Support report mapping sustainable fashion opportunities for SMES.
Date: 2019-08-07
Institutions: Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs
Subjects: clothing industry, competitiveness, financial aid, industrial manufacturing, industrial policy, report, small and medium-sized enterprises, sustainable development, textile industry, textile product

Support Report Mapping 
Sustainable Fashion 
Opportunities for SMES 

Written by Centre for Sustainable Fashion, 
London College of Fashion, University of the Arts London 
with Middlesex University, Politecnico di Milano and  
Institut Français de la Mode. 
May 2019 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

EUROPEAN COMMISSION 

Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs 
Directorate F  — Innovation and Advanced Manufacturing 
Unit GROWF.4 — Tourism, Emerging and Creative Industries 

Contact: Silvia Draghi 

Email:  Silvia Draghi@ec.europa.eu 

European Commission 
B-1049 Brussels 

2

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
EUROPEAN COMMISSION 

Support Report Mapping 
Sustainable Fashion 
Opportunities for SMES 

Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs  

2019 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

Europe Direct is a service to help you find answers  
to your questions about the European Union. 

Freephone number (*): 

00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 

(*) 

The information given is free, as are most calls (though some operators, phone 
boxes or hotels may charge you). 

LEGAL NOTICE 

This  document  has  been  prepared  for  the  European  Commission  however  it  reflects  the  views  only  of  the 
authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information 
contained therein. 

More information on the European Union is available on the Internet (http://www.europa.eu). 

Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union, 2019 

ISBN 978-92-79-99648-1 
Two: 10.2873/694021 

© European Union, 2019 
Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged. 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

CONTENTS 

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 

1.  INTRODUCTION  
1.1 Introduction   
1.2 Objectives 
1.3 Methodology   
1.4 Expert Team   

          1 

          4 
4 
5 
5 
7 

2.  OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES FOR SUSTAINABLE FASHION –  
     DESK RESEARCH  

2.1 Introduction   
2.2 Overview of the sector 
2.3 Key emerging trends and new business models 
2.4 Opportunities for fashion SMEs 
2.5 Challenges for fashion SMEs  
2.6 Incentives/Enablers for practice & business models  

3.  MAPPING THE OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES 

3.1 Introduction   
3.2 Database and visual mapping across EU countries 
3.3 Trends in sustainable fashion 
3.4 Opportunities for fashion SMEs – expert interviews  
3.5 Challenges for fashion SMEs - expert interviews    

4.  EXEMPLAR CASE STUDIES 

4.1 Selection criteria for case studies    
4.2 Overview of case studies       
4.3 Case Studies Summary 

         8 
         8 
         8  
         9 
        13 
        14 
        20 

                  26 
        26 
        26 
        33 
                  37 
        40 

        43 
        43 
        46 
        48

5.  DISCUSSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS   

        55     

5.1  Current provision to support sustainability and circularity in fashion and 
textiles with relevance to SMEs   
5.2  Findings from literature and scoping interviews 
5.3 Analysis and insights from case studies 
5.4 Conclusions and recommendations  

        55       
        57 
        59 
        62

6.  BIBLIOGRAPHY  

        67 

7.  APPENDICES 

7.1 List of expert interviews  
7.2 Full database of initiatives and key players  
7.3 Case studies   
7.4 Key recent research and enterprise projects 
7.5 Financial schemes and instruments at EU and member state level  

        74 
                  75 
        75 
                                       75 
        75 
        75 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
           
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
        
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
         
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
     
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY  

Overview  

As  identified  in  the  COP  2015  Paris  Agreement  there  is  an  urgent  imperative  for  global 
efforts  to  tackle  climate  change  and  environmental  damage  from  major  industrial 
activities. This report supports this process in the European textiles, fashion and footwear 
sector, a major industry providing employment for nearly 1.7million people across the EU 
in  approximately  176,000  businesses.  These  are  mainly  small  businesses  with  less  than 
50  employees,  representing  90%  of  the  overall  workforce.  Small  and  micro  businesses 
(with  less  than  10  employees)  are  recognized  as  key  players  in  change-making  for  the 
industry, due to their agility and overall control of their operations. Here we focus on the 
potential for SMEs to adopt more sustainable business models and embrace the  circular 
economy, and the key enabling factors. 

This report maps many current initiatives and key organisations operating in sustainable 
fashion and textiles across Europe and provides an overview of the opportunities for and 
challenges  hindering  the  adoption  of  environmentally  and  economically  sustainable 
business models in the fashion sector. It also identifies key enablers that will assist in the 
transformation towards a circular economy. With a special focus on designers, start-ups 
and  SMEs,  the  report  provides  12  case  studies  drawn  from  9  member  states  as 
exemplars  of  best  practice,  to  encourage  sustainability  throughout  all  stages  of  the 
fashion  value  chain  from  design  and  production,  to  services  and  end-of-life  solutions. 
These  include:  new  fibre  development  and  materials  recycling  (Orange  Fiber,  Ecoalf, 
re:newcell);  design and manufacture of fashion products and accessories using a range 
of  sustainable,  recycled  and  upcycled  materials  (Elvis  &  Kresse,  VEJA,  REDU,  Rifò,  MUD 
Jeans,  Stanley/Stella);  retail  customer  services  including  repair  and  take  back  (MUD 
Jeans,  Elvis  &  Kresse),  new  clothes  sharing  and  reselling  business  models  (The  Nu 
Wardrobe),  software  systems  for  on-demand  fashion  production  (Unmade),  plus  a 
consumer  and  industry  facing  campaign  for  positive  action  and  education  for  a  more 
transparent and sustainable fashion system (Fashion Revolution). Within each case study 
comparator  businesses  have  also  been  identified,  working  around  particular  business 
models,  sub-sectors  or  practices  that  may  use  a  different  assortment  of  sustainable  or 
circular activities.  

The research has compiled a cross-Europe database of over 400 entries segmented into 
three  main  categories 
in  relation  to  sustainable/circular  practices:  1)  Fashion 
Brands/Designers,  2)  Materials,  Technology  and  Recycling  Organisations,  3)  Supporting 
Organisations.    The  latter  category  3)  comprises  a  range  of  different  types  of  players, 
providing  a  wide  range  of  support  for  SMEs  –  these  cover  Fashion/textiles  Networks, 
Sustainable  Fashion  Networks,  Trade  Associations,  Business  Support  Organisations, 
NGOs/Campaigns,  Consultancies  and  Education  and/or  Research  Organisations.    This 
data is presented as a table in Annex 7.2 and geographical visualisations in section 3.2. 

Key  Findings:    challenges  and  opportunities  for  fashion  SMEs  to  engage  with 
sustainability and the circular economy. 

Findings have been triangulated across the three elements of the research process: 

literature review and desk research;  

(cid:129) 
(cid:129)  43  interviews  with  industry  and  academic  experts  across  28  EU  countries  with  a 
minimum  of  1  in  each  country  and  between  2  and  4  interviews  in  25%  of 
countries;  

(cid:129)  12  exemplar  case  studies  comprising  11  businesses  working  with  sustainable 
practices  and  circularity  across  the  textiles  and  fashion  value  chain,  and  1 
campaign organization.  

1

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

Emerging  trends  within  sustainable  fashion  activities  have  been  identified  as  follows:  

Changing consumer attitudes:  A shift towards a new values-led consumerism and away 
from  possessions  to  experiences  and  sharing,  rather  than  owning.  This  is  particularly 
evident  in  the  younger  generations  of  millennials  and  Gen  Z,  who  are  passionate  about 
social and environmental issues. 
Extending clothing lifetimes:  Longer active life is now considered the most effective way 
of  improving  the  sustainability  of  clothing  (WRAP,  2017)  when  also  accompanied  by  a 
reduction in purchase of new items. 
Clothes  Sharing:  The  new  ‘sharing  economy’  that  has  disrupted  other  sectors  (car  hire, 
accommodation)  is  emerging  strongly  in  fashion,  with  new  business  models  for  reuse, 
collective  use,  rental  and  prolonged  life  of  clothes  indicating  a  growth  in  the  market  for 
pre-owned clothing. 
Digital  technologies,  customisation  and  Fashion  on  Demand:  Digital  technology  is 
enabling  new  business  models  based  on  personalisation  and  customisation  of  clothing 
and  footwear  and  significantly,  demand-led  production.  It  also  enables  the  sharing 
economy to be extended to fashion via online platforms for rental and reselling.  
“FashionTech”  or  “Wearables”  -  integration  of  technology  and/or  electronic  components 
into  clothing  and  accessories  for  enhanced  functionality  or  monitoring  –  is  a  significant 
emerging trend, but one that urgently needs a design for sustainability approach. 

Advantages and opportunities recognized by fashion SMEs working with sustainability 
include:  1)  opportunity  to  achieve  sustainability  vision  and  impact  through  creative 
entrepreneurship; 2) freedom in decision making and ability to control strategic direction 
and develop relationships with suppliers; 3) flexibility to test ideas and experiment with 
materials and business models; 4) exploring design–driven innovation for environmental, 
social,  cultural  and  economic  sustainability;  5)  enabling  first  mover  advantage  through 
sustainability; 6) positive engagement with customers, suppliers and community.  

Key  challenges  for  fashion  SMEs  working  with  sustainability  include:1)  Competition 
from  high  volume/low  price  corporations,  particularly  on  costs  of  materials  and  labour, 
meeting minimum fabric quantities; 2) access to showcases and responsive markets; 3) 
consumer awareness to facilitate scaling up of ‘niche’ businesses; 4) lack of appropriate 
finance  and  grants,  including  repayable  finance  and  patient  capital;  5)  technical 
challenges  such  as  access  to  design  tools  and  sustainable  (eg  recycled)  materials;    6) 
establishing full supply-chain transparency. 

Exemplar cases studies – highlights 

Case  studies  selected  cover  different  stages  of  the  textiles  and  fashion  value  chain  and 
engage in a broad range of sustainability practices. The fashion cases range from startup 
and  micro  businesses  (RiFò,  REDU)  to  a  large  volume  leisurewear  manufacturer 
(Stanley/Stella);  the  challenges  at  each  scale  of  business  are  evident  from  struggling 
to  finance  the  enterprise  to  maintaining  oversight  and  quality  control  of  even  a  limited 
scale  supply  chain.  The  development  of  truly  circular  textile  systems  requires  the 
transformation  of  used  and  waste  textiles  into  new  textiles  and  products  of  equal  or 
higher value. Re:newcell achieves true textile to textile circularity by chemical recycling 
of cotton and viscose textile waste into new cellulosic fibre of the same quality as virgin 
fibre.  Their  focus  is  now  on  scaling  up  beyond  their  pilot  plant  to  impact  the  sector. 
Ecoalf recovers and upcycles ocean plastics and collaborates with recycling companies to 
develop  high  quality  polymer  textiles  for  new  outdoor  clothing.  However,  consumer 
perceptions  of  recycled  materials  can  still  be  somewhat  negative.  Several  case  studies 
demonstrate product ideas to overcome this: RiFò, MUD Jeans, REDU, Elvis & Kresse 
and VEJA reuse and upcycle textile or leather waste from the fashion industry into new 
fashion products. MUD Jeans use between 23% and 40% recycled post-consumer denim 
from  used  jeans  in  their  new  jeans,  and  RiFò  use  100%  post-consumer  recycled 
cashmere  (a  high  value  material)  for  their  new  cashmere  knitwear  and  100%  post-

2

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

consumer recycled denim made into yarn for their unique denim knitwear. REDU operate 
as  a  social  enterprise  to  engage  with  job  creation  and  community  issues  through 
upcycling waste textiles.  Three businesses, Elvis & Kresse, Ecoalf  and Orange Fiber 
repurpose waste from different industry sectors (fire hose and parachutes, plastic waste, 
citrus  juice  waste)  into textiles  and  fashion  to transform  a  useless  waste  product  into  a 
material  or  product  with  new  higher  value.  Exemplifying  the  growing  trend  for  sharing 
and  renting  to  extend  the  use-life  of  clothing,  The  Nu  Wardrobe  demonstrates  the 
model  of  a  peer-to-peer  collaborative  consumption  platform  aimed  at  students  and 
graduates, developed from clothes swapping events. This and other businesses, including 
Unmade, benefited from support from an incubator organisation at the start. Unmade is 
a  technology  service  company  that  has  developed  B2B  software  systems  enabling 
customised  small  batch  manufacturing,  achieving  a  form  of  mass  customisation,  where 
nothing is produced until ordered in advance by customers – a new paradigm of fashion 
on demand. The final case study features a campaign organization Fashion Revolution 
whose successful and simple message “who made my clothes?” has spread globally to 90 
countries to raise awareness of the realities of the mass market fashion industry, with a 
focus  on  garment  workers,  social  justice  and  transparency,  exemplifying  how  key 
translated  across  cultures  and  geographies. 
sustainability  messages  can  be 

Key  enablers  to  support  SMEs  to  adopt  sustainable/circular  business  models 

The findings from interviews and case studies indicate a range of key enablers including:  
economic instruments  

tax incentives, grants and subsidies for sustainable initiatives 
carbon taxes and penalties for non-sustainable operations 

(cid:129) 
(cid:129) 
(cid:129)  appropriate finance and grants, including repayable finance and patient capital 

information flows 

(cid:129) 
(cid:129) 

improving textiles collection and recycling statistics and reporting 
creating  knowledge  and  resource  sharing  platforms  and  networks  connecting 
sustainable businesses with suppliers, markets and funding opportunities 

(cid:129)  education for sustainability  
(cid:129)  public information campaigns 

regulatory instruments/policy 

creating clear end-of-waste criteria for textiles to facilitate upcycling of waste 

(cid:129) 
(cid:129)  mandatory EPR Schemes 
(cid:129)  harmonising regulations across EU and removing administrative barriers 

technological developments 

(cid:129)  access to design and manufacturing tools 
(cid:129) 

information on and access to emerging R&D  e.g into recycling      

collaboration and mentoring schemes 

(cid:129)  enhanced collaboration of small and larger players 
(cid:129)  alignment of values across the supply chain 
(cid:129)  dedicated mentoring for fashion start-ups 

Conclusions 

To close the loop in materials the implementation of infrastructure related to clothing 
and  textiles  end  of  life  needs  to  be  accelerated  and  distributed  at  all  industry  levels 
and  importantly  at  retail  for  the  consumer  to  easily  engage,  and  to  enable  clothing 
second/third  life.    Knowledge  and  resource  sharing  and  alignment  of  values  across  the 
supply  chain  are  needed  for  truly  circular  material  flows.  Definitions  of  textile  waste 
need  to  be  refined  to  enable  more  use  of  waste  textiles  by  SMEs  wishing  to  upcycle 
textiles. 

SMEs need to be supported in their business and sustainability endeavours, supporting 
infrastructure  is  inconsistent  across  EU  countries.  Mentoring  and  role  models  are 

3

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

needed  for  capacity  building,  plus  easy  access  to  information  and  tools  for  self-
evaluation. 
Circularity must be matched with reduced consumption and consumers educated. 

1. INTRODUCTION  

1.1 Introduction 

As  Europe  seeks  to  tackle  climate  change  and  environmental  damage  from  textiles, 
fashion  and  footwear,  there  are  a  number  of  innovative  approaches  that  illustrate  how 
the  future  of  fashion  can  be  more  sustainable  in  these  terms.  This  report  provides  an 
overview  of  current  activities  and  key  initiatives  and  players  in  sustainable  fashion  and 
textiles across Europe. Small and medium sized businesses (SMEs) make up the majority 
of businesses in the fashion sector and are recognized as key players in change-making. 
This  report  offers  an  overview  of  the  opportunities  for,  challenges  to  and  obstacles 
hindering the adoption of environmentally and economically sustainable business models 
by SMEs in the fashion sector.  

The  fashion  sector  comprises  clothing,  footwear  and  accessories  of  which  key 
components are textiles (natural and man-made) and leather. The textile sector refers to 
the  production  of  yarn  and  fabrics  while  the  clothing  industry  (also  known  as  the 
garment/apparel/fashion industry) refers to the production of garments, with the fashion 
industry  also  including  shoes,  bags,  jewellery  and  other  accessories  (European 
Commission,  2017).  In  addition,  the  fashion  industry  also  comprises  less  tangible 
elements including promotion, sales and servicing of fashion products. As required by the 
tender  document,  the  report  takes  as  its  key  focus  the  environmental  impact  of  the 
fashion industry’s supply chain. Although social justice issues are inevitably bound up in 
the fashion value chain, these important factors, well documented elsewhere, are beyond 
the subject of enquiry in the primary and secondary research.  

The scale of the opportunity is substantial due to the size of the fashion industry across 
Europe. Based on the latest available data from 2017, the EU textile and clothing sector 
is  estimated  to  directly  employ  nearly  1.7  million  people,  in  over  175,000  companies, 
with  a  turnover  of  EUR  181  billion  (Statista,  2017).  The  sector  is  largely  comprised  of 
small  businesses  with  less  than  50  employees.  These  represent  90%  of  the  overall 
workforce (Ibid). Despite shrinking overall employment levels in the sector, the European 
Skills Council estimated up to 600,000 jobs becoming available across the EU textile and 
fashion  sector  up  to  2025,  taking  into  account  those  leaving  the  industry  through 
retirement and other factors (European Skills Council, 2014)1.  

Our approach builds upon the expertise and knowledge of four academic partners across 
three  EU  countries,  together  with  results  of  prior  research  from  EU  initiatives.  The 
research is structured into three tasks:  

1.  Desk  Research:  review  of  literature,  initiatives,  relevant  players  and  funding 
opportunities to support the adoption of sustainable and circular business models. 

1 For an overview of employment trends in the sector since 2009 see also 
https://www.statista.com/statistics/417725/eu-european-union-textile-clothing-industry-
employment-by-segment/ 

4

 
 
 
 
                                                 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

2.  Mapping  the  Opportunities:  Triangulating  and  extending  the  desk  research  by 
interviewing  sustainability  experts  in  industry  and  academia  from  across  the  EU 
member states, generating further recommendations. 

3.  Developing 12 exemplar Case Studies relating to findings from 1 and 2.  

1.2 Objectives 

(cid:129)  To map the opportunities and obstacles for small companies (especially designers, 
start-ups  and  SMEs)  in  the  fashion  industry  to  invest  in  and  adopt  sustainable 
business models and practices throughout different stages of the value chain.  
(cid:129)  To  provide  12  exemplar  case  studies  of  best  practice  to  improve  sustainability 
throughout  different  stages  of  the  fashion  value  chain,  especially  as  regards 
SMEs.  

1.3 Methodology 

Our  approach  involved  four  main  stages  to  address  the  three  tasks  and  build  a 
knowledge base cumulatively and iteratively: 

(cid:129) 

(cid:129)  Firstly,  a  desk-based  literature  and  evidence  review  and  gap  analysis  identified 
the  opportunities  and  challenges/obstacles  for  EU  small  companies  -  with 
particular  emphasis  on  designers,  start-ups  and  SMEs  across  the  fashion  value 
chain - to adopt sustainable/circular solutions for reducing environmental impact. 
This review was based on existing academic literature, industry reports, and both 
current  and  previous  EU  research  and  enterprise  initiatives,  building  also  on  the 
team’s knowledge and experience. (Task 1, Section 2) 
In  the  second  stage,  based  on  the  desk  research,  the  team’s  knowledge  and 
networks,  and  referrals  from  contacts,  we  identified  and  invited  43  experts  in 
sustainability  and/or  fashion  within  both  industry  and  academia,  drawn  from 
across  the  28  EU  member  states,  to  participate  in  a  survey  of  expert  opinions. 
This  comprised  a  minimum  of  one  expert  per  country  and  between  2  and  4  in 
25%  of  the  member  states.    Semi-structured  qualitative  interviews  were 
undertaken either online or by telephone, recorded and summarised. Both stages 
of  the  research  informed  the  creation  of  a  comprehensive  database  of  current 
initiatives, key players, supporting organisations and funding schemes that either 
exemplify  or  support  SMEs  adopting  sustainable  and  circular  business  models. 
This  database  was  thematically  structured  to  represent  the  different  types  of 
organisations  within  the  ecosystem  and  has  been  visualised  in  a  geographical 
mapping  giving  a  snapshot  of  relative  levels  of  activity  according  to  the 
triangulated findings. (Task 2, Section 3) 

(cid:129)  The results from the expert survey and mapping flowed into stage three where we 
reviewed  our  preliminary  list  of  potential  exemplar  businesses.  Based  on  the 
breadth  and  range  of  their  actions  towards  sustainability  and  circularity,  and 
fashion  industry  segment,  we  selected  12  relevant  case  studies  from  9  member 
states  across  the  European  Union  to  study  in-depth.  The  cases  have  been 
compiled  from  new  interviews  conducted  with  key  representatives  of  each 
selected  organization,  together  with  a  range  of  published  sources.  These  case 
studies  cover  all  parts  of  the  circular  fashion  value  chain  –  design,  production, 
services, marketing, retail and end of use/life. (Task 3, Section 4) 

5

 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

(cid:129) 

In the final stage, the findings from the desk-based evidence review, gap analysis, 
our survey of expert opinions and exemplar case-studies have been integrated to 
inform  the  final  report  mapping  the  opportunities,  obstacles,  key  players  and 
initiatives and good practice for SMEs to  embrace sustainability and circularity in 
fashion. (Task 3, Section 5)  

The  research  was  conducted  over  a  limited  period  of  five  months,  and  sometimes 
constrained  by  pragmatic  considerations  such  as  interviewees  availability.  Therefore  the 
research  could  not  aim  to  be  exhaustive,  but  the  results  are  as  comprehensive  as  the 
timeframe  allowed,  giving  an  indicative  snapshot  of  the  EU  landscape  regarding  activity 
towards  sustainability  and  circularity  in  the  fashion  and  textile  sector.    Contextual 
elements  including  emerging  trends  and  shifts  in  consumer  behaviour  and  attitudes  to 
environmental  issues,  identified  through  the  desk  research  and  expert  interviews,  have 
also informed the report. 

