renewal, opening up a more circular relationship between material, system, and value.

The Challenge: To address fashion’s reliance on extractive dye systems by developing a circular model for color production alongside a viable, sustainable business model.

Methods: Conducted competitive analysis of natural dye companies alongside in-depth interviews with industry experts to understand existing practices and gaps. Mapped the industry to define positioning and identify opportunity areas. Established a sourcing partnership with a local juice shop to redirect organic waste into production, enabling material experimentation and testing across fabrics.

The Outcome: Developed Salt & Acid, a natural dye studio that transforms fruit peel waste into high-quality, organic dyes. Through small-batch production and material experimentation, the studio applies these dyes to deadstock textiles, introducing a more circular approach to color. The model offers fashion brands a sustainable alternative to conventional dyeing while creating products rooted in material integrity and process.

MOTIVATION

Food waste operates at a massive scale, yet remains largely overlooked as a material resource. A single 16-ounce serving of cold-pressed juice generates an average of 3.5 pounds of pulp waste, with an estimated 175,000 tons ending up in landfills each year, contributing to methane emissions.

This reveals an opportunity to reframe organic waste not as byproduct, but as input. Focusing on the volume of fruit and vegetable peels discarded by juice shops, we explored how these materials could be repurposed through natural dyeing, transforming waste into pigment.

Natural dyes offer an alternative to synthetic dye systems, reducing reliance on water-intensive and chemically driven processes. Derived from renewable sources, they are biodegradable and non-toxic, enabling a more materially grounded approach to color. This shift positions waste not as excess, but as a resource within a more circular system.

THE BRAND

BRAND IDENTITY

Salt & Acid reframes organic waste as a material resource for color. Discarded fruit peels are repurposed into natural dyes, applied to deadstock textiles and offered as a material input for brands seeking alternatives to conventional dyeing.

The brand is defined by four core principles: Urban Organic, Sustainable, Gender Neutral, and Imperfection. Salt & Acid embraces the raw qualities of natural materials and the irregularities that emerge through process. Natural dyes evolve over time, fading and shifting with wear. Each piece carries a record of its making, reflecting a philosophy that values imperfection and the natural life cycle of materials.

BUSINESS MODEL

The model operates at the intersection of waste management and material production. For juice shops, composting costs can exceed $800 per month, compared to approximately $300 for standard waste disposal, creating a financial barrier to sustainable practices. Salt & Acid addresses this by offering free waste collection, redirecting organic byproduct into dye production.

In partnership with Tom’s Juice, discarded fruit peels are collected and transformed into pigment, establishing a circular system where waste becomes input. This approach reduces operational costs for local businesses while securing a consistent material stream for production.