The gone by week saw yet another circular economic initiative taking shape in the apparel industry. Firstly, the social enterprise Circle Economy being granted €250,000 ($276,000) by the C&A Foundation. On its part, Circle Economy will use the funding to advance its Circle Textiles program with a mission to close the loop for textiles and create a zero-waste industry.

Thanking C&A Foundation for its generous grant, Gwen Cunningham, lead circle textiles at Circle Economy said by this they would be able to push the ambitious program to the next level and take the bold steps necessary to scale our zero waste mission. His company would not only plan to build on the success and expertise of the Circle Textiles Program but also develop new tools for the industry that are critical in engaging companies in closed-loop strategies.

With a focus on end-of-life and systems re-design, the program aims to achieve a zero-waste industry by developing and establishing a commercial and scalable model for closing the loop on post-industrial, pre-consumer and post-consumer textiles. Meanwhile, many brands are adopting their own closed-loop strategies for textiles. Last week, Volcom joined the likes of Outerknown,Speedo USA and Levi Strauss when it announced the release of its first collection of women’s swimwear featuring recycled materials, for spring ’17.

The Simply Solid Swim Collection is composed of 78 per cent Econyl - the regenerated yarn from Italian sustainable textile developer Aquafil that is upcycled from recycling fishing nets and other discarded nylons. The process ensures no loss of material quality and the end product is also 100 percent recyclable.
Not far is active wear brand Yoga Democracy that has announced its ‘Eco-tech Fabric’ also made from Econyl yarn. The company’s sublimation process, hand dying the polyester using zero-water and a low-energy process, additionally contributes to closing the loop with its yoga apparel.