The  scope  of  the  research  covered  all  the  EU  28  countries  in  order  to  obtain  a 
comprehensive  overview  of  sustainability-focused  initiatives  and  current  activity. 
However,  attention  has  been  especially  focused  on  the  10  countries  most  active  in  the 
textiles and fashion industry that represent 80% of the EU population, namely:  Austria, 
Belgium,  France,  Germany,  Italy,  Poland,  Portugal,  Romania,  Spain  and  UK 
together  with  4  additional  countries  active  in  developing  the  fashion  and  sustainability 
agenda:  Denmark,  Finland,  The  Netherlands  and  Sweden.      The  12  case  studies 
cover  9  countries,  with  reference  to  further  examples  included  in  most  cases,  for 
comparative purposes.  

Note:    We  have  for  convenience  in  discussion  utilised  the  UN  M49  subdivision  of  28  EU 
member states into 4 groups as follows: 

(cid:129)  Northern Europe: Denmark, Finland, Ireland, Sweden, UK 
(cid:129)  Central/Western Europe: Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Luxembourg, 

The Netherlands 

(cid:129)  Southern Europe: Cyprus, Greece, Italy, Malta, Portugal, Spain 
(cid:129)  Eastern Europe (Countries of the former Eastern Bloc): Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech 
Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia 

6

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

1.4 Expert Team 

The  team  comprised  people  with  deep  and  broad  expertise  in  fashion,  textiles  and 
sustainability,  entrepreneurship  and  SMEs  and  alternative  business  models  for  circular 
economy. The experienced Project Manager, Prof. Sandy Black, with a strong background 
in  leading  research  activities  in  the  area  of  fashion  sustainability,  was  supported  by  a 
core  team  with  experience  in  performing  consultancy  in  the  fashion  sustainability  field, 
across the fashion value chain and in collaboration with research and policy specialists. 

University of the Arts 
London

Prof. Sandy Black (PM)

Prof. Dilys Williams

Mila Burcikova

Dr. Alessandra Vecchi

Zoe Norton

Politecnico di 
Milano

Prof. Chiara Colombi
Erminia D'Itria

Institut Français de 

la Mode

Danièle Clutier-Léauté 

Nathalie Ruelle-Akl 

Middlesex University

Dr. Geraldine Brennan

Prof. Fergus Lyon

Acknowledgements  

Prof.  Sandy  Black  would  like  to  thank  all  the  team  members  mentioned  above  for  their 
contributions  to  this  research  and  report,  and  particularly  the  support  of  Geraldine 
Brennan,  Mila  Burcikova  and  Zoe  Norton.  Many  thanks  in  addition  to  the  research 
management  team  at  UAL,  led  by  Nicola  Dorigo  Salamon,  for  continued  support 
throughout the development and delivery of the project. Special thanks are due to all the 
interviewees  who  gave  freely  of  their  time  to  enrich  our  research,  either  as  country-
based experts from academia and industry, or senior representatives from the case study 
businesses whose experiences benefit the sector overall. Finally, thanks to the officers at 
European Commission DG GROW for the constructive collaboration. 

7

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

2. OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES FOR SUSTAINABLE FASHION –
DESK RESEARCH 

2.1 Introduction 

This section summarises the findings from the review of the academic and grey literature 
on  SMEs,  and  the  results  collated  from  recent  studies  funded  by  the  EU  and  others,  in 
particular  those  studies  most  involved  with  and  relevant  to  the  fashion  and  textiles 
sector,  such  as  MISTRA  Future  Fashion  in  Sweden,  Trash-2-Cash  and  including  current 
projects in progress for example TCBL (Textiles and Clothing Business Labs) and Worth. 
(please see Annex 7.4 for a detailed overview of funded initiatives, their main focus, aims 
and results). Many findings in the literature are triangulated by our expert interviews, as 
noted in some of the following sections. (see Section 3 and Annex 7.1) 

Our analysis of the literature comprises an overview of the sector, key emerging trends, 
the  challenges  and  obstacles  hindering  the  adoption  of  sustainable/circular  business 
models  and  practices  by  SMEs,  designers  and  start-ups,  and  opportunities  for  SMEs  to 
become  more  sustainable  and  circular  in  their  practices.  In  addition,  we  identify  a 
number  of  incentives  and  enablers  of  transition  to  sustainable  practices  in  fashion 
production and consumption, including policy drivers and recommendations. 

2.2 Overview of the sector 

With the huge environmental impact and scale of the existing fashion industry, there are 
considerable benefits in making the fashion industry more sustainable. In addition to the 
moral  imperative  to  tackle  this  environmental  pollution,  there  are  significant  costs  to 
economies and societies from the pollution caused. This provides a financial opportunity 
for creating a more sustainable and circular fashion system. The estimated overall benefit 
to the world economy until 2030 if environmental and social externalities were addressed 
by  the  fashion  sector  could  be  as  much  as  EUR  160  billion  every  year  (Global  Fashion 
Agenda &  Boston Consulting Group, 2017).  If  the current trend in speed and increasing 
volume of production and generation of waste in both production and end-of-use stages 
are  taken  as  a  starting  point,  the  industry’s  contribution  to  global  waste  will  more  than 
double before 2030 (Global Fashion Agenda & Boston Consulting Group, 2017: 12).  

Clothing  represents  over  60%  of  total  textile  use  (Ellen  MacArthur  Foundation,  2017: 
18), yet more than two thirds of approximately 57 million tons of waste generated by the 
fashion  industry  every  year  (17.5  kg  per  capita  equivalent)  is  directed  to  landfills  or 
incinerators (Global Fashion Agenda & Boston Consulting Group, 2017: 12). The industry 
employs  over  300  million  people  globally  and  is  worth  approximately  USD  1.3  trillion 
(Ellen MacArthur Foundation, 2017: 18). On the European level, the textile and clothing 
sector  is  estimated  to  directly  employ  nearly  1.7  million people,  with  a  turnover  of  EUR 
181  billion  in  2017  (Statista,  2017).  According  to  the  European  Commission,  nearly  5 
million  people  are  directly  employed  in  the  fashion  value  chain,  with  a  turnover  of  over 
EUR  577  billion  (European  Commission,  2016:  296).  More  than  1  million  people  are 
employed  by  the  high-end  industries  that  comprise  10%  of  all  EU  exports  (European 
Commission, n.d.). 

Scaling up alternative business models is often projected as a desirable scenario to help 
move  towards  a  more  sustainable  future.  The  United  Nations  Fashion  Industry  Charter 

8

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

for Climate Action (2018) stresses that existing business models and technologies will not 
be  adequate  to  deliver  the  necessary  climate  reductions  required  by  2030.  The  whole 
fashion  industry  “needs  to  embrace  a  deeper,  more  systemic  change  and  scale  low-
carbon  solutions”  (United  Nations,  2018:  2).  This  context  makes  systemic  interventions 
throughout the lifecycle of garments essential for the transition to a sustainable/circular 
fashion  industry  (Fletcher  &  Grose,  2012;  Fletcher  &  Tham,  2014;  MISTRA  Future 
Fashion, 2015, 2019). 

There is a need  for  reduced carbon emissions  and resource efficiency, but such positive 
change  will  be  completely  negated  if  consumption  of  fashion  continues  to  increase  as  it 
has  in  recent  decades.    (House  of  Commons,  2019).  Overconsumption  related  to  the 
norm  of  ‘fast  fashion’  can  be  tackled  through  the  development  of  sustainable/circular 
business  models  to  explicitly  address  slower  modes  of  fashion  production  and 
consumption  that  counteract  the  still  prevalent  practice  of  high  turnover  of  fashion 
products (Greenpeace, 2017:15). 

Greenpeace argue that fashion needs an entirely new narrative, one that allows for more 
responsible use of resources through improved quality and repairs that keep garments in 
use  for  second  and  third  lives  because  it  is  insufficient  to  implement  circular  business 
models  unless  they  also  contribute  to  slowing  down  the  throughput  of  clothing  through 
our  economy  (Ibid:15).  Moreover,  in  addition  to  urgent  value  chain  interventions,  a 
paradigm  shift  in  terms  of  how  consumers  shop  for,  use  and  care  for  garments  is  also 
crucial  (see  e.g.  Fletcher,  2012,  2016;  Laitala  &  Boks,  2012;  Niinimäki,  2013;  Rigby, 
2016).  These  perspectives  are  also  reflected  in  the  MISTRA  Future  Fashion  research 
programme  which  contends  that  in  order  to  transition  to  a  sustainable/circular  fashion 
system  the  strategy  for  future  fashion  requires  acceleration  in  terms  of  “exploring 
multiple  business  models,  involving  customers,  enabling  the  designer  and  inventing 
efficient recycling” (MISTRA Future Fashion, 2015:3). 

2.3 Key Emerging Trends and new business models. 

Some  of  the  key  emerging  trends  evident  in  the  literature  and  in  particular  in  recent 
industry  reports  include:  consumer  attitudes,  extending  clothing  lifetimes,  sharing,  and 
the  introduction  of  digital  technologies  enabling  customisation  and  ‘fashion  on  demand’. 
The  order  of  listing  below  reflects  the  sequence  of  mutual  interdependence  of 
developments as well as their significance as discussed in the literature. For example, a 
shift  in  consumer  attitudes  is  essential  for  extending  clothing  lifetimes  before  disposal. 
Similarly, commitment to extending clothing lifetimes is a prerequisite for sharing. While 
these  factors  are  here  discussed  separately,  they  are  always  interlinked  and  must  be 
considered in context.   

Consumer attitudes 

New,  value-based  consumerism,  with  a  shift  away  from  possessions  to  experiences  and 
sharing  rather  than  owning  was  propelled  by  a  reassessment  of  priorities  after  the 
financial  crises  (Euromonitor,  2016a;  see  also  e.g.  Pine  &  Gilmour,  2011  [1999]).  The 
State of Fashion 2019 report identifies significant opportunities for smaller business that 
can successfully tap into the raising consumer interest in smaller brands with values and 
strong  narratives  at  their  core  (Business  of  Fashion  &  McKinsey  2019:  74).  Scale,  the 
report argues, no longer guarantees consumer interest. Smaller brands can flexibly cater 
for  niche  markets  and  capitalize  on  current  trends  in  three  areas:  millennial  interests, 

9

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

digital  marketing,  and  appeal  to  retailers  in  terms  of  distinctive  approach  and  margins 
(Ibid). These opportunities may currently be more pronounced in Western Europe, where 
low  growth  is  predicted  for  the  fast  fashion  market  (Euromonitor,  2016b).  In  emerging 
markets  of  Eastern Europe, however,  such developments are not  yet notable (Ibid) and 
according to The State of Fashion “much of emerging Europe will continue to see strong 
spending growth with more global players entering these markets”. (Business of Fashion 
& McKinsey 2019: 12). Changing consumer attitudes are particularly evident in the young 
generation of millennials, passionate about social and environmental issues (Business of 
Fashion & McKinsey, 2019: 16). This offers significant future opportunities for concepts of 
‘servitisation’ that facilitates more efficient use of resources through fashion as a service 
rather  than  fashion  as  a  product,  and  ‘sufficiency’  with  active  focus  on  reducing 
consumption and production (SITRA & Circle Economy, 2015). 

Extending clothing lifetimes 

Among the key trends in sustainable fashion is extending clothing lifetimes. Longer active 
life  is  now  considered  the  most  effective  way  of  improving  the  sustainability  of  clothing 
(WRAP, 2017) when also accompanied by a reduction in purchase of new items. Research 
shows  that  if  the  active  life  of  50%  of  UK  clothing  is  extended  by  an  extra  9  months, 
potential savings of carbon (8%), water (10%) and waste (4%) could be made per tonne 
of  clothing  (WRAP,  2017:  47).  This,  however  is  not  enough  in  itself,  and  requires  that 
overall  clothing  consumption  is  actually  reduced  through  a  joint  effort  of  producers  and 
users, where ”people must actually keep and wear their clothes for longer and businesses 
therefore may need to consider their business models” (WRAP, 2017). Evidence from the 
Life-cycle  Assessment  (LCA)  of  5  commonly  used  garments,  conducted  during  the 
MISTRA  Future  Fashion  research  programme  (2011-2019)  showed  that  if  garments  are 
used 3 times longer a reduction of 65% in carbon footprint and 66% in water use can be 
achieved (MISTRA Future Fashion, 2015: 7). 

Sharing 

The emerging business models for reuse, collective use and prolonged life of clothes have 
also  been  documented  through  the  MISTRA  Future  Fashion  project  (2011-2019). 
According  to  the  latest  The  State  of  Fashion  report  the  shift  away  from  ownership  in 
fashion  is  among  the  most  significant  current  trends,  also  suggesting  that  “resale 
market,  for  instance,  could  be  bigger  than  fast  fashion  within  ten  years.”  (Business  of 
Fashion & McKinsey, 2019: 39). As the demand for pre-owned clothing is increasing, the 
growth of the so-called “sharing economy” that has disrupted previous paradigms in the 
car hire and hotel business sectors has also begun to emerge in the fashion sector. Both 
mature and  startup businesses are introducing re-selling and rental subscription models 
–  such  as  Vigga  Childrenswear  (DK),  Rent  the  Runway  and  Eileen  Fisher  Renew  (USA), 
Lena  Fashion  Library,  Spinning  Closet  and  The  Next  Closet  (NL),  Filippa  K  (SE)  and 
Vestiaire  Collective  (FR/international).  The  research  by  MISTRA  (2018  (3))  that  focused 
on eight alternative business models across four EU countries (Sweden, Germany, Poland 
and  USA)  pointed  to  a  lack  of  awareness  among  consumers;  cultural  differences  in 
adoption;  differences  related  to  geography  -  these  models  are  rarely  available  outside 
major cities; age and gender variations with younger consumers and females being more 
open  to  exploring  new  innovative  models  (MISTRA,  2018  (3)).  The  models  studied 
included  clothing  libraries,  fashion  rental,  fashion  leasing,  swapping  markets,  online 
reselling platforms, incentivized take back services, traditional repair services, and repair 
services in store. 

10

 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

Key trends in relation to the potential growth of market for pre-owned clothing also 
identified  by  MISTRA  (2019:37-40;  43-44),  which  is  based  predominantly  on  Swedish 
experiences, include: 

(cid:129)  While preowned clothing reduces negative impacts, the main driver for pre-owned 

clothing markets is profit. 

(cid:129)  The pre-owned clothing market is largest for womenswear and sought after high-
end brands. This suggests that replicating the retail models used for new clothing 
to resell second-hand clothes could be a viable growth model. 

(cid:129)  While  innovative  ways  of  exchange/sharing/re-selling  pre-owned  clothing  are 
emerging,  this  does  not  necessarily  correlate  with  growth  of  the  second-hand 
market. 

(cid:129)  Many  traditional  fashion  businesses  are  now  involved  in  collection  of  pre-owned 
clothing,  yet  only  very  few  are  actively  involved  in  encouraging  further  use  and 
distribution.  

(cid:129)  The  impact  of  cultural  context  cannot  be  underestimated  in  normalizing  and 
encouraging  second-hand  clothing  purchases  and  there  is  a  need  for  further 
research  to  understand  how  to  incentivise  changing  consumer  behaviour  in 
different EU countries. 

(cid:129)  Ultimately the demand for pre-owned clothing globally lags behind the continuous 
increase of supply and with the arrival of new players margins are decreasing. 
(cid:129)  The pre-owned clothing market does not currently disrupt the mainstream fashion 
industry  but  if  innovative  new  players  gain  traction  in  the  market  it  has  the 
potential to drive a transition to a sustainable fashion system. 

More  comparative  research  is  still  needed  in  other  EU  countries  and  across  the  EU,  as 
experience  and  receptiveness  to  pre-owned  clothing  can  vary,  see  section  3.3  for  some 
opinions gathered in our expert interviews. 

Digital technologies, Customisation and Fashion on Demand 

One  of  the  most  significant  emerging  trends  in  the  fashion  sector  is  the  integration  of 
digital technology and/or electronic components into clothing and accessories referred to 
as  “FashionTech”  or  “Wearables”.    FashionTech  can  be  defined  as  “where  a  garment’s 
physical  characteristics  converge  with  a  digital  experience”  (Accenture,  2018:3).  While 
digital  technologies  have  the  potential  to  reduce  negative  sustainability  impacts  in 
relation  to  consumption  and  use  of  clothing  (Ibid),  they  are  also  likely  to  result  in  new 
waste  streams  which,  similarly  to  other  composite  materials,  are  highly  challenging  to 
deal  with  at  the  end-of-life.  This  issue  needs  to  be  dealt  with  at  the  earliest  stages  of 
concept and design.  

The  recent  EU  funded  project  WEAR  Sustain  (2017-18)  was  set  up  to  begin  to  address 
some of these issues and supported 44 collaborative projects by design-led start-ups and 
technology  providers  with  sustainability  as  a  prime  element,  but  much  more  support  is 
required  in  order  for  design  for  sustainability  to  be  fully  integrated  in  product 
development.  (See  Annex  7.4).  London-based  fashion  tech  company  Cute  Circuit  have 
pioneered  developments  in  modular  design  for  wearables  where  the  electronic 
components can be disassembled and reused, for applications in both the entertainment 
sectors and to support users with disabilities (Black 2018). 

11

 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

With the rise of a range of digital technologies, the possibilities for new business models 
based  on  personalisation  and  customisation  of  clothing  and  footwear  (for  example  by 
Nike,  Farfetch  and  Converse)  have  also  greatly  increased.    This  new  business  model  on 
the one hand facilitates agile responsiveness to customer preferences and on the other it 
also  reduces  surplus  goods  by  manufacturing  only  those  items  that  have  been  pre-
ordered. Customers can order individual pieces and even create products for themselves. 
This concept revives and evolves the traditional practice of exclusive made-to-order and 
bespoke services in the luxury sector but aiming much closer to mass market prices. The 
goal  of  ‘mass  customization’  –  i.e.  customized  items  created  at  near  mass-produced 
market price points - has been sought since the early 1990s (Pine, 1993). This has now 
become  more  feasible  in  terms  of  digitisation  of  production,  logistics  and  supply,  based 
on a series of modular options, although it is still reliant on some standardization of basic 
design and materials. (Black et al., 2009; Black & Eckert, 2009; Boer et al., 2013; Kent, 
2017). 

Unmade  is  a  UK  based  technology  company  that  has  developed  B2B  and  B2C  software 
systems  for  manufacturing  that  enables  online  sales  of  unique  items  of  customised 
knitwear  from  a  range  of  styles;  the  company  has  recently  developed  technology  for 
manufacturing customised printed items. Unmade’s technology platform achieves a form 
of mass customisation, where nothing is produced until ordered in advance by customers 
and batch produced (see Case Study 8, section 4 and Annex 7.3).  

The  shortening  of  the  design  and  development  process  through  digital  3D  computer-
aided  fashion  design  systems  that  enable  virtual  prototyping  (such  as  CLO3D  and 
Marvelous  Designer)  also  hold  the  promise  of  less  wasteful  practices  in  elements  of  the 
fashion  industry  –  towards  an  era  when  zero  physical  prototypes  need  to  be  created, 
reducing unnecessary waste in the sampling system and potentially across the system as 
more accurate personalised fit is enabled. Research by UK business Change of Paradigm 
is  currently  underway  in  digital  processes  including  virtual  and  holographic  reality 
systems  that  can  support  a  fully  digital  design  and  visualisation  service  for  customers, 
including  realistic  movement  of  garments  on  avatars,  to  support  a  pre-order  business 
model.  In  the  Netherlands,  the  digital  fashion  house  The  Fabricant  exemplifies  such 
developments. 

In addition to all these, the advent of 3D printing as a more widely accessible technology 
has  enabled  unique  personalized  products  to  be  incorporated  into  specialised  high-
performance  footwear  soles,  and  also  developed  into  highly  effective  personalised 
applications  for  medical  devices.  Applications  specific  to  clothing  are  however  at  the 
research  and  development  stage,  mostly  based  on  articulated  “chain  link”  or  modular 
structures,  with  pioneering  work  undertaken  in  the  Netherlands  (e.g.  Freedom  of 
Creation, Iris van Herpen), Italy (Francis Bitonti) and the UK (Modeclix).   

However, further  research and more consumer studies are needed to  better understand 
the environmental benefits of these innovations for personalisation and customisation in 
terms of their contribution to longer active life of fashion products and reducing volumes 
of production as well as waste (Maldini et al., 2019). 

Digital technologies are also enabling the sharing economy to be extended to fashion via 
the development of clothes-sharing platforms for rental and reselling that are designed to 
be  accessed  on  mobile  devices.  Examples  include  The  Nu  Wardrobe  (see  Case  Study  6, 

12

 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

section 4 and Annex 7.3), Lena Fashion Library, Vestiaire Collective and emerging system 
start-ups ReGain, Reflaunt and My Yorkshire Wardrobe. 

The  advent  of  so-called  ‘industry  4.0’  encompassing  artificial  intelligence  (AI),  machine 
learning  and  robotics  has  yet  to  impact  substantially  on  the  fashion  manufacturing 
sector, still working largely with manual machine operators using craft skills. Research is 
however  underway  and  new  projects  are  in  development.    For  example,  the  UK 
government’s  Industrial  Strategy  has  funded  two  projects  in  2018,  the  Future  Fashion 
Factory  and  Business  of  Fashion  Textiles  and  Technology.  The  new  EU  funded  network 
DeFINE seeks to accelerate the development of FashionTech businesses (see Annex 7.4). 
According  to  Euratex  (Interview  2019)  digital  technologies  and  AI  have  the  potential  to 
positively  impact  the  automatic  sorting  of  waste  textiles  for  recycling  by  the  end  of  the 
next decade.  

2.4 Opportunities for fashion SMEs 

Creativity, entrepreneurship and job satisfaction are often the key driving forces behind 
starting  a  small  fashion  business.  Increasingly,  these  motivations  are  also  linked  to 
founders’ environmental and social values which can be critical in shaping the design and 
innovation  processes  towards  radically  different  and  more  sustainable  practices.  In  the 
current industry climate, where large players are much slower in embracing sustainable 
innovations,  agile  SMEs  with  strong  environmental  and  social  agendas  can  benefit  from 
competitive  advantage  in  niche  markets  that  are  much  harder  to  access  for  companies 
that  still  do  ‘business  as  usual’.  SMEs  supply  chains  are  often  shorter,  and  there  is 
usually  a  greater  degree  of  control  and  informed  decision  making  due  to  smaller  scale 
operations.    The  order  of  the  listing  below  reflects  the  mutual  interdependence  of 
opportunities for SMEs such as achieving their vison, creativity, job satisfaction, design-
driven  innovation  and  positive  social  and  environmental  impacts,  as  well  as  their 
significance as discussed in literature. 

