The venture and circular textile platform JUNKAN consists of three Japanese companies — Furushima, hap Inc., and Ciriot. Rooted in Japan, it brings decades of expertise in functional clothing, responsible manufacturing, and high-quality repair and inspection, and launched its Finnish division at Textile & Fashion Forum 2023 in Helsinki. The goal is to make way for a game changer in the field of textile sustainability by uniting their expertise in textile technology together with the mentioned vast experience in fashion and textiles.
The announcement comes at a crucial time for the industry with estimated losses of over $500 billion every year (the Ellen MacArthur Foundation), stemming from nearly 30% of produced textiles not being sold and insufficient recycling. Not only that, but the resource-intensive production practices of the fashion and textile industry clearly emphasize the importance of such efforts.
JUNKAN Oy will focus on repair, reuse, and rental services for consumers, retail, brands, and organisations in Europe. The launch not only resonates strongly with Finland’s intense work to innovate textile practices, which includes ventures like Infinited Fiber, Spinnova, Kuura, and Fluff Stuff. It’s also described as a milestone in the process of reshaping the industry for a more sustainable future and will introduce the European market to an inventive, circular textile service with a scalable potential.
— We want to combine this expertise with world-leading circular economy and sustainability expertise in Helsinki and the Nordics, and while doing so, introduce a scalable circular textiles services platform — a ’clothing as a service’ for the European markets, says Yoko Yasuda, Director, JUNKAN Oy.
— As JUNKAN sets out on its journey to revolutionise textiles circular lifetime concept and offer choices for traditional ownership, it extends a warm invitation to new partners and innovators who share its vision for new circular textiles shared market ecosystem, Jarkko Jussila, President, Europe at JUNKAN Oy, adds.
Sonja Malin, Senior Advisor at Helsinki Partners, is full of excitement.
— We have been fortunate to witness these three companies discover synergies and establish a new home in Helsinki, bolstering the local ecosystem, she says. JUNKAN is poised to make a substantial impact on the circular textile industry in Europe.
