City Sunglasses shipping out this week!
over 2 years ago – Tue, Oct 10, 2023 at 12:50:46 PM

Dear Backers,

After many challenges in our mission of turning mangrove plastic into mangrove sunglasses, we're thrilled to share that we've achieved significant milestones in our production. If you've been eagerly awaiting updates, here are the latest news:

City Frame

Production for our City Sunglasses has been at full steam in the last couple of weeks since we received the molds. We're excited to announce that we have produced 350 units to date, and they are looking and feeling great!

We will be shipping the first batch of 450 City Sunglasses this Saturday to our warehouse, and continue to ship them in weekly batches of 250. So you can expect to start receiving them in the last week of October onwards.

Hard Case

We have successfully injected 550 cases 

The inner top part of the hard case will be covered with suede following your votes!

Last week we started the process of attaching the fabric, which is estimated to be finished by the end of this week. Afterward, the assembly will require an additional week. We will ship them to our fulfillment center in Shenzen by Saturday, October 21st,  and you should start receiving them by the end of October and the beginning of November.

Adventure Frame

We're thrilled to share that we've partnered with a top-quality supplier who specializes in sports sunglasses and is aligned with our commitment to fair working conditions and sustainability to craft the Adventure frame.

This is the final, upgraded design:

We added rubber nose pads and rubber grips on the temples.

Production will start this week, embarking on a six-week journey. We aim to deliver them on November 20th onwards. We apologize for the delays with this design as well, it is to ensure we deliver the best possible quality and that you love your Pangea Sunglasses when they finally arrive.

Blue Lenses

Our highly anticipated mirrored blue lenses have finally arrived in Bali after we had to place a new order with a different supplier due to issues with polarization and transparency. These new lenses are mirrored,  polarized, UV resistant, and anti-glare. 

We will replace them with the old ones and ship them to our warehouse next week. You can expect to receive them in the next 2-3 weeks. 

Cleanup: Life came back to the Bali Mangroves! 

Our commitment to regenerating the mangroves remains strong. To date, we've collected a total of 38,587 lbs (17,502 kgs) of trash during our Mangrove cleanup efforts. We're steadily progressing toward our goal of 50,450 lbs, thanks to you.

After 9 cleanups, we're witnessing the resurgence of life in the mangroves—a testament to the positive impact of our collective efforts. New mangroves are growing, and hundreds of baby crabs have come back. Where there used to be a carpet of plastic waste 3 months ago, there is now a restored ecosystem. 

Watch the video below to see the baby crabs! 

RETHINK, RESHAPE, REVIVE.

Thank you all. Your sunglasses are many steps closer to finally getting to you. We won't stop until you all get them and you love them. We are almost there. 

With love, 

Marcos & The Pangea Team

Hard Case + City Frame + Adventure Frame Update!
over 2 years ago – Wed, Sep 13, 2023 at 11:20:07 AM

Dear Backers, 

As our journey forges ahead, we're thrilled to share some exciting updates about our Hard Case, City, and Adventure sunglasses. 

Hard Case

The mold for our Hard Case finally arrived last week after many issues during the R&D and manufacturing in England, and we've already initiated the production process.  Last week we encountered an additional challenge after producing the first unit – the case couldn't be securely closed because the magnets were too small. We rolled up our sleeves, manually drilled larger holes for more robust magnets, and voila! The issue is resolved, ensuring your cases will function perfectly.

Take a look at the beautiful unique color of your cases.. our newest creation. The first-ever sunglasses cases in the world made by manually upcycling mangroves and post-consumer plastic. The perfect blend of Science, Art, and Sustainability.

Now, here's a choice for you. Do you prefer a fancier look with suede covering the inner top part, or should we leave it exposed to display the unique funky colors of our plastic formula? We invite you to co-create the cases with us. Click here to vote for the final touch!

We're on track to produce 250 units per week and are gearing up to start shipping them to our fulfillment center next Friday. You can expect delivery by the beginning of October.

Blue Lenses

For those of you eagerly waiting for polarized mirrored blue lenses, good news! They're set to arrive in Bali by the end of September from the new supplier.  We will replace them in the travel frames, and expect to receive them in October.

City Design

Our journey with City Frames also hit a snag with complications with the mold producer. Fear not, our dedicated R&D team in London has fixed the problem and the mold is en route to Bali and expected to finally arrive tomorrow.

Production is scheduled to kick off during the third week of September after we finish producing the cases. Shipping will commence in weekly batches starting on September 29th. Expect your City Frames to begin arriving at your doorsteps in October.