Creativity and job satisfaction 

The  existing  literature  has  tended  to  focus  on  the  challenges,  rather  than  the 
opportunities,  involved  in  running  small  fashion  businesses  (McRobbie,  1998;  2016; 
McRobbie  et  al.,  2016;  Aakko  &  Niinimäki,  2018:  356).  That  said,  studies  note  that 
personal  wellbeing,  including  work  satisfaction,  living  by  one’s  own  values  (intrinsic 
values)  and  creative  trajectory  are  important  motivators  for  starting  a  fashion  business 
(McRobbie,  1998;  2016;  Cipolla  et  al.,  2017;  Thureau,  2017;  Aako  &  Niinimäki,  2018; 
Gu,  2014;  Interview  with  Aalto  University,  2019).  Some  of  the  key  opportunities  and 
advantages of running small fashion businesses identified include 1) freedom in decision 
making;  2)  ability  to  control  strategic  direction;  3)  flexibility  to  experiment  and  4) 
intrinsic  motivations  related  to  creativity  and  entrepreneurial learning (McRobbie,  1998; 
2016;  Aakko  and  Niinimäki,  2018:370;  Cipolla  et  al.,  2017;  Thureau,  2017).  These 
attributes are also reflected in our case studies (see Annex 7.3). 

Design-driven innovation 

Design  is  at  the  core  of  innovation  and  this is a  key  attribute  of  designer  start-ups  and 
fashion  micro-businesses.  Connor-Crabb  (2017:  249)  argues  that  designer-owners  of 
fashion  micro-enterprises  “have  the  opportunity  to  implement  design-led  initiatives 

13

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

promoting  extended  use,  through  events,  workshops  and  brand  messages”  -  both 
physical  and  online.    Similar  opportunities  are  offered  by  new  possibilities  for  digital 
consumer  engagement  and  e-commerce  solutions  that  are  important  enablers  for  new 
business  models  (MISTRA  Future  Fashion,  2015:  12).  Emerging  research  is  evaluating 
the  value  of  creative  endeavour  and  design-led  activity  in  fashion  SMEs  (Aakko  & 
Niinimaki  2018),  with  a  specific  focus  on  environmental,  social,  cultural  and  economic 
sustainability (FSP 2018-21). 

Agility and competitiveness in niche markets 

In  addition  to  positive  environmental  and  social  implications,  the  key  opportunities 
associated  with  sustainable  fashion  SMEs  relate  to  the  fact  that  the  adoption  of 
sustainable  practices  can  provide  SMEs  with  a  first  mover  advantage,  responding  to 
increasing  demand  for  responsibly  produced,  sustainable  clothing  choices  (House  of 
Commons, 2019:16; MISTRA Future Fashion, 2015:11). The ability to engage in positive 
social  interactions  with  customers  and  suppliers  and  to  contribute  to  community  is  also 
noted by fashion SMEs as one of the best elements of running your own fashion business 
(Aako  &  Niinimäki,  2018;  Connor-Crabb,  2017;  Interview  with  Moda  Lisboa,  2019; 
Interview  with  FASHIONCLASH,  2019).  Ethically  motivated  consumers  are  said  to  be 
increasingly willing to pay more for sustainably produced fashion, this particularly applies 
to  the  generations  of  millennials  and  GenZ  as  specific  target  markets  for  the  future 
(Business  of  Fashion  &  McKinsey,  2019;  Accenture  &  Fashion  for  Good,  2019).    New 
opportunities  are  also  created  by  advancing  certification  systems  that  shift  focus  from 
certifying  products  (e.g.  Organic,  Fairtrade)  to  holistic  measuring  of  business 
performance against strict social and environmental criteria. Examples include Blue Sign 
and B Corp™ and several of our case study companies - VEJA, Elvis & Kresse, Ecoalf and 
MUD  Jeans  –  hold  the  B-Corp  certification.  In  addition,  emerging    mobile  applications 
such  as  Good  on  You  or  CoGo  enable  businesses  to  target  consumers  that  share  their 
values.   

Moreover,  parts  of  the  textile  sector  in  Europe  are  already  uniquely  positioned  to  take 
advantage of the circular economy due to the fact that many of the technical capabilities 
already  exist  for  fabric  recycling,  fibre  regeneration  and  maximizing  resource  efficiency 
(Euratex,  2017:1).  Nevertheless,  capitalising  on  these  capabilities  will  require 
overcoming key barriers related to textile recovery infrastructure (collection and sorting), 
fibre-to-fibre  recycling  (much  of  which  is  at  R&D  stage  –  but  see  also  Case  Study  9 
re:newcell) and harmonizing regulations (see Section 2.5 and Table 1). 

2.5 Challenges for fashion SMEs (including gaps in support) 

As  discussed  in  the  literature,  and  corroborated  by  our  interviews,  fashion  SMEs  face 
considerable  challenges,  their  significance  reflected  in  the  order  of  the  listing  below.  
Competition  from  high/volume  low  price  corporations,  linked  to  consumer  perception  of 
‘good  value’  is  still  the  key  challenge  for  businesses  with  high  social  and  environmental 
commitments  because  these  tend  to  come  at  a  premium.  Consumer  awareness  is 
therefore critical and needs to be reflected in changed behaviour and shopping patterns. 
Further  challenges  for  SMEs,  such  as  lack  of  funding  to  enable  business  development, 
technical  challenges  related  to  rethinking  the  design  phase  in  terms  of  sustainable 
practice,  insufficient  infrastructure  for  reuse  and  recycling  and  issues  linked  to  micro-

14

 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

fibre release also need  to be addressed.   These challenges are of course often mutually 
interdependent.  

Competition from high volume/low price corporations 

Leading  designers  and  innovators  in  fashion  and  sustainability  are  still  challenged  by 
competitors  whose  primary  focus  is  on  reduced  costs  and  maximizing  profits  through 
volume,  with  little  consideration  for  environmental  and  social  consequences  (MISTRA 
Future Fashion,2017; Cipolla et al., 2017; House of Commons, 2019: 3). The challenges 
for incumbents (already established fashion businesses) and start-ups are likely to differ 
(Mamoq,  2018:19).  Incumbents  need  a  long-term  commitment  and  investment  with 
dedicated  budget,  headcount  and  time,  to  enable  the  implementation  of  sustainable 
fashion principles because addressing externalities will impact on margins.  

In  contrast,  new  entrants  (fashion  companies  new  to  the  market  that  usually  choose  to 
implement  sustainability  from  the  outset)  are  likely  to  encounter  high  barriers  to  entry 
and scalability related to price competitiveness and brand recognition when they seek to 
access  national  and  international  markets  (Ibid).  They  face  particular  challenges  in 
finding  their  own  voice  in  a  market  geared  towards  large  operations  (Cipolla  et  al., 
2017).  In  addition,  enhanced  collaboration  of  small  and  larger  players,  knowledge  and 
resource  sharing  and  alignment  of  values  across  the  supply  chain  are  needed  for  truly 
circular material flows (Fischer & Pascucci, 2017: 22). Both incumbents and new entrants 
are likely to find the need to establish supply-chain transparency a major challenge. 

Consumer awareness 

Scaling  up  novel  and  currently  niche  business  models  (e.g.  clothing  libraries,  clothing 
leasing, repair and other service models) requires consumer awareness (MISTRA Future 
Fashion,  2015:12).  An  ’attitude  behaviour  gap’  is  apparent  whereby  sustainability  is  on 
consumers’ radars, particularly amongst youth, but it has not yet translated into changes 
in  their  shopping  routines  and  buying  habits  (MISTRA  Future  Fashion,  2015:14; 
Todeschini  et  al.,  2017:767;  Boiten  et  al.,  n.d).  A  key  barrier  here  is  visibility  of 
sustainable  options  –  i.e.  consumers  have  the  misconception  that  sustainable  clothing 
options  are  not  widely  available  (Ibid).  There  are  also  issues  with  managing  excessive 
expectations of niche sustainability-oriented consumers (Todeschini et al, 2017: 767). 

Lack of finance and grants 

Lack of funding as a key challenge is unsurprising, given that it is not unusual for micro 
and start-up businesses to operate without any growth in income generation or profit for 
many years (Centre for Fashion Enterprise, 2008: 26).  This results in uneasy cash flow 
management especially when there is insufficient support from banks (Centre for Fashion 
Enterprise,  2008;  Thureau,  2017;  MISTRA  Future  Fashion,  2015:  12;  Accenture,  2018). 
A study of challenges related to starting sustainable/circular ventures (as identified in the 
European  proportion  of  the  2600  H&M  Foundation  2018  Global  Challenge  Award 
applicants) found that 42% state that funding is a challenge (Accenture, 2018:32). This 
may include both start up grants and repayable finance.  

With  regards  to  challenges  associated  with  accessing  repayable  finance  currently  key 
issues relate to: 1) Lack of suitable infrastructure and asset finance - providers are often 
unwilling to lend to the fashion sector; 2) Limited patient capital; 3) SMEs tending to be 

15

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

risk-averse, having limited access to capital and lacking skills to make the business case; 
4) Overstated risks associated with the circular economy and sustainability more broadly; 
and 5) Lack of clearly stated support and finance – SMEs finding it difficult to find sources 
of  support  and  finance  for  the  circular  economy  ”as  not  communicated  clearly” 
(Accenture,  2018:33).  In  addition,  alternative  business  models  aiming  at  environmental 
impact  reduction  like  product  service  systems  (PSS),  that  combine  a  product  offer  with 
services such as rental, require increased amounts of working capital. As the assets are 
leased  rather  than  sold,  assets  remain  on  the  SME’s  balance  sheet,  and  cash  flow 
accumulates  more  slowly  compared  to  sales-based  businesses  (Fischer  &  Pascucci, 
2017:25). 

It  is  important  to  note  that  from  our  case  studies,  alternative  means  of  funding  have 
successfully  supported  some  business  start-ups,  through  both  crowdfunding  online 
platforms or individual personal campaigns (see Elvis & Kresse case study 4, Annex 7.3) 

Technical challenges 

Key challenges identified by the Textile & Clothing Business Labs project (see Annex 7.4) 
for  emerging  small  fashion  enterprises  include  access  to  design  tools  (often  primarily 
aimed  at  big  brands)  and  affordability  of  fabrics  (attractive  pricing  is  only  available  for 
large  orders)  (Cipolla  et  al.,  2017).  Low  quality  and  durability  of  textiles  on  the  market 
hinders  adoption  and  scaling-up  business  models  for  extending  lifetime  of  clothing 
(MISTRA Future Fashion, 2017). Small production batches then affect SME access to new 
sustainable  and  innovative  materials  as  minimum  volumes  are  required  to  make  orders 
viable  for  producers  (Aako  &  Niinimäki,  2018),  who  are  often  SMEs  themselves 
(Interview with Texaid, 2019; Interview with Circle Economy, 2019).   

Infrastructure and regulation to support reuse and recycling 

Further  challenges  in  transition  to  circular  business  models  are  linked  to  recycling 
technology and infrastructure. Economically viable recycling options remain scarce for the 
low-grade textiles fraction and low-quality materials and blends dominate the end-of-life 
material flows (Boiten et al., n.d).  

Although  higher  quantities  of  clothing  are  now  collected  due  to  raised  consumer 
awareness (Interview with Texaid, 2019), still only half of used clothes enters the reuse 
and recycling collections (European Parliamentary Research Service, 2019). Out of these, 
only 1% is recycled into new clothes (Ibid), due to issues including material quality and 
availability of technology for textile to textile (as opposed to e.g. PET to textile) recycling 
(see  also  WRAP,  2019).  Recycling  of  blended  fibres  still  poses  considerable  technical 
challenges and solutions are mainly in R&D phase. Chemical recycling technologies such 
as those developed by re:newcell for cotton and viscose (pilot plant opened in 2017) and 
Worn  Again  for  polyester  and  cotton  blends  (currently  building  its  first  industrial  plant) 
are  among  the  pioneers  in  the  area.  In  addition  to  this,  manual  sorting  puts  high 
demands  on  human  resources.  Hand  sorting  is  used  by  both  Swiss  based  Texaid  (est. 
1978)  and  German  based  I:CO  (I:Collect),  launched  in  2009  by  parent  company  SOEX 
(est.  1977).  I:CO  for  example  sorts  every  collected  piece  of  clothing  according  to  350 
criteria (I:CO, 2019). Although experimentation with AI to assist with sorting processes is 
currently  under  way,  commercial  introduction  is  not  expected  before  2030  (Interview 
with Texaid, 2019).  

Further to the above, there is an intertwined infrastructure and regulatory challenge - as 
the  economic  viability  of  collection,  reuse  and  recycling  of  used  textiles  and  clothing 

16

 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

depends on both national and international conditions due to the fact that collections are 
organized  on  local/regional/national  levels  but  reuse  and  recycling  rely  on  global 
infrastructure  (MISTRA  Future  Fashion,  2018  (4)).  Increased  clarity  in  classification  of 
textile waste (i.e. when waste becomes waste or can be returned to another use) is also 
needed (Euratex, 2017; Interview with Euratex 2019). Moreover, a lack of harmonization 
of  requirements  and  regulations  across  the  EU  and  globally,  poses  challenges  for  both 
collectors and sorters of used textiles and clothing and causes administrative obstacles. 

Systematic alignment of rules would help all stakeholders involved in collection, sorting, 
reuse  and  recycling  (MISTRA  2018  (4)).  Interventions  through  schemes  such  as 
Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) (introduced in France in 2007), incentives for use 
of recycled materials and VAT reductions for second-hand goods would provide important 
enablers  for  the  market  (Interview  with  Texaid,  2019).  Addressing  these  issues  will  be 
required  to  increase  textile  recovery  rates  -  a  key  part  of  meeting  the  European 
Commission’s Circular Economy package targets to increase recycling of municipal waste 
to  60%  by  2025  and  65%  by  2030  -  and  successfully  roll-out  separate  collection  of 
textiles  across  EU  member  states  by  2025  (EC,  2019).    At  the  same  time,  it  is  also 
important  to  note  that  the  current  supply  of  used  clothing  considerably  exceeds  the 
demand  (MISTRA  Future  Fashion,  2018  (4))  and  even  the  most  advanced  recycling 
processes require high energy and chemicals use. Decreasing the volumes of production 
and  keeping  clothes  in  use  for  longer  are  still  the  most  viable  answers  to  reducing  the 
environmental impact of the industry.   

Micro-fibre release 

Micro-fibre  pollution  is  another  topical  issue  in  the  industry  and  needs  to  be  considered 
by  both  small-  and  large-scale  players.  According  to  the  Ellen  MacArthur  Foundation, 
around  half  a  million  tonnes  of  textile  microfibres  are  released  into  oceans  annually 
(2017: 3). Although more research and testing are still needed on the variables of micro-
fibre  release  (e.g.  in industrial  and  domestic  conditions),  the  wider  impacts  of  synthetic 
materials  such  as  polyester,  nylon  and  acrylic  should  be  now  considered  in  the  design 
process.  Recent  report  by  the  UK  House  of  Commons’  Environmental  Audit  Committee 
also highlights that the current state of knowledge “should not be used as an excuse for 
inaction by retailers” (House of Commons, 2019: 35) and urges retailers to test synthetic 
garments  and  publish  figures.  Euratex  points  to  the  lack  of  harmonisation  and 
coordination of test methodology (Interview with Euratex, 2019) and along with partners 
is currently working on harmonised test methods with results to be released in summer 
2019. Further current research is in progress for example through the UK-based industry 
association The Microfibre Consortium. Methodology for measuring fibre shedding during 
domestic washing was developed through the MISTRA Future Fashion project (Jönsson et 
al., 2018), while hands-on solutions such as Guppyfriend Washing Bag are offered by the 
awareness raising campaign Stop Micro Waste based in Germany.  

Table 1 on the following page illustrates some of the recent research literature regarding 
obstacles and challenges which hinder the wider adoption and scaling-up of business 
models for extending the active lifetime of clothing 

17

 
 
 
 
 
 
e
l
a
c
s
d
n
a
n
o
i
t
i
t
e
p
m
o
C

s
s
e
n
e
r
a
w
a

r
e
m
u
s
n
o
C

e
c
n
a
n
i
f

f
o
k
c
a
L

Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

Challenge/Obstacle 
Competition from high volume/low price 
corporations 

Finding own voice in a market geared to large 
scale operations 

Illustrative Literature  
MISTRA Future Fashion (2017); 
Cipolla et al. (2017); House of 
Commons (2019) 
Cipolla et al. 2017 

Affordability and availability of materials linked to 
minimum volumes for orders 

Aakko & Niinimäki (2018); Cipolla 
(2017) 

Aligning values across supply-chain/encouraging 
sharing knowledge, resources which is likely to 
require value chain coordination 

Attitude behavior gap – awareness not yet 
matched with action 

Visibility of sustainable options - lack of consumer 
awareness/knowledge of alternative models 

Todeschini et al., (2017); 
Fischer & Pascucci, (2017) 

MISTRA Future Fashion (2015); 
Todeschini et al. (2017); Boiten 
et al. (n.d.); Interview with 
Moda Lisboa, 2019 
Mistra  Future  Fashion  (2017, 
2018); Todeschini et al. (2017); 
Boiten et al. (n.d.) 

Managing high expectations of niche consumers 

Todeschini et al (2017) 

High start-up costs 

MISTRA Future Fashion (2017) 

Lack of growth and income generation, uneasy 
cash flow management 

Centre  for  Fashion  Enterprise 
(2008) 

Lack of funding/sufficient support from banks 

Risk aversion, lack of business knowledge and 
awareness of available funding options 

Increased working capital needed for product 
service systems 

Centre  for  Fashion  Enterprise 
(2008); 
(2017); 
Thureau 
MISTRA  Future  Fashion  (2015); 
Accenture (2018) 

Accenture 
Interview 
(2018); 
with  Slovak  Fashion  Council 
(2019);  Interview  with  M-ODE 
(2019) 

Fischer  &  Pascucci 
(2017); 
Accenture  &  Fashion  for  Good 
Circle 
(2019); 
Economy (2015) 

SITRA 

& 

  Technical challenges related to rethinking the 
s
e
g
n
e
l
l
a
h
c

design phase of products and access to design 
tools 
Low quality/durability of textiles on market 

l
a
c
i
n
h
c
e
T

Cipolla 
et. 
Todeschini et al. (2017) 

al. 

(2017); 

MISTRA Future Fashion (2017) 

18

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

Challenge/Obstacle 
Commercially viable recycling options for low-
grade textiles 

Illustrative Literature  
Boiten  et  al.  (n.d.);  Euratex 
(2017);  Interview  with  Texaid 
(2019) 

Scaling up and commercialisation of new 
recycling technologies such as fibre to fibre 
processing 

WRAP  (2019);  Interview  with 
Texaid  (2019);  Ecopreneur.eu 
(2019) 

High demands on human resources in sorting 

MISTRA  Future  Fashion  (2017, 
2018),  Interview  with  Texaid 
(2019) 

Collection infrastructure for reuse and recycling – 
local, national, regional and global 

MISTRA  Future  Fashion  (2018 
(4)); Euratex (2017) 

Lack of harmonization of requirements and 
regulation related to textile waste management 
and reuse across the EU and globally 

MISTRA  Future  Fashion  (2018 
(4)),  Euratex  (2017),  Rreuse 
(2017),  Interview  with  Euratex 
(2019) 

Lack of clarity in classification of textile waste – 
end of waste criteria 

Euratex  (2017),  Interview  with 
Euratex (2019) 

Insufficient incentivising through policy tools 

MISTRA  Future  Fashion  (2017 
of  Commons 
(7)),  House 
(2019); 
(2017), 
Rreuse 
Interview  with  Texaid  (2019)  ); 
Ecopreneur.eu  (2019);  Euratex, 
FESI, GFA, IAC & SAC (2019) 

Current status of knowledge on variables linked 
to microfibre shedding (e.g. industrial and 
domestic conditions) – more research needed 

MISTRA  Future  Fashion  (2018); 
House  of  Commons  (2019); 
Ecopreneur.eu (2019) 

Lack of harmonization and coordination of test 
methodology 

Euratex  (2017);  Interview  with 
Euratex (2019) 

r
o
f
n
o
i
t
a
l
u
g
e
r
d
n
a

e
r
u
t
c
u
r
t
s
a
r
f
n
I

g
n

i
l
c
y
c
e
r
d
n
a

e
s
u
e
r

e
r
b
i
f
o
r
c
i
M

e
s
a
e
l
e
r

Illustrative 
Table  1: 
sustainable/circular business models 

literature  on  challenges 

for 

fashion  SMEs 

in  adopting 

19

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

2.6 Incentives/Enablers for Practice & Business Models    

Key  enablers  for  the  adoption  of  more  sustainable  practices  and  business  models 
identified  in  the  literature  review  relate  to:  internal  strategies  by  businesses  (GFA 
and  Boston  Consulting  Group,  2018,  2019);  access  to  finance;  knowledge  and 
networks (Accenture, 2018; Ecopreneur, 2019); government facilitated support and 
collaborations  between  system  actors  (House  of  Commons,  2019;  Ecopreneur,  2019); 
public  policy  concerning  the  infrastructure  and  regulations  of  reuse  (Euratex, 
2017;  Ecopreneur,  2019),  and  acceptance  of  alternative  fashion  models  by 
consumers  (MISTRA  Future  Fashion,  2018)  facilitated  by  raising  public  awareness 
through media channels.  

The order of listing reflects the fact that although the transition starts at company’s own 
commitment  to  sustainability,  it  then  needs  to  be  further  supported  through  access  to 
funding and networks, government support and policy measures and the contribution of 
the  media  to  attitude  shift  in  consumption  patterns  and  shopping  habits.  At  the  same 
time,  all  these  factors  are  mutually  interdependent  and  should  not  be  considered  in 
isolation.   

