ABOUT

Marching to the Beat...

Drum Sportswear is the culmination of years of knowledge, daydreams, and divergent paths.

Finally taking the leap from a successful, yet ordinary existence, it’s time for a life of passion and service to our planet and its inhabitants!

We’re marching to the beat of our own drum by providing Earth-friendly sportswear to conscious consumers. We hope it inspires you to think differently, too!

 

Better for You and the Planet

At Drum we make sportswear, differently. We believe that the natural fibers in our products are healthier for you and the environment. The sustainable materials we use are comfortable, breathable and super durable, ready for your active lifestyle. We design our sportswear with a mission to provide you with the right inspiration to listen to your drum beat and live your life!

Each product has been designed for repeated use and abuse -- and we know they’ll quickly become your go-to items for years to come. So when buying your next piece of sportswear, consider going natural. It is the clear winner in comparison to the longer-term, larger cost (environmentally as well as for your health) of buying synthetics vs. buying natural.

 

Natural Fibers Rule

Hemp is our favorite fabric. It is nature’s performance fabric. It absorbs and releases perspiration quickly, and breathes well. It is UV resistant, anti-microbial, durable, and gets softer and more comfortable with each wash. Gentle on the Earth, it doesn’t require pesticides, grows with little water, and returns 60-70% of its nutrients to the soil.

We blend hemp with other high-performance natural fabrics such as organic cotton and bamboo for extra comfort and wearability. We choose materials that will leverage the natural properties inherent in hemp so that our customers experience the best in quality and performance.

Benefits to you:

• Breathable
• Anti-microbial and UV resistant
• Softens with each washing without fiber degradation
• Three times stronger than cotton

Benefits to the planet: 

• Renewable resource; grows more quickly and easily than cotton or trees
• High-yield crop produces much more fiber per acre than cotton or flax
• Low maintenance plants with light water requirements and no pesticides; generally grown organically
• Biodegradable

 

Join Our Drum Circle

In Asheville we have a large, internationally-known drum circle in the center of town every Friday evening.

Want to see what it’s like? Check it out: https://youtu.be/lDZp68zjfTc

So, what exactly is a drum circle? In the words of Mickey Hart, percussionist for the Grateful Dead,

"Typically, people gather to drum in drum 'circles' with others from the surrounding community. The drum circle offers equality because there is no head or tail. It includes people of all ages. The main objective is to share rhythm and get in tune with each other and themselves. To form a group consciousness. To entrain and resonate. By entrainment, I mean that a new voice, a collective voice, emerges from the group as they drum together."

As a customer of Drum Sportswear, we welcome you to the Drum Circle, our collective voice on a mission to help the planet! We’ve created the Drum Circle to bring this community of like-minded, kind-hearted, active people together.

Does this resonate with you? Want to be part of the movement? Send us an email at hello@drumsportswear.com and we'll get you on the list! 

 

We’re All Part of the Problem AND Part of the Solution

Whether you shop on Amazon, Macy's, Under Armour, Nike, or another favorite sports shop, the activewear you purchase is most commonly made of petroleum-based fabrics like polyester, nylon, and acrylic.

While these materials offer comfort and performance, they are made from petroleum by-products that are terrible for our oceans and the environment (during production, in the wash cycle, and once they end up in the landfill) and toxic to the poorly paid workers who risk their lives to mass produce these products for American consumers.

This is the concept of Fast Fashion: make clothing that is cheap and easy and expect consumers to simply toss them and buy more when they wear out or go out of style.

"But I take my used clothing to the thrift store, not the landfill!"

Yes, we do, too.

Here’s the problem: The United States produces an average of 25 billion pounds of textiles per year. Only 15% of that gets donated or recycled, the rest (85%) ends up in the landfill.**

Even when you take your clothing to a thrift store, more than one out of every ten items either initially is deemed unsalable or doesn’t sell and ends up at the dump! Elizabeth Cline, author of Overdressed: The Shockingly HIgh Cost of Cheap Fashion calls this the “clothing deficit myth.”

We are covering our planet in clothing that is not biodegradable, and there’s a finite amount of space for all our trash. It’s time to change the way our clothes are made and it’s time for all of us to become more responsible consumers.

This isn’t to say you shouldn’t have anything in your closet that is made of those other materials -- we all use them! Instead, look for ways to balance your wardrobe. When it’s time to make a new purchase, consider adding hemp clothing that’s better for the Earth and better for your body. 

 

About James & the Founding of Drum Sportswear

My why can be found in the name of the company. The word DRUM was derived from the names at the center of my universe, my two beautiful daughters, Dr-ew and Tat-um. Dr-um.

It also speaks to my goals in life -- I’m stepping out of my comfort zone and marching to the beat of my own drum.  My previous livelihood gave me many comforts, but required me to follow another drumbeat. Drum Sportswear is about listening to my inner voice and following that passion, which for me is making sustainable sportswear.

I’ve always been lucky to see things in the world that others don’t, whether it’s a new way of doing something, or an injustice that goes unnoticed by many. I want to use that gift to leave the world a better place for my girls, and future generations.   

Growing up as an athlete in a sports-minded family, active wear has been a big part of my life. Truth be told, I’ve wanted to create a sportswear line since as long ago as I can remember. After several false starts, I am mustering up the courage to put myself out there and share my passion with you.

I am following the 60's mantra, "be the change you wish to see in the world." I want our products to do two things:

1. reduce the amount of polyester production in the world
2. help protect and grow the dwindling populations of endangered animals

My initial focus will be on rhinos and tigers. We will incorporate endangered animals into our designs to raise awareness while donating 10% of revenue to endangered species organizations.

Drum Sportswear is founded on two principles:

• Sustainability
• Connectedness 

I see sustainability as meeting today’s needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet theirs. Living in the small city of Asheville surrounded by mountains, I’ve come to realize the importance of sustainability and the scarcity of resources.

As a big city dweller in California, it was easy to forget how great an impact we make both positively and negatively on the environment. Being part of this magical town has helped me realize how essential we all are to the survival of this planet.

I like to keep this quote in mind as I create new products:

“Man did not weave the web of life, he is merely a strand in it. Whatever he does to the web, he does to himself.”*

Asheville is a community of people passionate about being connected, and I’ve discovered that connectedness is a way to happiness for me. If I feel connected, I am happy. In my tai chi practice, I’ve further delved into the importance of connectedness. I practice living in the moment and making that moment count. Drum Sportswear helps me connect to like-minded people while living a more sustainable existence.

Thanks for taking the time to get to know us! We’d love to get to know you, too. Please feel free to reach out any time to share your comments or stories at hello@drumsportswear.com.

*Frequently attributed to Chief Seattle, it was actually written by Ted Perry.

** Data acquired from WEMA Global, a company that sells American thrift store rejects to African consumers