eBay UK and the British Fashion Council (BFC) have announced the six winners of the first Circular Fashion Innovator’s Fund, which will deliver £100,000 in grants.
Each of the six winning businesses, which all provide circular fashion solutions, will receive mentoring from “industry leaders” and a £15,000 grant to accelerate their growth. An overall winner, which is soon to be announced, will receive an additional £10,000 grant.
Environmental charity, Hubbub is supporting the fund in an advisory role.
Among the winning solutions is a shoe that grows with a growing child’s foot and can be cleanly disassembled into component parts for recycling (Pip and Henry).
Two other solutions were natural dyes made from food waste, helping reduce the reliance on synthetic dyes – which are responsible for 80% of the emissions caused by the fashion industry (SAGES) and a certified QR code system allowing consumers to interact with a garment, the brand and play a part in its circular journey (Circular Textiles Foundation).
Circularity is the future of fashion, and over recent years start-ups and small businesses have been at the forefront of solutions to make it a reality.
The six winning businesses are:
By Rotation, which describes itself as the “world’s first” social network that allows people to rent and lend quality items to each other. It already has over 500,000 downloads in the UK and is soon to expand to the US, the BFC says.
Circular Textiles Foundation, a business linking clothing design, takeback and recycling technologies using QR technology and certification systems. This includes a credible circularity mark for retailers, recognising clothing designed to be recycled into fibres.
The Seam, an on-demand tailoring service making clothing alterations and repairs accessible through tech.
SAGES is described as an innovator of natural dyes made from food waste, providing a commercial alternative to “harmful” synthetic dyes. SAGES focuses on circularity at all stages of the dyeing process to create a fully sustainable end-to-end product.
Pip and Henry, the designer of unique sustainable shoes for kids, made with recycled and bio-materials. It also provides recycling solutions and eco-educational content and stories for kids.
Circular Inc. Ltd provides circular design and sustainable manufacturing to accompany radio frequency identification (RFID)-assisted commercial repair and upcycling of clothing.
We hope that the mentoring and grant will help scale these promising businesses in size and reach.
The BFC says the winners will participate in a six-week mentoring program, featuring one-on-one sessions with business leaders from eBay and organisations including the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, as well as networking opportunities, followed by financial support.
The Fund aims to bring new technology and services to the market that can help people think and shop differently, with a particular focus on areas such as customer experience, circular inventory and services and social commerce.
Head of Pre-loved, eBay UK, Lucy Peacock, said: “Circularity is the future of fashion, and over recent years start-ups and small businesses have been at the forefront of solutions to make it a reality.
“The winners of the Circular Fashion Innovator’s Fund epitomise this, and we hope that the mentoring and grant will help scale these promising businesses in size and reach, and in turn make sustainable fashion practices more accessible to more people.”