Internal company strategy 

for  more 

sustainable  practices: 

The  recent  PULSE  reports  (GFA  and  Boston  Consulting  Group,  2018  and  2019)  identify 
resources,  strategy, 
four  main  enablers 
communications and traceability. According to PULSE, the transition to sustainability 
is  divided  into  three  phases:  building  the  foundation,  implementing  core  actions,  and 
expanding to scale. Phase one of the “roadmap” PULSE identifies, starts at the point after 
a  company  has  decided  to  move  beyond  uncoordinated  action  and  makes  a  clear 
commitment to sustainability. This is to be followed by setting a clear strategy and goals, 
identifying  a  dedicated  team  and  resources,  making  frequent  communications  around 
improving  environmental  and  social  performance,  both  internally  and  externally  and 
ensuring traceability along the supply chain. These recommendations are however mainly 
applicable  to  “incumbents”  (Mamoq,  2018:  19),  larger  players  who  are  switching  from 
traditional  operations  to  more  sustainable  practices  and  face  challenges  proportional  to 
their scale. 

However,  many  smaller  companies  begin  with  sustainability  agenda  at  the  core  of  their 
business  model  (Aako  and  Niinimäki,  2018).  For  these  businesses,  intrinsic  values  of 
their  founders-owners  such  as  creative  freedom  and  progressive  environmental  and 
social  justice  beliefs  are  often  the  main  drivers  and  enablers  (Ibid).  It  is  this  strong 
personal  drive  that  often  gives  start-ups  and  SMEs  the  agility,  flexibility  and 
responsiveness  to  the  market  that  enables  them  to  define  and  occupy  their  own  niche 
before their less flexible, larger competitors (Business of Fashion & McKinsey&Co, 2019). 
Another  strategic  enabler  for  alternative  business  approaches  is  matching  the  business 
model  to  the  product  offered  (Accenture  &  Fashion  for  Good,  2019).  Recognizing  that 
“different  product  types  are  best  suited  to  particular  business  models”  can  be  key  to 
success  of  circular  fashion  scenarios  such  as  rental,  subscription  rental  or  recommerce 
(Ibid, p. 38).  

Voluntary  industry  agreements  on  commitments  and  standards  towards  social  and 
environmental  responsibility  (such  as  e.g.  Fashion  Industry  Charter  on  Climate  Action 
with an ambition to achieve net zero emission by 2050 (United Nations, 2018)), provided 

20

 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

these  are  ambitious  and  universally  binding,  can  also  be  an  important  contributor  to 
creating a business environment in which companies of all sizes are rewarded rather than 
penalised for their environmental and social values (Ecopreneur, 2019).  

Finance 

Where there is a finance gap, the provision of grants or subsidized loans/patient capital 
can  help  businesses  develop  their  transformative  business  models.  As  the  finance  gap 
may  also  be  due  to  a  lack  of  ‘investment  readiness’  by  SMEs,  public  sector  support  is 
essential  for  capacity  building  enabling  sustainable  fashion  businesses  to  flourish.  This 
support  can  come  from  public  sector  funds,  financed  by  the  EU  or  by  national 
governments  

Some  of  the  examples  already  in  operation  include  the  Horizon  2020  Program  (funded 
e.g. the recently completed Trash2Cash project), the LIFE Program (covering e.g. ECAP – 
the  European  Clothing  Action  Plan),  the  SME  support  in  innovation  and  environmental 
issues  through  EASME  (Executive  Agency  for  Small  and  Medium  Enterprises)  and  the 
Cohesion Fund that targets mainly countries of the previous Eastern Bloc (See Appendix 
7.5 for an overview of available funding opportunities).  

The funds can also come from philanthropic sources or social investors. However, a lack 
of long-term evidence  on the profitability of alternative/circular business models as well 
as “the complexity and operational risk” (Accenture & Fashion for Good, 2019, p. 3) often 
makes  this  type  of  investor  reluctant  to  enter  this  emerging  area.  The  recent  report  by 
Ecopreneur  (2019)  therefore  proposes  publicly funded  training  programs  for  the  finance 
sector  to  improve  the  understanding  of  both  the  opportunities  and  the  risks  involved  in 
this  kind  of  investment  (p.  31).  The  finance  sector  needs  to  embrace  the  benefits  of 
“valuing natural capital” in a similar way to how this has been recognized in considering 
the  CO2  footprint  of  investments  (Ibid).  The  case  studies  developed  for  this  report 
corroborate  these  points,  particularly  the  need  to  educate  investors  for  the  new 
opportunities (see section 4 and Annex 7.4)  

Euratex (2017) also calls for public and private funding of textile waste management to 
lower  the  cost  of  textile  waste  management  for  SMEs,  who  comprise  the  majority  of 
textile manufacturers. This would de-incentivise landfill and incineration of textile waste. 
Funding is also needed for scaling up the existing R&D and innovation projects, especially 
in advancing the technologies for sorting and recycling used clothes to fibres comparable 
to virgin fibres (Euratex, 2017; Ecopreneur, 2019, EPRS).   

Economic  incentives  including  circular  procurement,  Extended  Producer  Responsibility 
(EPR), tax shift from labour to resource use and environmental impact, and low VAT for 
circular  products,  if  implemented  in  a  timely  and  coordinated  way  across  the  EU,  could 
also be key enablers for circular business models (Ecopreneur, 2019). 

Knowledge and Networks 

Aside  from  capital,  knowledge  and  networks  are  also  identified  as  critical  enablers  of 
sustainable practices and circular economy (Accenture & Global Challenge Awards, 2018, 
p. 31). Networking often enables swift access to resources that would otherwise be hard 
and time consuming to identify through the efforts of individual SMEs – such as suitable 
collaborators,  material  suppliers,  reliable  production  opportunities,  skilled  workers, 

21

 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

tailored  distribution  options,  investors  and  further  funding  opportunities.  The  lack  of 
knowledge  amongst  businesses  and  limited  opportunity  can  therefore  be  addressed 
though  supporting  networking  opportunities.  These  can  include  informal  networking  to 
build  up  relationships.  It  can  also  involve  more  formalized  networks  and  support 
programs.  

One  mechanism  that  has  proved  successful  in  creating  access  to  knowledge  and 
networks are award schemes like the Global Change Awards, founded in 2015 by H&M 
Foundation in collaboration with Accenture and the KTH Royal Institute of Technology in 
Stockholm.  Other  initiatives  include  Fashion  for  Good,  established  in  2016  in  the 
Netherlands with the support of the C&A Foundation. Fashion for Good is a platform and 
accelerator supporting technology-focused innovation for sustainability in SMEs. 

Greenpeace  (2017)  argue  that  policy  makers  should  create  an  environment  that 
encourages  fashion  SMEs  to  set  up  in  city  centres  through  lowering  business  rates  and 
developing  knowledge  sharing  platforms  that  enable  collaboration  between  all  sizes  and 
types  of  organisations  (p.  48).  Similarly,  Ecopreneur  (2019)  proposes  Circular  fashion 
hubs in each member stat to enable access to “regional networks, knowledge, capacities 
and learning processes focusing on circularity and innovation” (p. 31). These should also 
help SMEs access information on funding opportunities across the EU (Ibid). An example 
of such an initiative that functions as a social enterprise is the Rediscover Fashion hub in 
the  Rediscovery  Centre  Dublin,  Ireland,  part  of  their  National  Centre  for  the  Circular 
Economy  that  provide  resources,  skills  and  training  to  upcycle  clothing  and  also  works 
with other sectors such as furniture. The scheme is planned to expand to support SMEs 
and mentor start-ups. 

Government facilitated support and policy 

Public sector funded business advice and mentoring can be a key enabler, if provided in 
each country with funding from the EU and national governments. Public support can also 
be  focused  on  infrastructure  for  waste  management  and  reuse  (Euratex,  2017;  GFA, 
2017). Rreuse, a network of re-use, repair and recycling social enterprises, have mapped 
existing VAT reduction incentives in EU countries to demonstrate scenarios that could be 
replicated  on  EU  level  (2017).  Ecopreneur  (2019)  identifies  five  pillars  for  policy 
instruments  that  could  advance  the  transition  to  circular  fashion  across  the  EU: 
innovation  policies,  economic  incentives  (including  circular  procurement,  EPR,  tax  shifts 
and VAT reductions), regulation, trade policies and voluntary actions (p. 27). 

The potential benefits of policy instruments were also recognized in the recommendations 
of  the  UK  Environmental  Audit  Committee  (House  of  Commons,  2019).  In  its  recent 
report Fixing Fashion: clothing consumption and sustainability, the Committee called for 
example for an introduction of a charge of one penny per every garment produced, to be 
re-invested  in  improving  clothing  collection  and  sorting  facilities.  A  UK  government 
facilitated  collaboration  in  an  initiative  to  resolve  issues  related  to  microfibre  pollution, 
bringing  together  fashion  retailers,  water  companies,  washing  machine  manufacturers 
and textile manufacturers was also proposed (House of Commons, 2019:35).  

However,  potential  benefits  of  similar  interventions  ultimately  rely  on  the  recognition  of 
their  urgency  by  policy  makers.  Political  will  for  an  active  commitment  to  swift 
implementation  on  both  national  and  EU  levels  is  needed.  UK  government’s  example  of 
rejecting  all  18  recommendations  made  by  its  Environmental  Audit  Committee 

22

 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

(Parliament  UK,  2019),  postponing  consideration  of  some  of  these  until  2025,  shows 
significant  lack  of  such  commitment.  ’Business  as  usual‘  is  thus  given  priority  over 
innovative  and  environmentally  conscious  business  models.  The  implementation  of  the 
EU  Waste  Directive  has  been  affected  by  similar  delays.  Separate  collection  of  textiles 
mandatory  in  all  member  states  will  now  come  into  effect  in  2025,  instead  of  the 
originally proposed 2020 (European Parliamentary Research Service, 2019). 

Media and changing consumption patterns 

The media play a key role in enabling change of consumer behaviour. Although this has 
not  been  addressed  in much  of  the  literature  (with  the  exception  of  Ecopreneur,  2019), 
both our expert interviews and specifically the case study on Fashion Revolution highlight 
the  significance  of  raising  awareness  and  educating  public  discourse  on  social  and 
environmental  issues  linked  to  production  and  consumption  of  fashion.  Fundamental  to 
the  ultimate  success  of  alternative  business  models,  is  “the  acceptance  and  use  by 
consumers”  (MISTRA  Future  Fashion,  2018:  8).  Through  a  survey  of  over  4000 
consumers  across  Germany,  Poland,  Sweden  and  the  United  States,  MISTRA  Future 
Fashion (2018 (3)) studied the acceptance of eight alternative fashion business models in 
rental,  sharing  and  recommerce  areas.Apart  from  personal  values  and  profiles, 
geographical  differences  and  consumer  groups  contribute  to  variations  in  acceptance 
(e.g. females and younger generations are more open to new scenarios). The results also 
showed  a  strong  link  to  personal/human  values  of  consumers,  clustered  around  two 
axes:  1.  Individuals’  openness  to  change  as  opposed  to  more  conservative  personal 
characteristics;  2.  Individuals’  tendency  to  self-transcendence  (i.e.  to  consider  issues 
beyond  selfish  concerns)  as  opposed  to  self-enhancement  motivations  (i.e.  pursuit  of 
self-interest).  Importantly,  the  report  highlights  that  although  often  framed  in  the 
context of sustainable fashion futures, the actual environmental benefits of these models 
are still unclear and will require further  evaluation (Ibid). (For emerging re-use models, 
see Case study 6 on NuWardrobe, Ireland, Annex 7.4). 

According  to  the  recent  Circular  Fashion  Advocacy  report  (Ecopreneur,  2019),  the 
European  Environmental  Bureau  has  a  critical  potential  in  driving  the  discourse  on 
circular  practices  across  the  parliament  and  the  media,  with  significant  help  from  NGOs 
such  as  Fashion  Revolution  and  Clean  Clothes  Campaign  (p.  55).  In  addition, 
organizations such as Zero Waste Europe, the Break Free From Plastic movement and the 
Ellen  MacArthur  Foundation  are  leaders  especially  in  foregrounding  the  issues  of  textile 
waste in the media (Ibid). 

An  overview  of  current  and  potential  policy  tools  identified  in  the  literature  thus  far  is 
presented below in Table 2.   

23

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

Policy Tools 
Tax reductions e.g. reduced VAT for reuse, 
sharing, second-hand, repair, leasing. 

Support for second-hand in central shopping 
malls. 

Encourage fashion SMEs to set up in city 
centres as well as online through lowering 
business rates; financial incentives and 
targeted investment. 

Literature Source 
MISTRA Future Fashion (2017 (7)); 
House of Commons (2019); Rreuse 
(2017); Global Fashion Agenda (2017); 
Greenpeace (2017); Ecopreneur.eu 
(2019) 
MISTRA Future Fashion (2017 (7)) 

Greenpeace (2017) 

Start-up transition funding and government-
supported knowledge hubs. 

MISTRA Future Fashion (2017 (7)); 
Ecopreneur.eu (2019) 

Wage subsidies targeted at alternative 
models. 

Support R&D in fibre-to-fibre recycling and 
transition to automation in sorting, to 
increase attractiveness of recycled fibres in 
the market and to improve profits from 
collection of lower grade used textiles 

Improvement of statistics on collected, 
reused and recycled textiles to enable 
monitoring of quantity and quality of 
collections across the EU 

MISTRA Future Fashion (2017 (7)) 

MISTRA Future Fashion (2018, (4)); 
Euratex (2017); Ecopreneur.eu (2019); 
WRAP (2019) 

MISTRA Future Fashion (2018, (4)):39 

Developing knowledge sharing platforms 
which enable collaboration between all sizes 
and types of organisations. 

Greenpeace (2017); Ecopreneur.eu 
(2019); Accenture & Global Challenge 
Awards (2018) 

Training programmes for the finance sector 
on specifics of sustainable/circular 
businesses 

Innovation programmes to facilitate 
technological precompetitive technological 
collaboration and implementation 

Ecopreneur.eu (2019) 

Ecopreneur.eu (2019) 

s
t
n
e
m
u
r
t
s
n
I

c
i
m
o
n
o
c
E

s
w
o

l
f
n
o
i
t
a
m
r
o
f
n
I

24

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

Policy Tools 

Literature Source 

Clear end-of-waste criteria for textiles 
Introduction of minimum standards for 
transparent practice as well as environmental 
and social responsibility for collectors and 
sorters 
Mandatory Extended Producer Responsibility  MISTRA Future Fashion (2018, (4)):39; 

Euratex (2017); Ecopreneur.eu (2019) 
MISTRA Future Fashion (2018, (4)):39; 
Ecopreneur.eu (2019) 

s
n
o

i
t
a
l
u
g
e
R

Voluntary Extended Producer Responsibility 
(EPR) in conjunction with Green Public 
Procurement 
Green Public Procurement/Circular 
Procurement 

Voluntary adoption of Product Environmental 
Footprints (PEF) 
Voluntary trade policies 

Harmonising regulations and removing 
obstacles in administration 

Greenpeace (2017); Ecopreneur.eu 
(2019); House of Commons (2019); 
European Parliamentary Research 
Service (2019) 
Euratex (2017); Global Fashion Agenda 
(2017); 

Euratex, (2017); Global Fashion 
Agenda (2017); Ecopreneur.eu (2019); 
European Parliamentary Research 
Service (2019) 
Euratex (2017) 

Euratex, (2017); Euratex, FESI, GFA, 
IAC & SAC (2019); Ecopreneur.eu, 
2019 
MISTRA Future Fashion (2018, (4)); 
Ecopreneur.eu (2019) 

Table 2: Key current and potential policy tools identified in the literature  

25

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

3. MAPPING THE OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES -  EXPERT 
INTERVIEWS 

3.1 Introduction 

This  section  compiles  the  results  from  our  desk  research  and  43  expert  interviews 
conducted  across  28  EU  member  states  –  a  minimum  of  1  per  member  state  and 
between 2 and 4 in Belgium, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, The Netherlands, Sweden 
and the UK, plus 2 textile organisations operating across the EU (see listing Annex 7.1). 
Experts  were  drawn  mainly  from  industry  and  academia,  plus  NGOs.  Given  the  limited 
timeframe  the  identification  of  experts  was  dependent  on  the  team's  existing  networks 
and recommendations of contacts. Therefore the research and mapping could not aim to 
be exhaustive, but indicative. 

We provide below an overview of the findings, mapping the current key initiatives, types 
of  players  and  good  practice  across  the  EU  member  states  which  have  the  potential  to 
exemplify, facilitate and incentivise small fashion and textiles companies to become more 
sustainable  and  circular.  Information  is  presented  in  both  tabular  and  visual  formats  to 
aid  understanding  of  the  relative  distribution  across  EU  member  states,  based  on  the 
data  gathered,  which  is  limited  to  the  knowledge  of  the  particular  interviewees,  but 
triangulated where possible with desk research and the knowledge of the research team.  

An  overview  of  key  EU  (and  member  state)  funding  schemes,  and  public  and  private 
schemes supporting sustainable fashion production and consumption is given in section 5 
and available in detail at Annex 7.5.  

3.2 Database and visual mapping across EU countries 

A  database  comprising  over  400  entries  maps  the  relevant  industry  players,  public 
initiatives,  research  projects,  and  networks  fostering  good  practices  across  the  EU, 
categorized  by  both  country  and  type  of  initiative/player,  as  outlined  below.  Table  3 
below  gives  examples  within  the  categorisation  and  the  full  database  is  available  at 
Annex  7.2,  demonstrating  a  wide  range  of  areas  of  activity,  across  all  28  EU  Member 
States. 

These  initiatives  and  players  were  selected  based  on  their  key  sustainable/circular 
practices  and  track  record,  meeting  a  number  of  specific  criteria,  including  alternative 
business  model,  selection  or  development  of  sustainable  materials,  product  or  process 
innovations,  client/consumer  engagement  and  services,  traceability  in  the  supply  chain, 
social  benefits,  resource  and  waste  management.  Recommendations  for  exemplar 
brands,  and  support  organisations  were  also  specifically  sought  from  our  expert 
interviewees.  The  database  entries  have  been  categorized  according  to  their  primary 
functions  under  the  headings;  Brands/Designers,  Materials/Fibres,  Re-use/Sharing, 
Recycling,  Technology,  Networks  (fashion/textiles  or  sustainable  fashion),  Trade 
Associations, Business  Support, NGOs/Campaigns, Consultancy and Education which are 
further  mapped  onto  the  stages  of  the  value  chain:  Production,  Marketing,  Services, 
Retail and End of Use/Life.  

26

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

Although the tender  specified only the first four stages (Production,  Marketing, Services 
and  Retail),  we  have  added  the  category  End  of  Use/Life  in  order  to  reflect  one  of  the 
major differentiators between linear and circular systems, especially where material flows 
are concerned. Reusing and re-purposing of clothing and textiles to extend the useful life 
of  material  resources,  as  many  times  as  feasible  before  recycling,  is  an  essential 
requirement of a circular system for resources, whether classified as part of “natural” or 
“technical” materials cycles (Ellen MacArthur 2017).   

The nature of many initiatives and SMEs is such that many operate across more than one 
stage of the value chain. Therefore, the full mapping database (Annex 7.2) identifies the 
main  areas  of  activity  for  each  entry  across  the  five  value  chain  categories  identified 
above, marked with crosses as appropriate. 

The database and mapping has been subdivided into three sections arranged by country 
and visualised geographically:  
1. Brands/Designers -  all are SMEs (including start-ups)  
2. Support Organisations -  including Networks (fashion/textiles and sustainable fashion), 
Trade  Associations,  Business  Support  Organisations,  NGOs/Campaigns,  Consultancies 
and Education. 
3. Materials/Technology/Recycling – including Reuse and Sharing initiatives 

1. Brands/Designers/Start-ups that operate using a number of sustainable /circular 
principles. 

As  highly  representative  of  the  fashion  and  textile  sector,  micro  and  small  fashion 
enterprises  are  at  the  forefront  of  the  transition  to  sustainable  and  circular  production 
and  consumption,  and  often  are  the  first  to  experiment  with  new  business  models  such 
as clothes sharing and upcycling textile waste. Diagram 1 shows where strong clusters of 
sustainable  fashion  brands  are  situated  (such  as  The  Netherlands  and  the  UK),  and 
reflects  areas  where  sustainable  fashion  products  are  emerging  in  commercial  markets 
(such as several countries in Eastern Europe.  

2.  Support  Organisations  and  Networks  that  help 
sustainability and circularity in fashion and textiles  

facilitate  transition  towards 

In  addition  to  organisations  providing  general  business  and  promotional  support  to 
fashion  businesses,  including  incubators  and  accelerators  (for  both  fashion  and  fashion 
tech), there are now a significant number of key organisations, beyond branded fashion 
businesses,  designers  and  startups  themselves,  that  are  supporting  a  transition  to 
circularity in fashion and textiles.  

These comprise a number of categories as identified in the mapping database (Annex 2) 
and in the visualization diagram 2:  membership-based trade associations, networks for 
sustainability,  and  sustainable  fashion  and/or  textiles  specifically,  circular  fashion 
initiatives/NGOs,  consultancy  services,  plus  research  and  educational  centres  with  a 
focus  on  sustainability.  Certain  NGOs  and  communication  campaigns  such  as  the  Ellen 
MacArthur  Foundation,  Global  Fashion  Agenda  and  Fashion  Revolution  have  been  highly 
significant  in  the  development  of  international  commitments  to  actions  regarding 
sustainability,  transparency  and  circularity  in  textiles  and  fashion  (see  also  Fashion 
Revolution  Case  Study  12).  To  reflect  the  research  and  innovation  activity  designed  to 

27

 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

support  SMEs  and  the  industry  transition  to  circularity  and  sustainable  practices,  key 
research projects are included in this visualization. 

3. Materials, Technology and Recycling. 

Much  research  and  development  activity  has  been  evident  in  recent  years  to  accelerate 
the development of new sustainable fibres and materials for textiles, and many projects 
are  still  in  progress.  This  mapping  in  diagram  3  includes  those  initiatives  that  are  fast 
moving  towards  achieving  a  commercial  scale  of  activity,  often  following  start-up 
support.    Included  are  examples  of  organisations  providing  the  vital  infrastructure 
required to  enable pre- and post-consumer textile collection and processing, in order to 
support  greater  circularity  in  flow  of  textile  resources.  Here  also  are  key  technological 
innovations  for  shifting  paradigms  of  production,  including  innovative  waterless  dyeing 
technologies  and  initiatives  on  micro  fibres  that  tackle  two  of  the  key  areas  of 
environmental impact in the textile industry. 