Adventure Design

Our Adventure frames have taken an adventurous twist themselves. To ensure timely delivery, we've decided to collaborate with a third-party manufacturer. This choice comes after navigating all the delays with designs and molds and our desire to stop delaying any further. Upon research, we found a great manufacturer with excellent ethical standards that can use recycled plastics and commits to delivering on time.

Our goal is to have the Adventure frames in production during October and ready to start shipping by November. If you are considering exchanging your Adventure frames for another design, let us know – we're here to accommodate your preferences. Send us an email to [email protected]

Thank you for your patience, your support, and for being part of this incredible journey where cleanup and post-consumer plastics are being transformed into beautiful sunglasses and cases, powered by science and circular economy. 

We apologize for all the delays. We are doing all we can in this journey of sustainable innovation, paving the path as we advance in our discoveries and learnings. We are almost there!

With gratitude,

Marcos and the PANGEA Team 🌿🕶️

Fit issues with your Travel sunglasses? + Updated timeline on City & the Case
over 2 years ago – Tue, Aug 22, 2023 at 04:21:24 AM

Dear Backers,

We've heard your feedback loud and clear. Many of you have mentioned that the fit of the travel sunglasses might not be ideal. We've got a simple solution that lets you customize the fit to your liking.

 Travel Frame Custom Fit

We've put together a tutorial that shows you how to adjust the frames for a perfect fit. You can follow these steps using either the oven or by boiling water:

Oven Method
 1. Pre-heat your oven at 100°C / 210°F for 15 minutes.
 2. Place the sunglasses inside the oven for 5 to 10 minutes.
 3. Using gloves, carefully remove the sunglasses from the oven.
 4. While they're still warm, gently bend the nose bridge and temples to fit your face. Bending the temples/"arms" inwardly will keep them tighter to your face. Test them and adjust them properly before they cool down. Be cautious, as they will be hot.

5. Voila! Polypropylene is a thermoplastic so the new shape will remain.

Boiling Water Method
 1. Boil a pot of water and remove it from heat.
 2. Ensure the flames are turned off before proceeding and that the sunglasses don't come into direct contact with the hot pot. Submerge your sunglasses into the hot water for about 5 to 10 minutes.
 3. Using gloves, carefully take out the sunglasses from the water.
 4. While they're still warm, gently bend the nose bridge and temples to achieve your desired fit. Remember, they will be hot, so adjust them immediately before they cool down.

Let them cool down entirely before wearing them! You can repeat these steps if further adjustments are needed.

If you don't like the idea of custom-fitting them yourself, of course, you can reach out to [email protected] and send them back to us so that we can reshape them for you.

 Blue Lenses Exchange

Thanks to your feedback, we found out that the blue lens polarization from the supplier is not what we expected, and many of you found them too transparent. If this is your case, we've got you covered. We have switched suppliers to a much better one, and we are offering you the option to get a new pair of sunglasses for free!

If you ordered a pair of blue lenses and you are unhappy with them please go to this link and fill out the form to choose a new color, or wait for the new polarized mirror blue lenses to arrive to us. Our team will handle the rest and we will send you a new pair with your new choice of lenses.

City Frame and Hard Case

Our R&D designer in London experienced some complications with the molds of the City and the hard case that he has been troubleshooting in the last couple of weeks. The good news? After meticulous testing, the hard case mold is ready and it will be shipped to our workshop in Bali tomorrow. The city mold is going through the last stage of testing and if it works properly it will be shipped by the end of the week. 

"Great things come to those who wait". We have applied all the lessons from the alignment and fit issues from the Travel frames to create even better City frames that we hope you will love.

Here's a sneak peek at the injected sample of the hard case.

With this delays in mind, we are aiming to start producing and shipping the hard case and City during September. 

Rest assured that our R&D and production teams are doing everything we can to deliver great sunglasses as soon as possible. 

Thank you for your support!

Marcos and the PANGEA Team 🌿❤

80% of Travel Sunglasses Delivered!
over 2 years ago – Wed, Jul 26, 2023 at 11:53:54 PM

Dear Backers,

We are excited to announce that more than 80% of the travel sunglasses orders have already been shipped! Woohoo! 🎉 

We received several comments regarding the blue lenses and the fact that they are too transparent. We hear you. For that reason, we are going to replace them with mirrored blue lenses that are darker and have stronger polarization!  We are also aware that some units have some alignment defects. If that is your case, please contact [email protected] so that we can help you and replace them.

