Upcycling news and archive

Coach partners with parent company of Beyond Retro to develop collection of upcycled bags

Coach has partnered with the parent company of European vintage retailer Beyond Retro, Bank & Vogue, to develop a collection of handbags made from pre-loved and upcycled textiles. Underlining Coach’s commitment to reducing its environmental impact and more circular business models, the collection includes a range of iconic Coach designs, such as...

Fashion|In Pictures Featured

E.L.V. Denim brings its upcycling journey to LFW

British luxury fashion brand E.L.V. Denim opened London Fashion Week to become the first fully upcycled brand on-schedule with an immersive presentation celebrating its sustainable innovative and high-end fashion. Dubbed ‘The Journey,’ the presentation showcased curated vignettes documenting E.L.V. Denim’s process of turning discarded garments...

CultureMember

Ian Berry exhibits in Turkey for the first time

For the first time, renowned denim artist Ian Berry is exhibiting in Turkey. The show “Beyond Denim” opened its doors at the beautiful art centre Kalyon Kültür in the Şişli neighbourhood of Istanbul and will be on view until February 2025. The exhibition consists of some the artist’s most known works as well as those especially prepared for the...

Business|CEO Interview FeaturedMember

Reju CEO Patrik Frisk: 'There is very little that you can’t reuse'

“I’ve spent decades working for brands (Under Armour, The North Face, Timberland, Jansport, Smartwool, Reef, Peak Performance, Gore-Tex, Vans) that make clothes that people love. Yet, too many of these garments have ended up in landfills or incinerated. And increasing global consumption and fast fashion are only accelerating this problem,” says...

BusinessMember

‘A circular economy for the textile industry offers opportunities, but also needs action’

A recent report looks at the chances and challenges of a circular textile industry in the Netherlands, thus providing interesting input for other countries as well. The report titled ‘Towards a Dutch Circular Textile Industry’ was published by Invest-NL, an investment company that finances sustainable and innovative projects. While a circular...

FashionFeatured

Newless a new fashion upcycling service launches

A new bespoke upcycling service to turn preloved pieces into custom garments has launched in the UK called Newless. With a mission to reduce fashion’s negative environmental impact, Newless aims to make upcycling more accessible and appealing to a wider audience, by allowing consumers to mail their preloved garments to be upcycled into something...

Fashion

Wrangler launches second upcycled denim collection under Wrangler Reborn

Wrangler has launched the second part of its Wrangler Reborn initiative, which sees the denim brand work with textile solutions to create a collection made from upcycled denim. For the second collection, Wrangler collaborated with BVH Services’ brand Beyond Retro for the first time. As one of the largest vintage retailers across Europe, BVH was...

Business|OPINION FeaturedMember

Why Earth Day has become largely a marketing gimmick

What do Mother's Day, Valentine's Day and Earth Day have in common? They are all days that highlight something/someone that should go without saying and be celebrated every day of the year - mothers (parents in general), love and our earth. The very existence of such days of remembrance shows that something is amiss - why do mothers need to be...

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Sustainability in fashion: highlights from January to March 2024

In the first quarter of 2024, much happened again in terms of sustainability efforts in the textile and apparel sector and related industries. For example, there was a lot to read - you should not miss the important reports mentioned below, changes in legislation, interviews conducted by FashionUnited with industry pioneers, as well as...

Business|EXCLUSIVE FeaturedMember

Upcycling, a solution for companies' carbon and financial footprints

Is upcycling extending beyond its traditional mission of giving a second life to textiles? What if the introduction of automation into this practice paves the way for a symbiosis between ecology, economy, and strategy for businesses? Since 2020, Losanje has asserted itself as a pioneer of French-made upcycling, revolutionising the way finished...

BackgroundMember

Making something new from something existing is 'in': This is upcycling

Which fashion designers are upcycling? How big is the upcycling movement? And how popular is it actually with the general public, i.e. the consumer? You can find more about upcycling in this background article. As always, we start at the beginning. Click on the icons in the text for more information. Contents • The meaning of upcycling (and how...

BusinessFeaturedMember

Fashion and sustainability in 2023

FashionUnited has been summarising the fashion industry's efforts towards greater sustainability month by month for five years now. Reason enough to take a look back over the years before drawing conclusions for 2023. While 2019 was characterised by individual efforts, such as the development of recyclable and more environmentally friendly...