Primary Function  Sub-category 
Brands/Designers 

Manufacturing 

Materials/Fibres 

n
o

i
t
c
u
d
o
r
P

Technology B2B 

Clothing, 
Accessories 
Footwear 
Textile Recycling 

Campaign 

  Brands/Designers 
g
n
i
t
e
k
r
a
M

Technology B2C 

Share/Rent 

Customised/Bespok
e 
Repair 
Collect 

s
e
c
i
v
r
e
S

Technology B2B 

i
a
t
e
R

l

Brands/Designers 
On demand/Made 
to order 

Key Players 
Nudie Jeans, Stella McCartney 
VEJA, Vigga, Raeburn 
Lenzing Tencel + Refibra, Orange Fibre, 
re:Newcell, Recover  
Nudie Jeans, MUD Jeans, HNST,  
Raeburn, Elvis&Kresse  
VEJA, Ecoalf 
re:newcell, Ecoalf, Texaid, RiFo, 
Recover 
Unmade, DyeCoo, SpinDye, Fashion for 
Good 

Global Fashion Agenda (GFA) 

Fashion Revolution, Ellen MacArthur 
Foundation, GFA 
Unmade 

Lena Fashion Library, Vigga, 
NuWardrobe, Vestiaire Collective 
Unmade, Anna Ruohonen, 40 Colori 

Nudie Jeans, Houdini, Elvis & Kresse 
Texaid, I:CO, Jeans to Jeans by HNST, 
Recover 
Unmade 

H&M, Stella McCartney 
Unmade, Raeburn, Anna Ruohonen  

28

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

Primary Function  Sub-category 
Take back/collect 

Re-sell 
Technology B2C 

Re-use/upcycle 
Repair 
Collect 
Recycle 

f
o
d
n
E

e
f
i
L
/
e
s
U

Business support 

t
r
o
p
p
u
S

Trade association 
Educational 
institution 

End of Life 

Networks 

Incubator/accelerat
or 
Sales/marketing 

Collection logistics 
and sorting 
Recycling/fibres 
Fashion network 
Sustainable fashion 
network 

Key Players 
H&M/I:CO, Filippa K, M&S/Oxfam, 
Hels1nk1, Houdini 
Filippa K, MUD Jeans 
Unmade  

Elvis & Kresse, Raeburn, RiFo, REDU 
MUD Jeans, Nudie Jeans 
Texaid, I:CO, Recover 
Texaid, I:CO, Recover 

Centre for Fashion Enterprise, Fashion 
for Good 
United Fashion, Moda Lisboa, British 
Fashion Council 
Euratex, Sustainable Apparel Coalition 
Centre for Sustainable Fashion and 
Centre for Circular Design (UAL), Big 
Blue Project 
I:CO, Texaid, Recover 

Texaid, Ecoalf, RiFo 
United Fashion  
GFA, Common Objective, 
Fashion Revolution, 
Fashion for Good, 
Textile Exchange 

Table  3:    Examples  of  key  players  across  EU  member  states  categorised  by  primary 
functions.  Note: Some names appear in more than one section, reflecting their range of 
operations.

29

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

The  visual  mapping  illustrates  the  types  and  number  of  initiatives  identified  in  the 
database  country  by  country  in  a  way  that  enables  immediate  comparison,  and  can  be 
interrogated  as  a  digital  file  to  enable  further  detail  to  be  extracted.  Please  find  link  to 
document here 

Diagram 1: Mapping of Brands/Designers across EU states, as of May 2019. 
Designed by DED Associates, UK. 

30

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

Diagram 2: Mapping Support Organisations across EU states, as of May 2019. 
Designed by DED Associates, UK. 

31

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

Diagram 3: Mapping Materials, Technology & Recycling Organisations across EU states, 
as of May 2019. Designed by DED Associates, UK. 

32

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

3.3 Trends in Sustainable Fashion 

The  following  commentary  is  drawn  from  our  scoping  interviews  with  43  experts  in  28 
countries  across  the  EU,  as  outlined  in  section  3.1,  and  deals  with  both  consumer 
demand for and availability of sustainable fashion in the various markets. Experts had a 
wealth  of  knowledge  of  the  fashion/textiles  sector  and/or  specific  expertise  on 
sustainable fashion activity within the particular country but were not explicitly versed in 
consumer perspectives.  The trends information is necessarily limited to the knowledge of 
the particular interviewees but triangulated with our desk research and the knowledge of 
the  research  team.  This  section  therefore  does  not  propose  to  present  robustly 
comparative  data,  but  relativities  across  the  EU  member  states,  that  serves  to  indicate 
where the EU is leading and where it may be lagging behind in sustainable fashion.  

For a full list of interviews see Annex 7.1. 

3.3.1 Consumer demand for sustainable fashion 

In  Northern  Europe  interviews  identified  that  demand  seems  to  be  more  sensitive  and 
proactive  towards  sustainability  issues  than  in  other  areas.  This  seems  to  be  driven 
mostly by media narratives that are bringing visibility to environmental and social issues. 
In Central Europe, there is a rise of demand but there is room for expansion. In Southern 
Europe,  there  is  a  growing  demand  driven  by  millennials  and  this  is  also  noted  in  the 
market  for  childrenswear,  but  there  are  still  significant  barriers  that  are  perceived  by 
consumers  that  might  prevent  them  translating  this  interest  into  sustainable  buying 
practices  in  particular,  high  prices.  In  Eastern  Europe  demand  for  sustainable  fashion 
seems  also  to  be  growing  but  is  at  a  more  developmental  stage;  the  barriers  are  more 
exacerbated  than  in  Central  Europe,  according  to  the  information  we  gathered  from 
interviewees.   

Particular  dynamics  characterising  demand  for  sustainable  fashion  have  been  identified 
by the experts interviewed in relation to the specific countries below. 

Northern Europe: 

In Denmark, the expert believed the need for transparency is recognised, as are issues 
of climate change; questions are raised about the origin of raw materials. Vintage fashion 
is  in  demand  -  the  cheapest  and  most  understandable  option  for  sustainable  fashion. 
From the interviews conducted, in general, people in Scandinavian countries are quite 
aware  of  environmental  issues  and  this  has  been  reflected  in  fashion;  there  are  wide 
discussions  of  climate  change  in  the  media,  also  linking  this  to  clothing  consumption. 
However  Swedish  consumers  show  considerable  variation  in  awareness  and  behaviour 
from highly conscious to contradicting sustainability. Clothing rental is not as popular as 
in other countries e.g. the Filippa K leasing scheme faced challenges. Ireland has seen a 
recent  positive  shift  in  awareness  of  environmental issues  including  climate  change  and 
pollution,  from  press  coverage.  In  the  UK,  the  expert  stated  that  there  is  a  demand  in 
the  high  fashion  sector  but  in  mainstream  fashion  sustainability  is  still  new.  However, 
recent  documentaries  have  brought  visibility  to  environmental  and  social  issues.  The 
remarkable  shift  in  interest  in  sustainable  fashion  does  not  necessarily  translate  into 
sustainable  buying  practices,  as  there  is  some  confusion  over  actions  to  take.  Overall, 
consumer  focus  changes  with  the  prevailing  media  narrative  although  culture  can  also 
shift in response to disasters such as Rana Plaza in 2013. 

33

 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

Central Europe: 

Sustainability is  a  very  important  factor  in  daily  life in  Austria  -  people  are  very  aware 
and want to have sustainable products and live responsibly, the expert reported. There is 
a demand for sustainable fashion, and customers are prepared to pay more. People ask 
for  transparency  and  hand-made  items  are  also  sought  after.  In  Belgium,  demand  for 
sustainable fashion is conditional on price and easy availability and does not translate to 
purchases.  However,  there  is  a  shift  towards  buying  more  second-hand  fashion.  The 
experts  interviewed  in  France  described  a  clear  segment  interested  in  sustainable 
fashion  (“bobos’),  but  the  legacy  of  a  poor  aesthetic  image  and  higher  prices  is  still 
problematic  Therefore,  the  demand  for  vintage  and  second  hand  (via  e-commerce), 
including  childrenswear,  is  growing  because  it  is  more  affordable.  Childrenswear  is  a 
more  sensitized  area  due  to  parental  concerns  around  toxicity  of  dyes,  and  overall 
demand  for  traceability  is  increasing.  Most  change  has  occurred  in  the  public  sector 
where  procurement  legislation  requires  compliance  by  SMEs.  Germany  has  a  diverse 
market and there is an attitude/behaviour gap regarding sustainable fashion. The expert 
suggested  that  designers  and  consumers  need  greater  levels  of  education  for 
sustainability.  Similarly,  in  the  Netherlands  consumer  awareness  is  growing  through 
designer and large brand initiatives (e.g. take-back schemes) but there is need for more 
education – social media may also have potential here. In Luxembourg, it was reported 
that  there  is  strong  interest  in  the  transition  movement  and  more  awareness  of  health 
impacts of food and cosmetics than of sustainable fashion. 

Southern Europe: 

In Cyprus, consumers consider sustainable fashion products overpriced because they are 
used  to  fast  fashion  prices.  The  demand  is  average,  although  there  are  many  second 
hand  and  vintage  shops.  A  key  part  of  Cypriot  culture  is  to  make  own  clothes  and  buy 
designer  clothes  -  looking  good  is  more  important  than  being  ethical,  according  to  the 
expert.  Consumers  are  interested  in  local  designers  especially  couture  but  prefer  to 
support Greek designers.  In relation to childrenswear, consumer demand for sustainable 
practices  is  higher.    The  expert  in  Greece  reported  that  millennials  are  driving  the 
market,  showing  interest  in  the  impact  of  their  clothes  both  from  a  social  and 
environmental  point  of  view.  Similarly,  in  Italy  demand  from  millennials  is  high,  with 
consumers of sportswear more interested in labour conditions. In Malta, consumers align 
sustainable  fashion  with  the  slow  movement  and  socio-ethical  issues,  according  to  the 
expert.    Consumers  in  Portugal  prefer  new  clothes  to  second  hand  and  still  align 
sustainable fashion with the early “beige eco-look”. 

Eastern Europe: 

Demand for sustainable fashion in Croatia is low as people want to buy cheap and fast. 
However, the expert explained that after four years of the Fashion Revolution campaign2 
in  the  country,  the  message  is  now  being  heard.  Interest  is  also  growing  in  the  Czech 
Republic  since  the  disastrous  collapse  of  the  Rana  Plaza  complex,  and  the  range  of 
sustainable  products  available  is  increasing.  There  is  also  growing  interest  in  second-
hand clothing. The Estonian expert forecasts that demand for sustainable fashion will be 

2  The  Fashion  Revolution  campaign  was  founded  in  2013  following  the  collapse  of  the  Rana  Plaza 
manufacturing  complex  in  Bangladesh,  killing  1134  people  due  to  hazardous  working  conditions 
and pressures from unsustainable buying practices. 

34

 
 
 
 
                                                 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

rising  in  the  coming  years  due  to  the  recent  directive  which  will  require  companies  to 
recycle between 20/25% of materials (Circular economy package, EU, 2018). Hungary is 
experiencing  a  small  shift  in  awareness  and  education  towards  sustainable  fashion 
assisted by Fashion Revolution and millennials’ sensitivities to the issues. In Latvia, the 
expert believes that there is little demand with more consumer focus on cosmetic brands. 
Since the 2008 financial crisis, Lithuania has seen decreasing demand but young people 
are  now  becoming  interested.  Demand  in  Poland  is  growing,  particularly  from 
millennials. Trends are noted towards circularity and less waste in the wider industry and 
a  return  to  traditional  craftsmanship,  according  to  the  expert.  The  small  demand  in 
Romania is expected to grow, mainly due to the awareness of the younger generation of 
reuse and upcycling, reducing waste, and supporting transparency and ethical production 
values.  Demand  in  Slovakia  is  growing,  the  experts  reported,  with  the  support  of  the 
media.;  Customers  interested  in  embracing  sustainability  reflect  these  choices  also  in 
fashion,  primarily  through  upcycled  alternatives  and  natural  materials  such  as  organic 
cotton. In Slovakia, strong support of the childrenswear sector has been enabled by local 
brands combining certified natural materials (organic cotton; safe dyeing processes) with 
fun  designs.  In  Slovenia,  there  is limited interest  and  a  very  small market.  Consumers 
are driven by price so cannot afford expensive items by the designers that are engaged 
with sustainability.  

3.3.2   Supply of sustainable fashion 

From insights gathered from the 43 interviews, it can be observed that small businesses 
are  struggling  with  the  adoption  of  sustainability  practices  for  different  reasons,  mainly 
related  to  regional/national issues.  Analysis  of  individual  cases  shows  how  sustainability 
and  circularity  are  addressed  in  the  different  European  areas  according  to  the  specific 
local  context.  As  evinced  from  the  distinctive  dynamics  associated  with  the  demand  for 
sustainable  fashion,  similar  patterns  can  also  be  identified  in  relation  to  the  supply 
scenario,  with  Northern  Europe  more  proactive;  Central  Europe  and  Southern  Europe 
being more reactive in response to external demand (i.e. from consumers and in the b2b 
sector  to  be  part  of  the  global  supply  chain);  and  in  Eastern  Europe  there  is  a  growing 
supply albeit still lagging behind other areas.   

Interestingly, it is noted from the interviews that within Southern Europe a varied picture 
of  support  for  sustainable  fashion  emerges.  The  research  shows  there  are  clear 
differences  among  the  Mediterranean  countries.  In  Italy  and  in  Spain  the  experts 
presented a structure  of associations that better support, even if at an embryonic level, 
the  sustainable  endeavours  of  SMEs  compared  to  Greece  and  Malta.    The  experts  from 
Greece and Malta underlined that there is no aid for SMEs who want to start a transition 
towards  sustainability/circularity,  despite  the  efforts  of  individual  examples.  Similarly, 
Eastern  Europe  experts  emphasized  how  sustainability  issues  are  still  far  from  being 
addressed  by  Policy  and  Trade  associations,  therefore  the  provision  of  sustainable  and 
circular products is either limited or happens by “accident”.  

Specific  dynamics  characterising  the  supply  for  sustainable  fashion  have  been  identified 
by the expert interviews and can be noted as follows: 

35

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

Northern Europe: 

According to the expert, it is difficult in Denmark for SMEs to get started due to lack of 
suppliers, support and HR issues. Change is clearly foremost in large firms as they tend 
to have greater visibility. In Ireland, designers and start-up fashion brands are aligning 
themselves  with  sustainability.  In  the  expert’s  opinion,  sustainability  is  viewed  as 
creating  a  new  platform  for  collaboration  and  sharing  knowledge  in  a  sector  which  has 
tended to be exclusive and secretive. SMEs in Sweden understand that we are now in a 
critical situation and they need to be involved in sustainability; tools are still not available 
to  help  fully  capture  the  whole  concept.  Sustainable  development  goals  help  a  little  but 
are still very complex to understand. In the UK, the expert felt that interest is high and 
growing  but  there  is  also  a  heightened  sense  of  confusion  -  not  knowing  what/how  to 
change things. Interest is broadening to encompass new systems and services as well as 
new products. 

Central Europe: 

Belgium  has  seen  a  shift  in  the  last  five  years  according  to  the  expert.  Initially,  only 
young  innovative  designers  and  start-ups  were  asking  about  sustainability  but now  also 
mature and  more established companies want  to learn about it. In France, the experts 
reported  that  it  is  mainly  the  big  players  rather  than  SMEs  who  are  now  asking 
themselves  questions,  particularly  on  the  industrial  aspects  of  sustainability  such  as 
recycling.  There  are  only  a  small  number  of  sustainable  fashion  designers,  and 
sustainability  is  not  embedded  as  a  long-term  strategy  but  designs  are  often  not 
considered  desirable.    Germany  is  a  large  and  diverse  market  with Berlin  described  by 
the expert as a trendsetter, but despite advertising messages on sustainability, fashion is 
an international industry  with little  opportunity  for  fashion  start-ups  in  Germany.  A  lack 
of local production also means that SMEs find it hard to approach sustainability. Interest 
in sustainability and circularity has been growing for several years and has become a key 
trend.    Although  the  fashion  sector  is  small  in  Luxembourg  and  90-95%  of  fashion  is 
imported into the country, there are 3 or 4 showrooms/concept stores selling sustainable 
fashion  which  seems  promising.  The  Netherlands  has  good  fashion  education  and 
support for  sustainability and many designers  want to work with upcycling textile waste 
but  also  developing  advanced  new  business  models.  Attention  has  been  paid  to 
advancing rental and re-commerce models via Circle Economy. 

Southern Europe: 

In  Cyprus,  a  key  part  of  Cypriot  culture  is  to  make  your  own  clothes  and  only  buy 
designer  clothes,  which  may  be  considered  as  sustainable  practice.    Shops  with  yarns 
and  material  for  handmade  clothing  and  accessories  are  very  common  on  the  island, 
many  have  their  own  workshops,  the  expert  explained.  However,  more  guidance  is 
needed  in  sustainable  practices.  From  our  interview  it  also  emerges  that  interest  in 
sustainability is also low in Greece. The system is still focused on cost and profit margins 
rather than sustainability alternatives. In contrast, Italy, as a key part of the global value 
chain, SMEs need to conform to sustainability practices, especially if they deal in the B2B 
sector where their main customers are larger firms. Otherwise they would be replaced by 
competitors with more compliant operations. Therefore, sustainability is now a core topic 
for  SMEs  in  Italy.  Like  in  many  other  countries, Portugal’s  brands  and  small  designers 
are  split  into  those  doing  ‘business  as  usual’  and  others  that  are  new  and  looking  for 
different ways to engage with sustainable fashion.  In Spain,  sustainability is still a new 

36

 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

topic  and  SMEs  are  struggling  with  approaching  it.  The  expert  however  believes  that  it 
can be key to being innovative and competitive at the same time.  

Eastern Europe: 

In Croatia, the offering of sustainable fashion is low, the expert reported. Several small 
fashion  brands  are  interested  in  sustainability,  but individual  designer/makers  are  more 
engaged and aware. Designers do not know where to source sustainable materials, and 
loss  of  craft  skills  affects  their  ability  to  manufacture.  Within  the  Czech  Republic  the 
range  of  sustainable  fashion  products  available  is  growing,  however,  it  is  still  not  clear 
how long these new brands can survive. Designer linen clothing K.Bana is one example of 
a sustainable business  that often  struggles with price points and suppliers, according to 
the expert. Estonia now has a strong community that is pushing towards sustainability, 
focusing mainly on the concept behind the design and the goodness of the products.  In 
Hungary,  despite  emerging  interest,  SMEs  are  predominantly  micro-enterprises  and 
they are suffering from other issues linked to survival in the market, so sustainability is 
not  a  priority.  In  Latvia,  the  expert  explained  that  the  majority  of  the  actors  are 
manufacturers who are not very sensitive to sustainable development and they struggle 
to  meet  the  legal  requirements  of  the  Working  Time  Directive.    Understanding  of 
sustainable  development  is  limited  among  SMEs.  Manufacturers  in  Lithuania,  on  the 
other hand, work for the European market in the B2B sector and so must meet the needs 
of  their  customers  which  makes  them  highly  sensitive  to  the  subject  of  sustainability. 
However,  there  is  no  government  support  and  so  it  can  be  difficult  to  absorb  the 
additional  costs,  the  expert  described.  There  is  a  growing  interest  in  sustainability  in 
fashion in Poland since big brands like H&M started creating their green reputation after 
Rana  Plaza  collapse.  There  is  large  contribution  from  NGOs  focused  on  fair  trade, 
conscious  consumerism,  circularity  and  sustainability  and  the  Fashion  Revolution 
movement.  Sustainability  is  not  a  big  topic  for  SMEs  in  Romania,  according  to  the 
expert, but work is being done to create awareness by the government and universities 
to make manufacturers understand that they can reduce costs and bring new input to the 
company when applying a more sustainable approach. 

In  Slovakia  the  experts  reported  that  the  sustainability  agenda  is  often  not  explicit, 
many  businesses  are  ‘accidentally’  sustainable  in  terms  of  volume  of  production,  local 
production  networks  and  business  size.  Activity 
two  areas: 
upcycling/recycling and sustainable materials. Slovenia has a few sustainable designers 
who sell expensive items mostly abroad as domestic consumers cannot afford them. Like 
elsewhere, certifications for materials and lack of manufacturing skills and machinery for 
natural materials increase the costs. 

focused 

in 

is 

3.4 Opportunities for fashion SMEs (including designers and start-ups) 

Identified from the 43  expert interviews conducted, there are specific opportunities that 
are associated with the different European areas. As seen from the dynamics associated 
with  the  supply  and  demand  for  sustainable  fashion,  similar  patterns  can  be  also 
identified, where in Northern Europe fashion SMEs seem to be more responsive towards 
the opportunities associated with sustainability and circularity than in Central Europe.  

SMEs in Southern Europe seem to be less responsive and in Eastern Europe significantly 
less  responsive,  reflecting  the  overall  degree  of  sensitivity  and  interest  in  sustainable 

37

 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

fashion  and  circularity.  Amongst  the  opportunities  that  have  been  most  commonly 
mentioned by the experts we find “soft” and “hard” benefits.  

In  relation  to  the  former,  we  find  marketing  benefits  (image,  reputational  capital, 
visibility etc..), to capitalise on the upsurge of interest in forgotten skills and the value of 
authenticity  (i.e.  use  of  the  label  “made  in”),  of  being  local  and  particularly  of  being 
small,  allowing  independence  and  self-expression  of  the  entrepreneur’s  own  ethos  and 
values - as opposed to working in the B2B sector for large corporations. In relation to the 
latter,  we  find  some  tangible  benefits  in  terms  of  commercial  opportunities,  financial 
viability and additional revenues were also mentioned by the experts.  

In summary, the key opportunities emerging from the expert interviews are as follows: 

(cid:129)  Sustainability  provides  particular  opportunity  for  start-ups  and  early  stage 

businesses to do business differently and gain reputational capital. 

(cid:129)  Start-ups  can  be  flexible  and  experimental  in  testing  new  ideas  and  models  and 

SMEs can quickly make changes to their business model. 

(cid:129)  Education  can  develop  graduates  with  increasing  sustainability  literacy,  and  this 

enables opportunities for start-ups to be creative and informed.  

