Recycling materials in a closed-loop system is a viable sustainable solution, one that doesn’t exhaust virgin materials or waste the water or chemicals that initially go into producing a product. One of the reasons why it is difficult to upcycle products is because they are often made from blended materials. Unfortunately, current technology is unable to separate fabric with more than two fiber types or recycle fabric with more than 5% elastane. This makes it difficult and expensive to process reverse logistics of textile products with mixed fabric types. 

All cellulose fibres can be recycled together and brought back into production of new fibres. In our mono-material collection we use Nylon 6 (N6). This polymer can be completely regenerated through chemical recycling. Mono-materials help recycle products more easily than blended material, which makes it suitable for circular life cycles.

By using our state-of-the-art sustainable eco-laundry for dyeing and washing garments, we have put together a complete supply chain of both virgin or regenerated N6 materials (fabrics, paddings, zippers, trims, and labels) which have been transformed into high-performance mono-material products, including outerwear and bags.

Each mono-material product is made from a single material without any mixed fibres, making them a better resource in a circular system where the goal is garment-to-garment recycling. When recycled into new materials, mono materials maintain a higher quality than mixed fibres, and for consumers, these garments are resilient and easier to care for, delivering longer-lasting performance and protection.

Case study submitted to the platform as part of the World Circular Textiles Day Collection.