Chemcolor, Proložac Donji, Croatia
From a dry cleaner’s to a knitting mill
Chemcolor was founded in 1994 as a dry cleaner’s. Since 1999 it has been making women’s hosiery, and has now been doing so for 27 years.
- 1994founded
- 1999hosiery production began
- 23models in the range
- 15–40DEN
How it started
The business opened in 1994 as a dry cleaner’s. Five years later, in 1999, women’s hosiery production started alongside it. Today it is the only thing we do, and it is run by Mate Bonovil.
Growing demand over 32 years has meant new machines and new people. The largest investment came in 2017 and 2018, through a project co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund: new machinery and supporting infrastructure, which increased production capacity and allowed new products to be introduced. The details of both EU projects are public.
What “does not shrink” means
Hosiery is made of polyamide and elastane. Polyamide carries the strength and the sheen, elastane the stretch and the return to shape. The ratio decides what the hosiery will be like: our models run from 85/15, 96/4, 92/8 per cent polyamide to elastane.
The yarn comes from established international suppliers, and that is why every pack states that the material does not shrink. Hosiery that shrinks in the first wash is not cheap - it is thrown away, which is why this is the one claim we make on every model.
What we make
The range has 23 models, grouped by what they are: tights (9), knee-highs (8), socks (4) and T-slip tights (2). DEN runs from 15 to 40, from the sheerest summer hosiery to winter models with microfibre.
Models carry women’s names and fall into two lines: Classic and Elastic. Every model states its exact composition, its care instructions and a size chart, because those are the three things you can rarely find anywhere when buying hosiery.
Where it is made
Everything is made in Proložac Donji, Hrvatskih branitelja 30, in Croatia. It is Croatian production rather than an import with a new label on it, and that is stated on every pack.
Get in touch for a quote, samples or wholesale terms, or go straight to the range.