(cid:129)  Opportunity  for  re-shoring  of  manufacturing  through  sustainability  initiatives,  to 

generate local and small-scale production. 

(cid:129)  Clear marketing and promotional opportunities exist at national levels. 
(cid:129)  Bridging  traditional  and  new  technologies  and  processes  can  provide  business 

opportunities. 

(cid:129)  Childrenswear provides a good starting point for sustainability initiatives.  
(cid:129)  Demand is noted from millennials for sustainable/circular products and systems. 

Particular  areas  have  been  identified,  from  the  expert  interviews,  in  relation  to  the 
opportunities (or lack thereof) in specific countries as discussed below. 

Northern Europe 

The  expert  in  Finland  reported  that  early  stage  companies  and  start-ups  want  to 
strongly focus on sustainability and do business differently. Opportunity exists for an on-
line platform to provide promotion/information on small sustainable fashion companies to 
make  it  easier  for  consumers  to  access  these  brands  so  their  values  can  be  reflected 
through  their  shopping  decisions.  Support  for  this  could  be  public  or  private  sector.  In 
Ireland  an  opportunity  is  seen  to  re-establish  Ireland  as  a  leader  in  the  craft  of 
dressmaking and tailoring – having lost these  skills due to  offshoring.  According to the 
expert  in  Sweden,  there  are  opportunities  for  SMEs  to  better  understand  their  value 
chain,  using  the  Transparency  Toolkit  (tools  in  general  and  specifically  the  EU  Product 
Environmental  footprint).  Technology  companies  like  e.g.  TrusTrace  are  providing  the 
best  solutions  for  sustainable  fashion.  SMEs  in  the  UK  have  a  great  deal  of  opportunity 
because the large businesses still mainly do ‘business as usual’. In comparison, SMEs can 
experiment,  led  by  design,  and  trial  ideas  to  embrace  sustainability,  providing 
reputational  capital.    At  the  same  time,  these  opportunities  also  create  challenges  for 
viability of the business.  

38

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

Central Europe 

The  Austrian  expert  recognises  opportunities  for  local  and  small-scale  production  that 
also bridge from lo-tech to hi-tech – from traditional to new ways of producing fashion, 
including  new  materials  and  software  to  create  a  fashion  and  products  hub  for  3D 
printing.  In Belgium, the expert believes that the demand from millennials and current 
legislation are seen to provide commercial opportunity to include sustainability, providing 
a good business case for start-ups that includes revaluing items received from take-back 
schemes.  In  the  very  competitive  French  landscape  where  design  is  key,  sustainability 
advantages  are  mostly  on  the  marketing  side,  to  catch  consumer  attention  and  stand 
apart  from  competitors.  In  Germany,  the  expert  reported  that  there  are  some  small 
political  initiatives  to  support  sustainability  practices  among  SMEs  but  the  prevailing 
import-export model of SMEs limits the possible opportunities. After the collapse of some 
large fashion businesses in Holland, opportunities are being created in The Netherlands 
(Amsterdam)  for  designers  to  work  differently,  collaborating  with  the  industry  on  long 
term  solutions  and  capitalizing  on  social  media  messaging  to  encourage  alternative 
consumption  models.  An  opportunity  exists  for  the  small  number  of  SMEs  producing  in 
Luxembourg  to  utilise  ‘Made  in  Luxembourg’  and  capitalise  on  the  Fashion  Revolution 
campaign, the expert suggested.  

Southern Europe 

In  Cyprus  the  expert  stated  that  there  are  very  few  sustainable  SMEs  (designers, 
suppliers,  business,  retailers)  but  also  identified  commercial  opportunities  in  relation  to 
childrenswear  (i.e.  school  uniforms  and  carnival  costumes).  Similarly,  in  Greece  SMEs 
lack  skills  and  tools  to  exploit  opportunities  for  sustainability  through  technological 
innovation  and  respond  to  new  policy  directives.  It  was  identified  from  interviews  that 
many  SMEs  in  Italy  are  part  of  the  global  supply  chain,  B2B  suppliers  to  larger  firms, 
and  need  to  implement  sustainable  practices  in  order  to  be  compliant  and  not  to  be 
replaced  by  competitors.  Maltese  companies  are  almost  all  small  businesses,  allowing 
processes to focus on the quality of the final product rather than on quantity. The expert 
described a situation where SMEs can directly control every  step  of the value chain and 
this can facilitate the integration of sustainability in the business structure. The tradition 
of  small-scale  manufacturing,  according  to  the  expert  in  Portugal,  provides  clear 
opportunities  for  factories  to  engage  with  sustainable  practices  for  competitive 
advantage.    Interviews  determined  that  the  new  lifestyles  and  consumer  behaviour  of 
millennials provide Spain (and by implication other countries) with opportunity, as these 
translate into a major interest in sustainability and circular economy ideas. 

Eastern Europe 

According to the expert no formal initiatives exist in Bulgaria to incentivize opportunities 
for  small  businesses  to  integrate  sustainability,  other  than  the  individual  players 
themselves.  Similarly, a small but growing independent designer segment described by 
the Czech Republic interviewee sees opportunity in letting values lead their work (which 
is  not  always  possible  when  working  in  the  B2B  sector  for  big  corporations).  As  a 
producer country, SME competitiveness in Hungary is based on lower labour costs, but a 
recent initiative by Innovatext is stimulating inclusion of sustainable practices. In Latvia, 
sustainable  fashion  remains  a  niche  market,  although  some  brands  have  stopped  using 

39

 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

fur.  For  regional  brands  in  Lithuania,  sustainability  is  often  part  of  SME  strategy  as 
these have to stand out from fast fashion and low-cost competitors with a more premium 
product.  Poland’s  interviewee  reported  that  fashion  SMEs  have  an  opportunity  to 
respond to social demands for transparency and drive change due to their smaller scale. 
Like  in  many  other  countries,  the  there  is  a  growing  interest  among  young 
designers/graduates  in  Slovakia  to  set  up  their  own  small,  design-led  enterprises, 
offering  employment  opportunities  in  the  relatively  small  Slovak  fashion  market.,  The 
experts  reported  that  this  allows  a  local  focus,  encourages  customer  loyalty  but  also 
possibly limits growth.  

3.5 Challenges for fashion SMEs including designers and start-ups 

Identified  from  the  43  expert  interviews  conducted,  specific  challenges  are  seen  across 
different  European  areas.  In  line  with  the  opportunities  and  the  different  levels  of 
responsiveness  towards  the  opportunities,  different  types  of  challenges/barriers  were 
also identified by the experts. These prevent fashion SMEs to fully reap the benefits that 
are associated with sustainability and circularity.  

Key challenges faced by all countries mainly refer to: 

(cid:129) 

the  cost  of  producing  sustainable  fashion  (for  sustainable  materials,  certification, 
fair labour etc) 
sourcing eco-materials in small enough quantities 

(cid:129) 
(cid:129)  production in competition with larger companies 
(cid:129) 

remaining  competitively  priced  as  there  are  no  economies  of  scale  for  small 
businesses. 

(cid:129)  engaging with supply chain transparency 
(cid:129)  access to showcase and gaining visibility 
(cid:129)  access to finance 
(cid:129) 
(cid:129) 
(cid:129) 

the lack of adequate suppliers of sustainable/alternative materials 
lack of fair trade/fair labour production facilities  
lack  of  access  to  necessary  skills  at  a  reasonable  cost  to  re-shore  clothing 
production in countries with relatively small fashion sectors 

(cid:129)  access to dedicated support networks and sustainability information.  
(cid:129) 
(cid:129) 
(cid:129)  difficulties re-using textiles for a second life due to its classification as ‘waste’  

cultural acceptance of new business models such as rental 
the lack of access to technical solutions  

In  addition,  it  is  noted  that  it  is  more  difficult  for  established  business  to  adopt  new 
sustainable  practices  than  new  start-ups.    The  ambition  for  re-shoring  manufacturing in 
some  European  countries  may  also  be  impeded  by  the  notable  loss  of  skills  for 
making/manufacturing.  

Particular challenges for SMEs engaging with sustainable fashion have been identified by 
the 43  experts interviewed, in relation to the  specific countries below. These challenges 
were  deemed  by  the  experts  as  rectifiable/amendable  by  the  implementation  of 
dedicated support – either in the form of suitable policy initiatives or as private support. 

Northern Europe 

40

 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

The  expert  from  Denmark  reported  that  the  two  major  problem  areas  are  additional 
production  costs  and  access  to  suppliers  that  can  provide  sustainable materials in  small 
quantities.      The  latter  challenge  is  also  repeated  in  many  other  countries  including 
Finland  and  Ireland.  In  Finland,  like  elsewhere  across  the  EU,  a  major  obstacle  is  in 
changing the current system – how to make profit by doing something small, to change 
the usual logic of business. This is hard for large businesses to achieve; therefore small 
business can be forerunners and do things differently.  A further challenge is production, 
where  small  businesses  have  to  compete  for  production  facilities  with  larger  companies 
and supply chain transparency. In Sweden, challenges are noted by the expert for SMEs 
to engage with transparency, and to communicate their sustainability message effectively 
with  consumers.  Simple  tools  need  to  be  developed  to  assist  SMEs  in  interpreting 
‘circular economy’.  In the UK, the expert believes that it is difficult for fashion SMEs to 
gain  visibility  and  access  relevant  showcases  for  sustainability  initiatives,  and, 
importantly, to access finance. 

Central Europe 

Austria’s  expert  highlighted  that  SMEs  require  access  to  networks  and  sustainability 
information,  and  to  sustainable  materials,  plus  there  can  be  high  costs  for  specialist 
production or technology.  The Belgian expert noted that it is harder for an established 
business  to  adopt  sustainability  and  change  their  practices  and  price  points  than  for  a 
start-up to engage with sustainability form the outset. In France, the expert noted that 
a  lack  of  knowledge  and  education  is  identified  that  can  inform  strategic  approaches  to 
sustainability.  SMEs  wishing  to  be  local  and  sustainable  find  access  to  suppliers  and 
manufacturers  challenging.    Access  to  networks  is  missing  in  Germany  as  is  a  suitable 
infrastructure  and  there  is  also  a  lack  of  political  incentives.  Maintaining  control  of  the 
textile cycle and different phases of the supply chain is challenging for SMEs.  Consumers 
in  Luxembourg  tend  to  buy  clothes  elsewhere,  the  expert  noted,  therefore  sustainable 
fashion  businesses  struggle  to  obtain  sales.  In  addition,  the  labour  costs  are  high  and 
businesses  also  require  more  supportive  infrastructure  to  access  relevant  skills  and 
services.  The  Netherlands  develops  a  strong  fashion  talent  pool  from  its  fashion 
academies  who  require  more  support  and  collaboration  for  visibility  of  sustainability 
efforts  against  large  brands,  and  to  retain  designers.  A  lack  of  access  to  innovation  is 
also noted by the expert. 

Southern Europe 

According  to  the  expert in  Cyprus,  there  are  no  suppliers  of  sustainable  materials  (due 
to import costs) or fair-trade factories. The alternative of using local seamstresses incurs 
high  cost  for  small  quantities,  compared  to  using  existing  (low-wage)  contractors.  In 
Greece, the expert reported that access to both physical resources (raw materials) and 
economic resources such as grants and tax incentives is unavailable. The expert in Italy 
described how SMEs have been slow to engage with sustainability due to limited budgets. 
The  industry  faces  challenges  in  transitioning  from  large  scale  production  to  smaller, 
financial 
more  specialised  manufacturing  and 
sustainability  of  small  production  numbers.  In  the  small  island  of  Malta,  materials  are 
not local but imported, with consequent additional costs. Fashion SMEs in Portugal face 
competition  on  scale  and  price  from  larger  brands.  The  challenge  of  balancing  higher 
costs with competitiveness, without compromising quality, is also felt by SMEs in Spain.  

related  difficulties 

in  achieving 

Eastern Europe 

41

 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

the  Czech  Republic, 

The expert in Croatia points out that key challenges faced are the supply of sustainable 
materials,  support  from  local  policies  together  with  consumer  education  including  the 
value  of  their  heritage  of  craft  skills.  In  Bulgaria,  it  is  difficult  to  produce  garments 
locally  within  parameters  of  sustainability.  In 
lack  of 
entrepreneurial mindset and access to finance are challenges for start-ups and designers; 
their small size mitigates against capacity for steady production and economies of scale. 
In  Hungary,  similar  to  other  countries  in  the  region,  all  SMEs  have  to  import  fabrics 
which  are  expensive.  The  issue  with  using  cheaper  fabrics  from  e.g.  China  is  reliable 
certification,  therefore  safety  and  transparency  can  be  a  challenge.    More  centralised 
support  and  information  for  business  towards  sustainability is  required  for Lithuania  to 
progress,  a  requirement  also  recognised  by  the  experts  in  Poland  and  Slovakia.  A 
better  connection  at  higher  education  (degree)  level  between  fashion  and  business 
education is also considered essential. Like in Hungary, the experts also highlighted that 
there  is  no  production  of  new  sustainable  materials  in  Slovakia.  Sourcing  from  abroad 
adds  higher  costs  to  other  production  challenges  such  as  minimum  orders,  limited 
manufacturing  options  for  and  competition  from  larger  international  brands.  Romanian 
SMEs are facing challenges of costs to introduce new production technology and training, 
the expert described. In Slovenia the small scale of the sector is challenging, according 
to  the  expert,  together  with  loss  of  skills  (in  working  with  hemp  and  linen)  and 
machinery. Designers keep some costs low by collaborating on sourcing purchases. 

42

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

4. EXEMPLAR CASE STUDIES  

4.1 Selection criteria for case studies  

This  stage  of  the  research  identifies  12  in-depth  case  studies  across  the  value  chain 
which provide insights that can inspire and guide other SMEs to become more sustainable 
and circular.   These have been identified from the mapping conducted in Section 3 and 
chosen  according  to  the  selection  criteria  below.    Please  see  table  4  for  a  longlist  from 
which  the  12  case  studies  have  been  selected,  mapped  against  the  areas  identified  in 
table 3.  

Selection criteria for the case studies are also based on the following: 

(cid:129)  Recommendations  triangulated  from  the  Fashion/Sustainability  Experts,  mapping 

initiatives database and study team knowledge. 

(cid:129)  The  degree  to  which  business  cases  are  innovative  and  illustrative  of  a  range  of 

sustainable/circular business models and practices that are viable and replicable.  

(cid:129)  To achieve diversity across the EU member states with particular focus on the top 
10  states  producing  clothing  and  textiles,  and  those  leading  research  and 
initiatives towards a circular economy for textiles and fashion, i.e. from our top 14 
countries 
identified  namely:  Austria,  Belgium,  Denmark,  Finland,  France, 
Germany, Italy, The Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Sweden and 
the UK.  

(cid:129)  To  achieve  diversity  of  products  and  business  models  across  the  cases  studies  – 
i.e.  a  selection  of  case  studies  from  recycled  and  innovative  textiles  production, 
plus  brands  producing  menswear,  womenswear,  childrenswear,  footwear  and 
accessories.  Textile innovations include new fibres that are either on the market 
or close to readiness (see Orange Fiber, re:newcell). 

(cid:129)  To  represent  a  range  of  levels  of  maturity  i.e.  length  of  time  in  operation  – 
pioneers plus significant new entrants to the field (See VEJA, Unmade, REDU). 
(cid:129)  To  represent  viable  business  models  that  could  largely  be  replicated  by  others 

(see NuWardrobe). 

(cid:129)  To  reflect  the  four  areas  of  the  value  chain  as  specified  (production,  services, 
marketing, retail), but we have also identified the area ‘End of Use/Life’ which is 
vital  to  the  emergence  of  circular  economy  for  materials.  As  outlined  in  table  5 
and  Annex  7.3,  these  also  mapped  against  our  more  specific  categories:  
Brands/Designers;  Materials/Fibres;  Reuse/Sharing;  Recycling;  Technology; 
Campaigns/NGOs;  Business  Support,  Sustainable  Fashion  Networks;  Trade 
Associations, and Consultancy.   

We also recognise in the report the key role played by some key campaigns and NGOs, 
such  as  Fashion  Revolution  and  the  Ellen  MacArthur  Foundation,  in  raising  global 
awareness of environmental and social issues in the fashion and textiles sector, together 
with  industry  organisations  including  Global  Fashion  Agenda  (GFA)  and  the  Sustainable 
Apparel Coalition (SAC). However, as the last two are both focused on large businesses, 
Fashion Revolution has been included in the final selection of case studies. 

43

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Production 

Marketing 

Services 

Retail 

End of Use/ 
Life/Lives 

Support 

organisation 

e
v
i
t
a
i
t
i
n

i

f
o
e
p
y
T

y
n
a
p
m
o
C

y
r
t
n
u
o
C

d
n
a
r
B
/
r
e
n
g
i
s
e
D

n
g

i
s
e
D

s
l
a
i
r
e
t
a
M

d
n
a
r
B
/
r
e
n
g

i
s
e
D

B
2
B
h
c
e
T

C
2
B
h
c
e
T

n
g
i
a
p
m
a
C

n
o

i
t
u
b
i
r
t
s
i
D

t
n
e
r
/
e
r
a
h
S

e
k
o
p
s
e
b
/
e
s
i
m
o
t
s
u
c

s
d
n
a
r
B
/
r
e
n
g

i
s
e
D

d
n
a
m
e
D
n
O

k
c
a
b
-
e
k
a
T

C
2
B
h
c
e
T

l
l
e
s
-
e
R

e
l
c
y
c
p
U
/
e
s
u
-
e
R

r
i
a
p
e
r

t
c
e
l
l

o
c

B
2
B
h
c
e
T

.
c
o
s
s
A
e
d
a
r
T

k
r
o
w
t
e
N

.
t
s
u
S

k
r
o
w
t
e
N
n
o
h
s
a
F

i

g
r
O
h
s
a
F

.
t
s
u
S

n
o

i
t
c
e
l
l

o
C

e
l
c
y
c
e
R

r
o
t
a
b
u
c
n
I

r
i
a
p
e
R

g
n
i
r
u
t
c
a
f
u
n
a
M

r
a
e
w
t
o
o
f

g
n

i
l
c
y
c
e
R

i

g
n
h
t
o
C

l

1083 

Elvis & 
Kresse 

Houdini  
Jeans to 
Jeans HNST 
Lena 
Fashion 
Library  

FR  x 

x 

UK  x 

SE 

x 

x 

x 

xx 

x 

BE 

x 

xx  xx 

NE 

MUD Jeans 

NL   x 

Nudie Jeans  SE 
The Nu 
Wardrobe 

IR 

x 

REDU 

RIFO 
Stanley/ 
Stella 
Swedish 
Stockings 

RO 

IT 

x 

x 

BE  x 

SE 

x 

Unmade   

UK  

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

xx 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

xx 

xx 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

xx 

xx 

x 

xx 

x 

xx 

xx 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

xx  x 

xx 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

xx  xx 

x 

x 

xx 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

xx 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

44

x 

x 

xx 

x 

xx 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

xx 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x
x 

x 

x 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

Production 

Marketing 

Services 

Retail 

End of Use/ 
Life/Lives 

Support 

organisation 

e
v
i
t
a
i
t
i
n

i

f
o
e
p
y
T

y
n
a
p
m
o
C

y
r
t
n
u
o
C

d
n
a
r
B
/
r
e
n
g
i
s
e
D

n
g

i
s
e
D

s
l
a
i
r
e
t
a
M

d
n
a
r
B
/
r
e
n
g

i
s
e
D

B
2
B
h
c
e
T

C
2
B
h
c
e
T

n
g
i
a
p
m
a
C

n
o

i
t
u
b
i
r
t
s
i
D

t
n
e
r
/
e
r
a
h
S

e
k
o
p
s
e
b
/
e
s
i
m
o
t
s
u
c

s
d
n
a
r
B
/
r
e
n
g

i
s
e
D

d
n
a
m
e
D
n
O

k
c
a
b
-
e
k
a
T

C
2
B
h
c
e
T

l
l
e
s
-
e
R

e
l
c
y
c
p
U
/
e
s
u
-
e
R

r
i
a
p
e
r

t
c
e
l
l

o
c

B
2
B
h
c
e
T

.
c
o
s
s
A
e
d
a
r
T

k
r
o
w
t
e
N

.
t
s
u
S

k
r
o
w
t
e
N
n
o
h
s
a
F

i

g
r
O
h
s
a
F

.
t
s
u
S

n
o

i
t
c
e
l
l

o
C

e
l
c
y
c
e
R

r
o
t
a
b
u
c
n
I

r
i
a
p
e
R

g
n
i
r
u
t
c
a
f
u
n
a
M

r
a
e
w
t
o
o
f

g
n

i
l
c
y
c
e
R

i

g
n
h
t
o
C

l

Vigga 

VEJA  

DK 

FR 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

xx 

x 

x 

x 

x 

xx 

x 

Materials Fibres 

re:newcell 

SE 

xx 

xx 

xx 

Ecoalf 

SP 

x 

xx 

x 

xx 

x 

x 

x 

x 

x 

xx 

xx  xx 

x 

xx 

xx 

x 

Orange 
Fiber 

I:CO 

IT 

DE 

NGO/Campaign 

Fashion 
Revolution 

UK 

Table 4: Longlist of case study selection

xx  x 

xx 

xx 

xx 

x 

xx  xx  xx 

45

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
4.2 Overview of case studies  

The final stage of research developed 12 in-depth case studies - 11 SME exemplars and 
one  key  campaign  organization  Fashion  Revolution  -    in  order  to  illustrate  the  current 
range  of  practices  and  business  models  working  towards  sustainability  and  circularity in 
the fashion and textiles sector across the EU. The Case Studies have been selected based 
on the criteria outlined in section 4.1 and including the viability and potential replicability 
of  the  business  model  as  exemplars  for  others,  with  particular  regard  to  the  length  of 
time the enterprise has been in business. Given the limited time frame for research, the 
selection is also based on pragmatic considerations of availability of interviewees. For this 
reason,  within  each  SME  case  study  other  brands/organisations  have  been  included  as 
comparators, to give a sense of the activity clustered around particular business models, 
sub-sectors  or  practices  that  may  use  a  different  assortment  of  sustainable  or  circular 
practices.  Four  of  the  businesses  selected  have  been  awarded  B  Corp™  certification 
which  demonstrates  their  fulfillment  of  both  social  equity  and  environmental  best 
practices  validated  by  an  independent  body  (VEJA,  MUD  Jeans,  Elvis  &  Kresse  and 
Ecoalf).  