For those of you who've received your Mangrove Sunglasses and you are loving them, we'd be over the moon if you share your excitement with everyone as a comment on our campaign. Please spread the word and share why you love your sunglasses on our Kickstarter comment page! We've put our hearts to create them, so your positive vibes will fuel us to keep going and can inspire others to join our movement for a greener planet.  

City Frame & Case

The molds are being carefully tested, and they are about to make their way to our workshop in Bali.

We've implemented all the lessons from the Travel frame to improve the City design alignment and strength. We are also working on a Travel 2.0 design that we will release soon with our upcoming OceanGuard campaign. 

Thank you for joining us on this mission to protect our precious mangrove forests. Together, we are making a positive change, one pair of sunglasses at a time!

As always, we're here for you. If you have any questions or problems drop us a line at [email protected] and we will solve any issue.

With love,

Marcos and the PANGEA team 🌿❤

Timeline Update & Bali Mangrove Cleanups
almost 3 years ago – Wed, Jul 05, 2023 at 07:35:23 AM

Dear backers,

Here are the latest developments in the production of your Mangrove Sunglasses:

Travel Frames 

Last month we've been hard at work perfecting the formula for the our Ocean Blue sunglasses. After many tests to find the right plastic materials in the right shades of blue to produce them at scale, we've succeeded in creating a very cool texture that's currently on its way to your houses.

To date, we've produced and shipped most of the travel frames, 750 units, to the warehouse in Shenzen, and many of you have already received them. However, we encountered an issue with half of the blue lenses that made us have to wait to finish the remaining 150 units.

Some of the lenses turned out thicker and smaller than what we requested, causing them not to fit the frames correctly, and we had to send them back to the supplier for a replacement. Not to worry, we've resolved the issue, and we expect to finish the last batch of 150 pending travel frames in the next two weeks, once we receive the new blue lenses. 

Everyone who ordered Travel frames only and hasn't received them yet should expect delivery during this month of July. If you have any issues or doubts, please contact [email protected], and we'll be more than happy to assist you.

City Frames & Hard Case

Quality and durability are our top priorities. Last month during the prototyping phase, we identified a weak point in the hinges section of the city sunglasses, which led us to redesign a reinforced hinges section for extra durability. This back and forth with the designer and 3d printer added an extra month to our timeline, but it means you'll be getting sunglasses of even better quality.

The city and case molds are currently under production in England and will be ready by mid-July. Our designer will test them, ship them to us if everything is good, and production of the city frames and cases should take place during the first half of August. 

As a result, we must postpone the delivery date of City and Hard Case  to the end of August/beginning of September. We apologize for the delay, but rest assured, we're doing everything we can to deliver a fantastic product as quickly as possible. The invaluable lessons we've learned and the molds we're creating will allow us to produce much faster and deliver on time in our future sunglasses campaigns.

We understand that many of you were hoping to have your sunglasses for this summer season. For those who also ordered a Travel frame and wish to receive them first, we offer the option to ship them this month for an additional $5 to cover the extra shipping costs charged by the fulfillment center and get them this month. The rest of the order will be shipped in August/September. If you're interested in this option, please email us at [email protected], and we'll provide you with a PayPal link to cover the additional $5 shipping cost.

Adventure Frames

Your incredible feedback in our last surveys has been instrumental in co-creating the final design of the Adventure frames. We're thrilled with the progress and have an updated timeline to share with you.

• July week 1: finish the 2d design
• July week 2: finish the 3d design
• July week 3: design the mold
• July week 4: produce the mold (during 3 weeks)
• August week 3: test the mold, and if all good, ship it to our workshop in Bali
• September week 1&2: produce the sunglasses, and ship them to Fullfilment center in Shenzen
• 2nd half of September: ship them to you

With this timeline, you should receive your adventure frames by the end of September/beginning of October. 

Bali Mangrove Cleanups

Our bi-weekly Mangrove Cleanups in Bali have been making a significant impact on our goal. To date, we've collected a total of 9,544 kg of trash from the mangrove forests and we continue to transform the recovered Mangrove plastic into Mangrove Sunglasses. 

 We are getting closer to our campaign goal of collecting 15,694 kg / 34,600 lbs of trash, and have only about 5,000 kgs left to get there.  At this rhythm, we aim to hit the goal in the next 4 cleanups. 

Your belief in our project fuels our determination to overcome obstacles and deliver a product that you love. We remain committed to transparency and will keep you updated every step of the way.

Thank you for being a part of this journey with us and making this possible.

Warm regards,

Marcos and the PANGEA team