Summary The results were on display during a recent pop-up fashion show.
DETROIT (AP) — One auto supplier is taking the term "ready to wear" to a whole new level.
Inteva Products LLC commissioned a fashion designer to produce four gowns using the same thermoplastic material the maker of engineered components and systems places in the instrument panel surface of a number of General Motors Co. vehicles.
The results were on display during a recent pop-up fashion show at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.
Four models outfitted with formal dresses made from Inteva s Inteather material strutted up and down a carpeted area, passing by dumbfounded auto show attendees as well as the GMC Yukon and Sierra, both of which feature instrument panel exteriors made of Inteather, a thermoplastic olefin material.
Inteather has the appearance of traditional leather, but Inteva says it weighs less, lasts longer, and is recyclable.
Inteva s Ken Gassman, who leads the team responsible for the commercial use of Inteather, was on hand to see the models in action. He says the designer, Ferndale-based Janna Coumoundouros, did a "phenomenal job" creating the gowns.
Coumoundouros says people are taken aback by the texture of the dresses, because "it looks like hard leather, but when they touch it, it s really soft."
"Even though it s automotive material, they re very elegant," she said. "They have a really classic, beautiful look to them, too, so people are very, very surprised when they find out what the material is."
