The Swedish textile recycling company , which we’ve featured before, upcycles cellulosic textile waste, such as worn-out cotton clothes, and transforming it into a material called Circulose from which you can make pristine textile fibers.
— By replacing virgin cotton and polyester with Circulose, Eslander tells, fashion brands reduce the impact caused by raw materials and waste dramatically.
Renewcell’s new launch, together with sustainability platform Make it last, started with the material.
— We had the opportunity to save some deadstock fabric from a previous denim production made with Circulose, says Eslander. I think it’s important to stress that this is usually not how clothes are made today. We’ve gotten used to viewing textiles and resources in general as unlimited, which is what got us into this environmental mess. Brands are used to choosing freely between inexhaustible options to quality and color. On the contrary, this development started with a set material and shows what fashion really should be all about — creativity.
— The result is a personal interpretation of the classic workwear jacket. It’s made at Fugeetex, a Swedish factory working with both environmental and social sustainability, dyed in Sweden, and the buttons are recycled and handmade from the island of Gotland. It’s an extraordinary jacket, a wearable piece of zero waste art. It’s an investment for many years to come and hopefully handed down for generations. Even more importantly we hope it inspires others, to do better and buy better, simply because it’s now possible. Without compromising on style.
What else do you have coming?
— We’re currently building the world’s largest textile recycling plant in Sundsvall, Sweden. It will have a capacity of 60,000 tons yearly, which is about 200 million pairs of jeans, and starts production in the first half of next year. We’re bringing circularity to fashion, at scale, Eslander states, adding,
— There is a huge demand from brands for recycled material and our focus is to scale fast to be able to meet this demand. At the same time, we need culture to shift toward circularity as well, so we are using our platform to collaborate with creative people leading that shift and have some great collaborations coming up.