One  interview  per  case  study  was  conducted  with  a  founder  or  senior  executive  of  the 
company, and two with Fashion Revolution organisation due to their global reach. Of note 
is the fact that several case study companies have been founded by entrepreneurs as a 
direct result of their previous fashion industry experience, with a view to creating a more 
sustainable/circular business model. 

The final selection covers 9 countries and ranges from a start-up (Rifò) to more mature 
businesses  (VEJA,  Elvis  &  Kresse);  from  micro  businesses  (Rifò,  REDU)  to  a  volume 
manufacturer  (Stanley/Stella);  it  includes  social  enterprises  (REDU,  Elvis  &  Kresse),  a 
campaign organisation (Fashion Revolution), a service business (The Nu Wardrobe) and a 
software service company (Unmade).  

Company/Brand:  

1.  VEJA(FR)– footwear, using sustainable materials and regional production 
2.  MUD Jeans (NL)- denim sector –including use of recycled denim materials; offers 

leasing, take back and repair services  

3.  Stanley/Stella (BE)- B2B basic clothing using sustainable materials   
4.  Elvis & Kresse (UK)- luxury upcycled accessories from waste materials  
5.  REDU(RO) - upcycled clothing from textile waste  
6.  The Nu Wardrobe (IR) – collaborative consumption and clothes reselling  
7.  RiFò (IT) – knitwear from fully recycled materials  

Technology: 

8.  Unmade (UK) - fashion on demand software systems  

Materials/Fibres:  

9.  re:newcell 

(SE)- 

circularity: 

chemical 

recycling  of 

cellulose 

textiles 

(cotton/viscose)  

10. Ecoalf (SP)– circularity in clothing using upcycled fabrics from ocean plastics  
11. Orange Fiber (IT) - bio waste fibres and textiles  

NGO/Campaign:  

12. Fashion  Revolution  (UK)  -  consumer  facing  and  industry  campaigns,  focused  on 

environmental and social justice, transparency.  

46

 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

The 12 case studies therefore comprise:  

(cid:129)  Three  companies  focused  on  different  aspects  of  materials  circularity  for  textiles 
fibres:  re:newcell  regenerating  cellulose  fibres  from  textile  waste  to  textiles; 
Ecoalf  upcycling  ocean  plastics  for  new  textiles  and  clothing;  Orange  Fiber 
innovating in cellulose fibres and textiles utilising bio waste from juice extraction. 

(cid:129)  Six  brands  including  one  start-up  and  two  social  enterprises  across  6  countries, 
working  across  the  subsectors  of  upcycled  fashion  (REDU),  accessories  (Elvis  & 
Kresse),  denim 
t-shirts 
(Stanley/Stella),  footwear  (VEJA),  and  upcycled  knitwear  (RiFò),  all  utilising  a 
wide range of sustainable, recycled and upcycled materials.  

Jeans),  basic  clothing 

including 

(MUD 

jeans 

(cid:129)  One  service  business  operating  a  new  collaborative  consumption  business  model 

to extend clothing use (The Nu Wardrobe).  

(cid:129)  One  technology  company  developing  software  for  end-to-end  digital  production 

systems enabling manufacturing on demand (Unmade).  

(cid:129)  One  campaign  organization,  a  global  movement  for  social  justice,  transparency 
and  sustainability  in  the  fashion  industry  (Fashion  Revolution).  It  functions  as 
both a charity and a not-for-profit community interest company. 

All the brands design, source materials and manufacture fashion products, using a wide 
range  of  material  sources.  All  except  Stanley/Stella  retail  direct  to  the  consumer. 
Stanley/Stella  is  mainly  a  B2B  company  selling  their  products  and  services  to  other 
businesses  and  is  at  the  top  end  of  the  SME  category  in  terms  of  turnover.  The  Nu 
Wardrobe  represent  an  example  of  the  new  sharing  economy  emerging  in  the  fashion 
sector.  Unmade is an innovative software business working across the value chain with 
brands  and  manufacturers  for  customised  and  small  batch  production  on  demand. 
Re:newcell, Ecoalf and Orange Fiber are all involved in different circular fibre processing 
systems, and Ecoalf also produce their own brand of clothing.  

47

 
 
 
 
 
4.3 Case Studies Summary 
The following table summarises the key practices, business models and challenges revealed from the analysis of the 12 case studies outlined 
above. Each has certain recommendations for policy that are further discussed in section 5. 

Case Study 

Country 

Business 
Model 

Key Sustainable 
/Circular Practices 

Key Challenges 

Key Policy 
Recommendations 

VEJA 

France 

Small batch 
productions of 
sneakers 
produced from 
organic or eco-
friendly 
components. 

MUD Jeans   

The 
Nether-
lands 

Manufactures, 
sells and leases 
organic or 
recycled cotton 
jeans. 

(cid:129)  Utilises vegan leather in 1 

(cid:129)  Sourcing new 

(cid:129)  Support for the 

establishment of material 
buying cooperatives to 
access new and innovative 
materials. 

(cid:129)  Subsidised eco-certification 

and supply chain traceability 
label for brands.  

(cid:129)  Forums for responsible 
brands to encourage 
knowledge exchange and 
joint projects. 
(cid:129)  Development of a 

responsible fashion label. 
(cid:129)  Funding schemes/economic 

instruments that 
support/incentivise leasing 
model until it reaches 
volumes which enable 
economies of scale. 

of 4 products. 

(cid:129)  Aims to use upcycled 

materials in its products. 

(cid:129)  Sources organic cotton. 
(cid:129)  Localised production and 
assembly in one region of 
Brazil. 

innovative and 
sustainable 
materials given 
small purchasing 
volume. 

(cid:129)  100% organic or recycled 

(cid:129)  Accessing public 

and private finance 
to scale business 
model.  

denim. 

(cid:129)  Manufactured with 

reduced chemical, low 
water use, low energy 
consumption. 

(cid:129)  Fairtrade 
(cid:129)  Supply-chain 
transparency 

(cid:129)  Lease model for jeans – 
including repair service 
and take-back system to 
recycle jeans. 

48

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

Case Study 

Country 

Business 
Model 

Key Sustainable 
/Circular Practices 

Key Challenges 

Key Policy 
Recommendations 

Stanley/ 
Stella 

Belgium  Manufactures 
knitted basics 
(e.g. t-shirts; 
sweatshirts; 
jackets etc.) 
predominantly 
B2B for MNCs. 

(cid:129)  Products based on organic 
cotton (95,4%); polyester 
(3.6%); sustainable 
alternatives (Lenzing’s 
Tencel and Modal, 0.7%) 
and recycled polyester 
and cotton (0.3%).  

(cid:129)  Monitoring and 

(cid:129)  Increasing consumer 

verifying supply-
chain practices to 
increase supply-
chain 
transparency. 

awareness. 

(cid:129)  Establishment of a universal 

code of conduct for the 
textile industry. 

(cid:129)  Banning production of low-

cost fast fashion items under 
certain price points (e.g. a t-
shirt for less than $2). 

Elvis & 
Kresse   

United 
Kingdom 

Luxury upcycled 
accessories 
made from 
firehoses; 
parachutes; 
printing 
blankets and 
leather offcuts. 

(cid:129)  Rescue and repurpose 
both industrial and 
fashion waste materials, 
upcycling into luxury 
fashion accessories and 
homewares 

(cid:129)  Diverting waste materials 
from entering landfill,  
(cid:129)  Consumer engagement 

activities. 

(cid:129)  Profit share policy with 
charities and social 
causes 

(cid:129)  Constantly building 
new partnerships 
that take time, 
especially as the 
founders will not 
compromise their 
business principles 

(cid:129)  Higher landfill taxes to 
discourage dumping of 
waste 

(cid:129)  Legislation and tax 

incentives for businesses re 
using waste  

(cid:129)  Encouragement for the 

fashion industry to reach out 
and collaborate across 
sectors and learn from other 
industries 

(cid:129)  Pay attention to the voices 
of the next generation with 
regard to actions for 
sustainability   

49 

 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

Case Study 

Country 

Business 
Model 

Key Sustainable 
/Circular Practices 

Key Challenges 

Key Policy 
Recommendations 

REDU 

Romania  Social 

enterprise 
producing 
upcycled 
clothing, 
accessories and 
textiles from 
scraps and 
clothing 
donations. 

Collaborative 
consumption 
through a 
clothes sharing 
platform 

The Nu 
Wardrobe  

Ireland 

(cid:129)  Prolong the use-life of 

textiles through 
repurposing into new 
fashion items. 

(cid:129)  Diverting discarded 

clothing and textiles from 
landfill. 

(cid:129)  Consumer engagement 

activities. 

(cid:129)  Extending the use-life of 

unworn clothes. 

(cid:129)  Every time an item of 
clothing is borrowed 
instead of bought new, 
25% of the resources 
used in the production of 
the new item are offset. 

(cid:129)  Operating in a 
region where 
consumer 
awareness 
regarding 
sustainability and 
circularity is low. 
(cid:129)  Lack of consumer 
awareness of true 
cost of 
unsustainable 
fashion. 
(cid:129)  Early-stage 

investors lack of 
understanding of 
alternative 
business models 
like collaborative 
consumption. 

(cid:129)  Developing policy and 

regulatory frameworks that 
incentivises /rewards 
sustainable and circular 
practices and products (e.g. 
economic instruments) and 
that penalises unsustainable 
practices (e.g. fines). 

(cid:129)  Economic instruments which 

incentivise sharing and 
rental models and de-risk 
collaborative consumption 
start-ups. 

(cid:129)  Instruments targeted at 

reducing barriers to entry for 
women to start sustainable 
fashion ventures. 

(cid:129)  Creating dedicated forums 

within the sector to 
accelerate diffusion of 
knowledge and best 
practice. 

50 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

Case Study 

Country 

Business 
Model 

Key Sustainable 
/Circular Practices 

Key Challenges 

Key Policy 
Recommendations 

(cid:129)  Prolonging the use-life of 

(cid:129)  Negative consumer 

(cid:129)  Developing policy and 

Rifò  

Italy 

Upcycling 
cashmere 
clothing into 
new yarns and 
products.  

textiles through 
repurposing into new 
yarns and fashion items. 

(cid:129)  Diverting discarded 

cashmere clothing from 
landfill. 

(cid:129)  Produced to order. 
(cid:129)  Uses traditional 

production techniques 
supporting local artisans.  

perceptions of 
upcycled clothing 
(e.g. perception of 
lower quality).  

(cid:129)  Consumer 

knowledge gap 
regarding quality-
price ratio. 
(cid:129)  Complexity of 
legislation 
governing textile 
waste and lack of 
harmonization of 
policy across local, 
national and 
regional levels.  

(cid:129)  Scaling up 
operations. 

regulatory frameworks that 
incentivises /rewards 
sustainable and circular 
practices and products (e.g. 
economic instruments) 
rather than implementing 
bans or fines for 
unsustainable practices. 

(cid:129)  Developing regulatory 

frameworks that favours the 
free trade of used 
clothing/textiles and 
clarifying “end-of-waste” 
status for discarded clothing 
and textiles. 

(cid:129)  Setting a carbon tax and 
setting ambitious targets 
related to waste 
management and 
biodiversity. 

(cid:129)  Dedicated mentoring 

schemes for fashion start-
ups. 

51 

Unmade 

United 
Kingdom 

y
g
o

l

o
n
h
c
e
T

Digital 
manufacturing 
software 
solution 
enabling on-
demand 
production. 

(cid:129)  Large volume efficiencies 

through small batch 
production and 
individualisation. 
(cid:129)  On-demand digital 
technology-based 
production delivers 
substantial savings 
related to waste 
compared to speculative 
high-volume mass 
production. 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

Case Study 

Country 

Business 
Model 

Key Sustainable 
/Circular Practices 

Key Challenges 

Key Policy 
Recommendations 

re:newcell   

Sweden 

Chemical 
recycling of 
cellulose based 
textiles creating 
a new 
biodegradable 
pulp for new 
fibres 

(cid:129)  Use of waste to produce 
the equivalent of a virgin 
material.  

(cid:129)  Final product does not 
suffer a downgrade in 
fibre quality. 

(cid:129)  Reduced carbon emissions 
relative to production of 
virgin fibre. 

(cid:129)  90% reduction in water 

usage compared to virgin 
fibre. 

(cid:129)  Hybrid business 
overlapping the 
pulp and 
textile/fashion 
industries. 

(cid:129)  Lack of private 

sector willingness 
to invest in 
alternative fibres. 

s
e
r
b

i
F

/
s
l
a
i
r
e
t
a
M

(cid:129)  Developing financial support 

for new innovative fibre 
start-ups. 

(cid:129)  Develop economic incentives 

to encourage recovery, 
sorting, reuse and recycling 
of pre-loved textiles 
(building on the EU target 
for compulsory separation 
and collection of waste 
textiles). 

(cid:129)  Provide capacity building 

support for fashion/ textile 
start-ups and SMEs to 
enable them to navigate the 
bureaucratic process of 
grant and tender 
applications.  

52 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

Case Study 

Country 

Business 
Model 

Key Sustainable 
/Circular Practices 

Key Challenges 

Key Policy 
Recommendations 

Ecoalf 

Spain 

Transforming 
recycled 
materials into 
fabrics (most 
notably 
upcycling ocean 
plastics). 

s
e
r
b

i
F

/
s
l
a
i
r
e
t
a
M

Orange Fiber 

Italy 

Producing yarn 
from citrus 
industry waste 
(bio-waste). 

(cid:129)  Development of consumer 
awareness campaigns. 

(cid:129)  Policy to guarantee 

appropriate times in the 
production cycle to support 
ethical production. 

(cid:129)  Working with 200 fishing 
boats to retrieve a ton of 
waste from the 
Mediterranean ocean a 
day which they transform 
into their eco-yarn.  
(cid:129)  Extensive research and 
development (R&D) of 
recycled and recyclable 
materials that can be 
used in the fashion 
industry (e.g. ocean 
plastic, recycled Nylon, 
recycled cotton, recycled 
wool, and recycled used 
tyres). 

(cid:129)  Negative consumer 

perceptions of 
recycled fibres 
(e.g. perception of 
lower quality and 
performance) 
(cid:129)  Lack of recycling 
practices and 
recycling 
technology 
innovation when 
starting out in 
2009 compared to 
other European 
countries. 

(cid:129)  Extract a raw material 

(cid:129)  Lack of private 

(cid:129)  Developing investor 

from a non-rival industrial 
by-product which has 
disposal costs associated 
with it.  

(cid:129)  Satisfy the growing 

demand for cellulose 
fibres for textile use, 
preserving natural 
resources, without 
producing industrial 
waste. 

sector willingness 
to invest in 
alternative fibres 
with low 
technology 
readiness level 
(TRL). 

(cid:129)  Operating in an 

industry (cellulose) 
which has been 
missing in Italy for 
about 20 years. 

awareness campaign / 
capacity building to improve 
their literacy regarding 
circular and sustainable 
fashion technologies and 
innovations. 

(cid:129)  Developing an international 

research database of 
research activities on 
different materials to 
encourage collaboration and 
synergies between actors 
within the sector.  

53 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

Case Study 

Country 

Business 
Model 

Key Sustainable 
/Circular Practices 

Key Challenges 

Key Policy 
Recommendations 

Fashion 
Revolution 

United 
Kingdom 
/ Global 

(cid:129)  Fashion Revolution is 

represented globally in 
more than 90 countries 
by a network of voluntary 
country representatives 
and country teams. 

Global 
campaigning 
organization 
with a vision of 
a fashion 
industry that 
gives equal 
value to people, 
environment, 
creativity and 
profit. 

n
g
i
a
p
m
a
C
/
O
G
N

(cid:129)  Production is often pushed 
just outside the borders of 
the EU, to countries where 
issues with tax barriers and 
lack of access to information 
inhibit responsiveness to 
sustainability developments 
in the rest of the EU. For 
these reasons, cross-country 
connections within Europe as 
physical, rather than political 
region should be fostered. 

(cid:129)  Securing sufficient 
funding for Fashion 
Revolution teams 
that support local 
awareness building 
and education 
initiatives across 
the world. 

(cid:129)  Political borders 

are creating 
barriers and 
stumbling blocks in 
terms of progress 
for the sustainable 
development  
agenda. 

Table 5: Cross Case Analysis of Case Studies 

54 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
5. DISCUSSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS 

5.1  Current  provision  to  support  sustainability  and  circularity  in  fashion  and 
textiles, with relevance to SMEs 

In  the  years  since  the  UN  Framework  Convention  on  Climate  Change  (UNFCCC  1992), 
and the more recent 2015 Paris Agreement were  established, awareness of the need to 
find  sustainable  solutions  to  the  endemically  wasteful  fashion  system  has  grown 
significantly. For more than a decade, calls to action have been stimulated by a range of 
collaborative public and private initiatives based in the EU and USA. Notable are the UK 
government’s  Sustainable  Clothing  Action  Plan  (2007  now  managed  by  WRAP  –  Waste 
Resources  Action  Programme)  Denmark’s  Global  Fashion  Agenda  (arising  from  Nordic 
Initiative Clean and Ethical 2009 ongoing), Sweden’s public and industry-funded MISTRA 
Future  Fashion  programme  (2011-19)  and 
industry/academic 
organisation  Sustainable  Apparel  Coalition  (2011  ongoing).  Specifically  related  to 
promoting a circular economy, the UK-based Ellen MacArthur Foundation (established in 
2010) has produced influential reports in relation to the textile and clothing industry, as 
have  international  environmental  NGOs  Greenpeace  and  the  World  Wildlife  Fund.  The 
business  advocacy  group  and  NGO  Ecopreneur  (established  in  2016)  has  presented 
cross-sectoral  perspectives  regarding  the  adoption  of  circular  economy  principles  across 
the  EU,  and  has  recently  reported  on  fashion  and  textiles  specifically  (Ecopreneur.eu, 
2019).  The  current  European  Clothing  Action  Plan  (2016-19)  is  funded  by  the  EU  LIFE 
programme  for  environmental  action,  and  specifically  tackles  the  entire  life  cycle  of 
clothing production, consumption and disposal.  

the  US-initiated 

In order to achieve the largest potential impact across the mainstream fashion industry, 
most  sustainability  initiatives  have  necessarily  focused  on  working  with  major  fashion 
brands  and  textile  manufacturers,  some  of  whom  have  become  key  sponsors  of 
sustainability networks and activities, including H&M (supporting MISTRA Future Fashion) 
and C&A Foundation (supporting Fashion for Good and Fashion Revolution). However as 
mentioned  in  section  1,  the  fashion  and  textile  sector  comprises  90%  small  businesses 
with  under  50  employees,  86%  of  which  are  micro  businesses  with  less  than  10 
employees  (Interview  with  Euratex,  2019).  The  agility  and  capacity  of  fashion  SMEs  for 
design and innovation, particularly in testing alternative business models and design for 
circularity/  sustainability  agendas  has  potential  for  a  transformation  of  the  industry 
towards sustainable and circular systems.  These SME/academic collaborations have only 
recently  begun  to  attract  significant  research  attention  or  research  funding.  Several  EU 
projects  relevant  to  and  engaging  with  fashion  and  textiles  SMEs  have  recently  been 
funded, including Textiles and Clothing Business Labs (TCBL), WORTH Partnership, WEAR 
Sustain and the UK-funded Fashioning Sustainable Practices. For an overview of current 
and recent research projects including fashion and textiles enterprises, Fashion Tech and 
sustainability/circularity please refer to Annex 7.4. 

This  report  identifies  a  range  of  organisations,  initiatives  and  funding  schemes  (public, 
private, and collaborative) currently available to support SMEs in fashion and textiles to 
develop their businesses, however only a limited number focus specifically on stimulating 
engagement with sustainability and circular business models within the sector. Examples 
include Centre for Sustainable Fashion and Centre for Circular Design at University of the 
Arts  London,  UK  and  the  new  Fashion  Textiles  2030  project  at  University  of  Boras 
Sweden, following on from the MISTRA Future Fashion project. 

55

 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

Public and Private Funding Schemes across the EU 

It  is  pertinent  to  find  that,  apart  from  one  flagship  case  of  Regione  Lombardia  (Italy), 
there  are  no  specific  funding  schemes  to  finance  the  transition  to  sustainable 
fashion.  However,  there  are  several  funding  programmes,  especially  at  EU  level,  to 
support  research, 
innovation  and  demonstration  of  environmental  technologies, 
manufacturing  digital  transformation,  biomaterials,  low-carbon  technologies  and  circular 
economy  initiatives  more  broadly.  Within  these  programmes  fashion-sustainability 
projects  can  be  proposed  seeking  support  for  research  and  technology  development  for 
more environmentally sustainable manufacturing processes and materials for textiles and 
clothing applications, as well as for training and networking. Across the EU, a significant 
number  of  research  and  development  projects  and  initiatives  are  in  process  especially 
regarding  alternative  fibres  that  will  help  close  the  loop  for  textiles  resources.  Many  of 
these involve collaboration funded both by public and private sources. For example, H&M 
Foundation  have  sponsored  5  annual  rounds  of  their  Global  Change  Awards  for 
innovation in sustainability and circularity that attract several thousand entries per year 
and supports 5 start-ups annually. The C&A Foundation offers a very substantial range of 
grants to support sustainability in the fashion sector globally, across the value chain, and 
recently  created  a  specific  focus  on  circularity.  Oher  private  funders  of  sustainability 
projects  from  the  US  fashion  sector  include  the  VF  Corporation  and  Nike  who  fund  the 
Launch award. Additionally, in the fast-growing specialist area of FashionTech, a number 
of accelerator and incubator schemes are in place (see database in Annex 7.2), however 
only  one  short  EU-funded  research  project,  WEARSustain  has  dealt  specifically  with 
sustainability  issues  in  this  emerging  fashion  and  technology  sector,  which  requires 
implementation of a design for sustainability approach in order to prevent the creation of 
new hybrid waste streams. Support in the area of design and sustainability is noticeably 
lacking  as  is  support  of  collaborative  practices  and  networks  across  SMEs  and  between 
SMEs and related sectors.  

