The Compostable Underwear Brand KENT Got Four Offers on 'Shark Tank'

The compostable underwear brand, KENT, scored a major deal on Shark Tank during the live Season 14 premiere, which aired on Sept. 23, 2022. KENT is a sustainable clothing company that focuses on using organic, vegan, and compostable materials to make briefs, tees, and reusable totes.

Fashion is a huge contributor to landfill waste. According to the EPA, only 14.7 percent of all textiles were recycled in 2018. This is where KENT’s idea of compostable underwear comes in handy.

After receiving offers from four different Sharks, KENT founder and CEO, Stacy Anderson Grace, and her husband the CMO, Jeff Grace, chose to make a deal with Daymond John, because of his experience in the fashion industry. John offered KENT a deal of $200,000 in exchange for 15 percent of the company.

“When Daymond jumped back in with a deal, we were ecstatic. He’s an industry icon and has had so much success growing mission-driven companies like ours,” Jeff said of the momentous deal.

Aside from sustainable clothing, Jeff experience in both advertising and comedy. He is also known for his work at advertising agency Leo Burnett, where he helped Altoids go from a small, somewhat unknown brand, to the massive breath mint company they are today.

Stacy founded KENT when she noticed that her underwear was made from synthetic materials — that's when the idea of compostable underwear came to mind.

“That's when the idea of KENT was born – a line of thoughtfully designed 100 percent organic, vegan, and compostable underwear,” Stacy said.

With over 10 years of experience in sustainable fashion, Stacy has worked with popular brands like Timberland, Wrangler, and TOMS.

KENT’s underwear is made with 100 percent GOTS certified organic pima cotton, meaning it can be composted at its end of life. In a composting environment, the underwear is designed to break down in 90 days. With the use of natural materials, the brand has eliminated the need for petrochemical-based fabrics — aka textiles that are made from fossil fuels.

For some consumers the price of sustainable products is worrisome, but KENT offers items for as low as $20.

Any underwear (or clothing item) made from 100 percent cotton can technically be composted, too — just make sure the thread and any adornments are also made from natural materials before tossing in your compost bin.

KENT’s goal is to help reverse climate change by incorporating sustainable and compostable materials. Customers are encouraged to “Plant Your Pants,” which allows the product to turn into soil.

Stacy explained why she chose to incorporate composting into KENT.

“I see composting as a natural recycling process. With cities like New York and LA rolling out curbside composting this year, we see composting becoming mainstream in America as a natural solution to landfill waste, for fashion and beyond,” she said.

All of KENT’s underwear is LA compost verified, which is great because composting can have a large impact on climate change. According to the EPA, composting organic materials can significantly reduce methane emissions.

Compost can help contaminated soils, enhance water retention, and increase crop yields. So not only does the idea of compostable clothing helps decrease waste in landfills, but it has a bunch of other benefits.

Plus, all of KENT's clothing items are made domestically in California, and dyed with only non-toxic and natural dyes, further reducing the environmental impact of the brand's products.

Now you know exactly how awesome it would be to “Plant Your Pants.”

This article, originally published on Oct. 4, 2022, has been updated.