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The Future of Fashion Tech: The Role of Fashion for Good in Driving Innovation

Fashion for Good drives systemic change in the fashion industry by fostering innovation, scaling transformative technologies, and enabling circular solutions. Through strategic programmes, funding support, and multi-stakeholder collaborations, it bridges the gap between innovators and mainstream markets, addressing key challenges like capital access, market adoption, and scaling solutions for a sustainable future.

Credit: Fashion for Good

 

3 January 2024

Fashion for Good is a global initiative founded to transform the fashion industry into a force for good. Collaboratively, it brings together brands, retailers, suppliers, and innovators to foster circular practices through disruptive innovations. 

This global platform not only accelerates the adoption of emerging technologies but also bridges the innovation gap, ensuring that game-changing solutions reach mainstream markets. With the support of the Laudes Foundation and inspired by William McDonough’s Cradle to Cradle™ philosophy, Fashion for Good is dedicated to catalysing real change towards circularity and sustainability in fashion.

Fashion for Good’s Innovation Platform operates through structured programmes to nurture and scale innovations. It provides essential support to help innovations mature through various stages, from conceptualisation to market readiness.

With Fashion for Good’s platform, we have nurtured over 2,834 innovators, driving 219 pilot projects and ushering 184 innovations to commercial scale with strategic support and over €600 million in capital. Fashion for Good has supported over 70 innovators, catalysed funding exceeding €74 million, and initiated more than 40 concrete pilot and implementation projects. 

Significant Technology Readiness Level (TRL) improvements have been observed across the innovator base. While innovations from lab to scale take time (particularly in “deep” or “hard” tech areas, like raw materials or recycling), focused industry efforts are expected to expedite this process. Achieving systemic adoption requires orchestration among brands, innovators, supply chain partners, and investors — an endeavour central to Fashion for Good’s mission.

 

A selection of exciting innovations we have seen progress immensely in the last seven years:

  • Organic Cotton Traceability Pilot: One standout example is the Organic Cotton Traceability Pilot with Bext360, a lead technical partner in our Scaling Programme. This groundbreaking initiative successfully traces organic cotton from farm to store, demonstrating a unique multi-stakeholder collaboration. Partnering with Fashion for Good, C&A Foundation, Organic Cotton Accelerator (OCA), and supported by Kering, Zalando, PVH Corp., and C&A, with technical expertise from Haelixa, Tailorlux, and IN-Code Technologies, ongoing field trials are being conducted in Pratibha Syntex farm groups in India.

  • Innovations in Raw Materials: Innovators like Mango Materials are transforming waste gas streams into eco-friendly, biodegradable materials suitable for fashion industry equipment. Spinnova has pioneered a disruptive cellulose fibre innovation that turns wood pulp directly into yarn without complex chemical processes. Algalife harnesses the power of algae to create dyes and fibres from microalgae.

  • Advancements in Textile Dyeing: New technologies such as ColorZen and Nature Coatings are reducing water and chemical usage. Colorifix uses synthetic biology for dyeing, exemplified by a recent collaboration with Stella McCartney showcased at Cut-Make-Trim Innovations: Automation and 3D printing solutions from companies like SoftWear Automation show great potential for enhancing efficiency and sustainability in manufacturing.

  • Chemical Recycling Innovators: Partnerships with innovators like Worn Again, The Infinited Fiber Company*, Ambercycle, and Tyton Biosciences are driving efficient recycling of blended textiles, paving the way for a closed-loop system that minimises waste.

  • Circular Business Models: Models such as rental, re-commerce, and subscription services offered by Yerdle, Renewal Workshop, and Stuffstr are gaining traction, reshaping industry incentives towards quality and durability.

Through initiatives spanning raw materials to waste reduction, Fashion for Good catalyse a holistic transformation towards better practices, focusing on transparency and traceability to ensure accountability.

The path to sustainability in fashion, however, requires a collaborative, targeted effort across all sectors of the industry. Fashion for Good facilitates this by connecting startups with established corporate entities, enabling the adoption of innovative solutions at scale. This collaboration is crucial for overcoming the entrenched practices of the industry and moving towards a more sustainable and circular fashion system.

Scaling innovation, particularly in a complex industry like fashion, involves significant challenges:

  • Capital and Investment: Many promising innovations struggle to secure the necessary funding to move from development to implementation. Fashion for Good addresses this by connecting innovators with funding opportunities and providing strategic support to help them navigate the investment landscape.
  • Technological and Market Adoption: Innovations must not only be technologically sound but also market-ready. Fashion for Good’s programmes help innovators refine their technologies and business models to meet market demands and consumer expectations.

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