Our Story

Innovation

Named after the famous nurse and champion for health hygiene, the Nightingale brand was founded in early 2019 on the philosophy of promoting a healthier lifestyle through natural, everyday products.

While exploring creative ways to incorporate natural resources into health and wellness accessories, Nightingale became particularly intrigued with copper as a potentially sustainable solution for clean, healthy living.

Manufacturing partner Renfro Corporation had extensive experience with the technology in its copper-embedded socks and was poised to ramp up production on a new, innovative product.

When the effects of COVID-19 hit close to home in the spring of 2020, Nightingale immediately began reaching out to see where they could help. The brand didn’t have to look far.

Collaboration

In the same building in downtown Innovation Quarter in Winston-Salem, N.C., a team of researchers and medical experts led by Wake Forest Baptist Health was working around the clock on a wellness solution to address the shortage of PPE – specifically the limited supply of face masks due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
 

Nightingale and the medical research team connected for a partnership that set in motion a plan to develop and manufacture a more comfortable face mask for non-medical use.

The uniquely designed cloth face mask offered a snug, contoured fit with a breathable air pocket for more comfortable, extended wear.

Nightingale worked closely with Renfro’s product development team to get circular knit machines ordinarily designed for socks ready to quickly manufacture the washable, reusable copper-infused face masks.

Community

Powered by the collaborative efforts of a host of business and community leaders, Nightingale was able to make a huge impact with the first wave of face masks that rolled off the Renfro manufacturing line.

The brand was proud to partner with Winston-Salem community leaders, nonprofits, and businesses in a front-line effort to ensure every city resident had access to a face mask for non-medical use. The first 360,000 masks produced were reserved for Winston-Salem as part of the “Mask the City” initiative. Since then, thousands more masks have been produced to help cities and counties in selected regions across the United States.

Production of the Nightingale mask has outfitted countless employees with much-needed comfort, and also resulted in manufacturing and distribution jobs in multiple states to keep pace with increasing demand.

We are privileged to be a part of such an amazing grassroots effort during such a critical time in our community. We love hearing from our customers. Please feel free to reach us at email address or on our Facebook page.