A  detailed  overview  of  funding  schemes  and  opportunities  that  are  relevant  to  fashion 
and  textiles  sector,  across  the  EU  and  in  19  EU  countries,  is  given  in  Annex  7.5. 
Countries  specifically  included  at  national  level  are  UK,  Ireland,  Germany,  Norway, 
Sweden,  Spain,  Portugal,  Italy,  France,  Belgium  (Flanders),  Netherlands,  Slovenia, 
Croatia,  Lithuania,  Estonia,  Malta,  Poland,  Czech  Republic,  Hungary.    As  the  funding 
landscape is scattered at EU, national and regional level, it has been challenging to 
achieve  a  comprehensive  analysis  covering  all  28  EU  Member  and  Associated 
countries in the time available.  Many funding schemes are generic, in which fashion, 
textiles and sustainability can be specified, and some funding opportunities are one-
off calls or projects proposed within existing schemes and not opportunities regularly 
scheduled.  

Other types of support   

Several  networks  including  Global  Fashion  Agenda,  Sustainable  Apparel  Coalition  and 
Textile  Exchange  have  brought  together  major  industry  players  to  make  commitments 
who  have  the  market  power  to  shift  industry  practices.  However,  targets  set  are  still 
relatively  modest  and  operate  within  existing  business  growth  strategies.  The  recent 
Manifesto  for  a  Circular  Economy  in  Textiles  signed  by  Euratex,  FESI  (Federation  of  the 

56

 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

European  Sporting  Goods  Industry),  Global  Fashion  Agenda,  International  Apparel 
Coalition  and  Sustainable  Apparel  Coalition  demands  policy  incentives  for  fashion  and 
textiles  sectors  and  its  supporting  infrastructure  to  further  advance  circular  practices 
(Euratex, FESI, GFA, IAC & SAC, 2019). 

Many  short-term  networks  and  projects  have  been  funded,  but  longer-term  funding  is 
required.  Key  recent  initiatives  have  been  set  up  with  private  corporations,  notably  the 
C&A  Foundation,  who  funded  Fashion  for  Good  and  other  projects  to  stimulate  new 
developments.  Among  the  most  recent  is  the  Switching  Gear  pilot  network  set  up  to 
accelerate  re-commerce  and  rental  business  models.  The  project  is  jointly  run  by  Circle 
Economy  and  Fashion  for  Good  as  a  part  of  the  EUR  1.29  million  ‘Bridging  the  Gap’ 
initiative  set  up  by  C&A  Foundation.  Founding members  include  US  brand  Eileen  Fisher, 
Swedish  brand  MUD  Jeans  (see  Case  Study  2,  Annex  7.3)  and  Reflaunt,  a  reselling 
service system start-up for brands, based in London and Singapore. 

5.2 Findings from literature and scoping interviews 

The  literature  review,  desk  research,  expert  interviews  and  mapping  presented  in 
sections 2 and 3 have summarised the state of the art in the sector, including emerging 
trends.  What  becomes  evident  from  the  review  of  the  literature  related  to  the 
opportunities  and  challenges 
implement  and  scale 
sustainable/circular business models is that the academic literature is only just emerging 
– illustrated by the research projects which have recently concluded (e.g. TCBL, MISTRA 
Future  Fashion)  and  those  research  projects  just  starting  (FSP,  REFREAM,  DEFINE  and 
others), outlined in Annex 7.3.  

facing  SMEs  seeking 

to 

There  is  increasing  recognition  within  the  sector  that  systemic  interventions  throughout 
the  lifecycle  of  garments  is  pivotal  for  the  transition  to  a  sustainable/circular  fashion 
industry.  

Key emerging trends identified relate to:  

1.  extending  clothing  lifetimes  through  better  care  and  “sharing  economy”  models, 

including repair, rental and resale 

2.  the  personalisation  and  customization  of  clothing  and 

footwear  through 

digitalization to encourage longer use through direct consumer engagement  

3.  the  integration  of  FashionTech  into  clothing  to  enhance  multi-functionality  and 

increase usefulness and delight 

4.  small scale localized production and consumption that offers distinction through its 
understanding  of  and  proximity  to  markets  and  access  to  locally  relevant 
resources 

In  addition,  the  role  of  the  consumer  in  any  transition  cannot  be  underestimated  –  a 
paradigm shift in terms of how consumers shop for, use and care for garments is crucial. 
Consumers  are  demonstrating  growing  concern  relating  to  fashion’s  negative  impacts; 
both  consumers  and  NGOs  such  as  Greenpeace  and  Fashion  Revolution  are  putting 
retailers  and  brands  under  increased  pressure  for  transparency  throughout  the  value 
chain.   

It is clear that many of the challenges facing fashion SMEs relate to the fact that they are 
operating in a sector which favours larger actors and rapid growth models (See Table 1). 

57

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

This  impacts  their  ability  to  source  new  sustainable  fibres  and  materials  in  small 
quantities  at  reasonable  costs;  it  also  hinders  their  access  to  innovative  technological 
solutions and to manufacturing facilities. The financial hurdles associated with accessing 
capital to fund alternative circular business models (for example PSS models or investing 
in new technologies) and managing cash flow whilst becoming price competitive in order 
to compete with mainstream brands cannot be underestimated.  

From  the  scoping  interviews  with  the  experts  it  emerges  that  there  are  gaps  in  the 
provision  of  support  for  SMEs  that  wish  to  transition  toward  sustainability  or  circularity. 
However,  in  Northern  Europe  there  are  significantly  fewer  gaps  than  in  Central  and 
Southern  Europe.  By  contrast,  in  Eastern  Europe  gaps  in  the  provision  of  support  for 
SMEs tend to be much more pronounced. All country experts identify a lack of education 
in sustainability concepts and suitable professional/advisory bodies to provide mentoring 
schemes.  

Additionally, the experts reported a lack of incentives from governments (such as grants, 
tax  reductions,  coherent  policies),  and  lack  of  dedicated  legislation  to  support 
sustainability. Making sustainable fashion is often expensive, with higher costs associated 
with  sustainable  materials  plus  re-shoring  and  localised  manufacturing,  so  legislation 
could  be  introduced  to  financially  reward  businesses  for  the  use  of  recycled  and 
sustainable  materials,  renewable  energies, 
low 
environmental  impact  in  their  operations,  all  of  which  could  make  sustainability  more 
price competitive.  

local  production  and  achieving 

The  lack  of  available  information  on  both  sustainable  practices  and  potential  partners 
often  results  in  the  continuation  of  obsolete  and  unsustainable  practices.  To  overcome 
the  hurdle  for  SMEs  of  finding  outlets  for  sustainable  fashion,  there  is  need  for  local, 
national  and  regional  networking  platforms  to  connect  sustainable  fashion  brands  with 
retailers  who  would  sell  their  product.  Additionally,  public  information  and  consumer 
campaigns  by  trade  associations  can  promote  local/regional  providers,  raise  consumer 
awareness and facilitate transition to sustainability.  

Key Enablers 

The  research  has  highlighted  existing  recommendations  for  tools  and  policies  that  can 
incentivise and enable the transition to sustainable / circular business models by reducing 
barriers to entry for SMEs and new ventures (see Table 2).  

These key enablers relate to: 

  Economic instruments   

tax incentives, grants and subsidies for sustainable initiatives 
carbon taxes and penalties for non-sustainable operations 

 
 
  appropriate  finance  and  grants,  including  repayable  finance  and  patient 

capital 

 

Information flows 

 
 

improving textiles collection and recycling statistics and reporting  
creating knowledge sharing platforms and networks connecting sustainable 
businesses with markets and funding opportunities 

  education for sustainability  
  public information campaigns 

58

 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

  Regulatory instruments 

creating clear end-of-waste criteria for textiles to enable reuse 

 
  mandatory EPR Schemes  
  harmonising regulations across EU states and removing administrative 

barriers 

  Technological developments 

  Access to design and manufacturing tools  
 

Information on and access to emerging R&D e.g. textile recycling 

  Collaboration and mentoring schemes 

  enhanced collaboration of small and larger players 
  alignment of values across the supply chain 
  dedicated mentoring for fashion start-ups    

5.3 Analysis and Insights from Case Studies 

From the case study interviews, it is clear that whilst there are many positive attributes 
to adopting sustainable practices (such as individual agency and empowerment, influence 
and  impact)  companies  embedding  sustainability  and  circularity  in  their  operations  face 
similar  key  challenges  and  common  issues.  These  include  (1)  the  current  industry 
infrastructure, which often is not adequate for their practices in terms of predisposition 
to  innovation  and  change;  (2)  consumer  behaviour,  which  often  shows  a  dichotomy 
between  what  people  want  –  to  be  sustainable  –  and  how  they  behave  –  buying  many 
items at a low price and changing them frequently, therefore continuing to follow the fast 
fashion  paradigm  resulting  in  overconsumption;  (3)  current  production  processes, 
which  are  not  updated  to  integrate  sustainability  as  they  are  still  based  on  old 
conceptions of working practices; and (4) access to support networks and knowledge 
and to appropriate financing approaches over different stages of a business.  

The  geographical,  socio-cultural,  and  political  context  influences  how  businesses  work, 
for example there are clear differences between Northern Europe (e.g. Finland, Denmark, 
Sweden,  UK)  and  Eastern  Europe  (e.g.  Romania,  Poland,  Estonia)  with  regard  to  the 
infrastructural and industrial level of development that many Eastern European countries 
are still setting up. 

Emerging themes   

for  technological 

The  following  themes  emerged  from  the  case  studies  encompassing:  the  vision  and 
ethos  of  the  businesses  towards  sustainability  (including  resourcefulness  and 
experimentation); the importance of appropriate financial support and incentives, 
and  support 
innovation;  access  to  markets;  access  to 
sustainable/recycled  materials;  access  to  networks  and  knowledge  regarding 
sustainable  and  circular  practices,  including  mentoring;  formal  recognition  of  good 
practices  within  companies  working  toward  circularity  and  sustainability;  increasing 
consumer  education  regarding  sustainability  and  extending  this  to  all  actors  in  the 
value chain; incentivising and enabling the  increasing use of recycled materials; a 
paradigm shift in current cultures of over-production and over-consumption to decrease 
throughput of fashion items.  

Resourcefulness and Experimentation  

59

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

Case study companies show high levels of resourcefulness aiming to minimise the waste 
that  they  create  in  material  and  other  resource  terms  (at  various  stages  of  production 
and consumption). Currently, beyond the economic incentive for reducing the value lost 
through  waste,  which  is  often  difficult  to  calculate,  there  is  no  other  incentive  for 
engaging  creatively  in  extreme  resourcefulness.  If  companies  producing  waste  were 
penalised  for  doing  so  and  the  penalties  used  to  reward  resourcefulness,  this  would 
create incentives on both sides (Elvis & Kresse, Rifò, REDU) 

Experimentation is key to innovation and those businesses able to engage in an iterative 
process of conceive, test, and refine - ie to be in constant ‘beta’ - are able to respond to 
changes in the market and use a learning over time model. This on-going R&D needs to 
be  supported  and  the  lessons  learnt  to  be  shared  with  others  (Rifò,  Orange  Fiber, 
Unmade, Elvis & Kresse). 

Financial support, incentives and enablers  

The financial enablers which helped the organisations to get off the ground are of crucial 
importance. Both public and private actors have provided initial capital to the businesses, 
but  this  is  often  limited  to  the  initial  phase  of  the  company’s  development,  due  to  the 
uncertainty linked to investing in innovation. Investment needs to change over time and 
utilising  patient  capital,  extended  over  a  longer  period  would  support  many  SMEs. 
Several  case  studies  report  the  necessity  of  the  founders  utilising  their  own  financial 
resources  as  there  was  no  alternative.  The  lack  of  case  histories  as  precedents  and  the 
uncertainty of performance predictions is a very strong deterrent to investment, requiring 
vision  and  trust.  This  also  points  to  the  need  for  education  on  sustainability,  circularity 
and related models for the various actors in the supply chain. – (see Ecoalf, re:newcell, 
Orange Fiber, VEJA, Unmade, Stanley/Stella ). 

The  low  level  of  both  awareness  and  demand  for  sustainable  fashion  from  the  current 
consumer  market  deeply  influences  business  development  in  terms  of  investment  and 
profits.  In  this  transitional  phase,  where  the  market  regarding  sustainability  and 
circularity  is  still  in  development,  the  policy-making  institutions  and  investors  play  a 
leading role. They should support and incentivise the growth of sustainable practices and 
pioneering  start-ups  in  fashion,  in  a  similar  way  to  the  tech  industry,  through  grant 
funding  of  disruptive  innovation.  Institutions  must  adopt  policies  which  guarantee 
incentives,  tax  cuts,  or  streamlining  the  more  bureaucratic  procedures  for  those  who 
adopt  sustainable/circular  practices  (see  Orange  Fiber,  REDU,  Unmade,  MUD  Jeans, 
re:newcell). 

The  dual  challenges  of  development  and  application  of  technological  innovation  are 
evident in a range of businesses that are developing sustainability practices. It is critical 
to  combine  support  for  product  service  systems  where  both  technological  development 
and  fashion  design  development  are  required  –  these  elements  are  currently  often 
funded separately. (Ecoalf, Orange Fiber, re:newcell, Unmade). 

Access to markets  

Case  study  companies  are  based  on  slow  fashion  values,  which  encourage  more 
appropriate  production  times  (compared  to  fast  fashion  cycles),  fair  wages,  localised 
production, lower carbon emissions and, ideally, zero waste. These businesses are adding 

60

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

transparency to their production process and educating consumers about sustainability in 
fashion. But in the contemporary context, without a large distribution, it is difficult for a 
business to establish itself in the market. Considering this, it is clear that other types of 
support,  which  support  innovation  to  rethink  distribution  and  access  relevant  markets, 
are also needed. 

Access to networks and knowledge 

The  need  to  create  an  international  network  that  brings  together  the  various  players  in 
the market, within the supply chain, and that can create synergies to support the growth 
and  development  of  the  sector.  Also,  case  companies  report  the  need  to  educate  the 
different  actors  (from  the  manufacturer  to  the  customers)  to  switch  towards  a  model 
which  can  be  a  valid  alternative  to  the  fast-fashion  paradigm  (see  Orange  Fiber,  VEJA, 
Elvis  &  Kresse,  Unmade).  This  could  happen  through  awareness  campaigns  which 
consider  sustainability,  and  circularity,  especially  targeting  the  younger  generation  who 
have  recently  demonstrated  their  interest  in  and  sensitivity  to  these  topics,  through 
actions such as school strikes for climate action, and Extinction Rebellion protests.  

Paradigm shift in consumption 

There  is little  space  for  sustainability in  the  current  production  and  consumption  model.  
Some  companies  explain  how  their  practices  seem  insignificant  and  isolated  in  the 
absence of transformation at a systems and process level. They stress that it makes no 
sense to use innovative materials, even if they are 100% sustainable, if the processes to 
realize  them  do  not  meet  these  standards  and  continue  to  be  based  on  unsustainable 
models.  A  paradigm  shift,  that  is  reflected  in  the  implementation  of  a  different  demand 
and  consumption  model,  is  crucial  for  the  market  (see  MUD  Jeans,  Ecoalf,  Rifò,  REDU, 
Unmade). 

Enabling the increasing use of recycled materials 

There  is  little  interest  from  or  incentive  for  fashion  manufacturers  in  using  recycled 
materials.  Even  if  the  theme  has  become  mainstream,  it  often  translates  into  simple 
story-telling  actions  and  does  not  move  on  to  the  next  stage  of  implementation.  The 
investment  required  into  changing  the  supply  of  recycled  materials  must  be  recognised 
and  supported  across  the  supply  chain.  Policy  can  have  a  fundamental  role  in  driving 
industries  towards  this sustainable,  and  circular,  transformation.  This  could  be  achieved 
through  incentives  and  regulation  in  support  of  the  knowledge,  production,  and  use  of 
recycled materials (see Ecoalf, Elvis & Kresse). 

Legislative  levers  and  barriers  regarding  resources  vary  across  Europe  with  some 
countries mandating no waste to landfill policies, whilst others make it difficult for fashion 
businesses to use waste materials or upcycle materials from other industries. There is a 
need  to  extend  the  levers  and  remove  the  barriers  that  enable  or  restrict  the  use  of 
waste, or other second-life materials and harmonise legislation.  

Recognition of good practices. 

The  accountability  of large  businesses  relies  on  the  use  of  certifications,  membership  of 
alliances  and  accords  etc.  whereas  many  of  the  SMEs  interviewed  demonstrate  that 

61

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

accountability  and  trust  can  be  more  accurately  measured  through  the  personal 
engagement of the team in the production and consumption cycle of fashion. There is a 
gap  between  what  is  recognised  as  sustainability  in  accountability  terms  and  what  is 
demonstrated  by  these  companies  –  this  is  an  area  in  need  of  further  investigation, 
together  with  incentivisation  from  legislation  appropriate  to  small  businesses.    (MUD 
Jeans, Elvis & Kresse, VEJA, Stanley/Stella) 

62

 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

5.4 Conclusions and Recommendations 

Enablers for SMEs to adopt more sustainable and circular economy business models 

From  the  three  tasks  -  literature  review  and  desk  research,  expert  interviews  and  case 
studies - the challenges faced by SMEs wishing to adopt more sustainable and/or circular 
economy business practices have become evident.  The below table outlines some of the 
key  issues  and  challenges  identified,  and  correlates  these  with  the  enablers  that  SMEs 
and experts suggest to make a concrete impact on transforming the textiles and fashion 
sector towards a more sustainable and circular economy.  

These are categorized for ease of reference into five main areas: issues related to:  

1) market,  
2) finance,  
3) knowledge, networks and resources,  
4) operational and supply chain,  
5) policy and regulation.   

The  categories  are  not  absolute,  and  some  issues  inevitably  cross  these  categories.  
Some  of  the  enablers  are  highly  cultural,  necessitating  a  paradigm  shift  in  the  way 
business is conducted in the fashion sector, others are more specific and granular. Some 
actions are already underway but need to harmonised across the entire EU.  

Challenges/Needs 

Competition with high volume/low 
cost companies 

Access and affordability of 
sustainable and innovative 
materials – min volume orders 

Consumer awareness of social and 
environmental issues linked to the 
industry 

t
e
k
r
a
M

Cultural acceptance of recycled 
fibres new business models such as 
leasing, rental or reselling 

Finding own voice and establishing 
strong position in the market 

Competitive pricing enabled by 
economy of scale 

Support for innovation 

Incentives/Enablers  
(cid:129)  Paradigm shift regarding speed, volume and 

fair price for fashion 

(cid:129)  Awareness campaigns on environmental, 

social and personal benefits of slower pace 
of fashion consumption (directed on young 
consumers in particular) 

(cid:129)  Collaboration between brands, suppliers and 
producers to enhance cohesion of the value 
chain - innovating together to make 
sustainable and innovative solutions more 
widely available 

(cid:129)  Smaller players to create networks and 

cooperatives to access materials and better 
promotion options 

(cid:129)  Large players to drive change by setting 

example and creating demand for 
sustainable materials in the market 
(cid:129)  Mandatory or industry agreements on 

minimum price points 

(cid:129)  Funding schemes/economic instruments to 
support new model until it reaches volumes 
that enable economies of scale 
(cid:129)  Funded competitions and awards to 

encourage start-ups, but with longer term 
support and patient funding 

63

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

Challenges/Needs 

Incentives/Enablers  
(cid:129)  Paradigm shift from the current model in 

Cost of production - high social and 
environmental standards 
(materials, certification, fair labour 
etc.) 

(cid:129) 

which low price relies on externalizing true 
costs of production through offshoring 
Incentives and regulations to support those 
following high social and environmental 
standards and penalizing those who do not 

Slow income generation and cash 
flow uncertainty 

Funding for alternative business 
models beyond start up stage 

Awareness of existing financing 
options 

Access to dedicated support 
networks and sustainability 
information, materials research 

Access to showcase opportunities 

Peer to peer collaboration and 
knowledge sharing 

Lack of entrepreneurial mindset 
and business skills 

l
a
i
c
n
a
n
i
F

s
e
c
r
u
o
s
e
R
d
n
a

s
k
r
o
w
t
e
N

,
e
g
d
e
l
w
o
n
K

(cid:129)  Subsidized certifications and supply chain 

traceability labels for brands 

(cid:129)  Long-term subsidies for alternative business 
models to mitigate uncertainty that deters 
traditional investors – e.g. through public 
and private funding schemes 

(cid:129)  Publicly funded training programs for the 

finance sector to enable better 
understanding of the specifics of 
sustainable/circular business models 

(cid:129)  Easy access to training on financing options 
through professional networks and trade 
organizations, with options for affordable 
long-term consultancy and mentoring (e.g. 
help with grant and tender applications) 

(cid:129)  Access to subsidised regional knowledge 
hubs and EU cross-sector knowledge 
exchange networks 

(cid:129)  Encourage building specific 

(cid:129) 

sustainability/circular fashion business 
support networks and mentoring schemes 
(both on regional and EU level) 
Improving links between creative and 
business education at HE institutions 
(cid:129)  Develop education to build knowledge of 
design for sustainability and circularity 
(cid:129)  Encouraging collaboration between large 

and small players – e.g. piloting innovative 
start up solutions within larger businesses 
that can generate revenue for further 
development of these start-ups and help 
with building business skills 

64

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
n
i
a
h
c

y
l

p
p
u
S
/

l
a
n
o
i
t
a
r
e
p
O

s
n
o

i
t
a
l
u
g
e
R
d
n
a

y
c
i
l

o
P

Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

Challenges/Needs 

Adequate suppliers of sustainable 
and innovative materials 

Supply chain transparency 

Incentives/Enablers  
(cid:129) 

Incentives for producers to experiment with 
and offer sustainable material options 

(cid:129)  Encouraging alignment of values across the 
value chain through fostering long-term 
collaborative innovation that benefits all 
parties and also improves transparency 
Investment in re-skilling of fashion and 
textile workers through a wider range of 
vocational and HE education options 

(cid:129) 

Fair trade labour facilities 

Skilled and affordable manufacture 
facilities that would enable 
reshoring clothing production 

Infrastructure for reuse and 
recycling 

Lack of harmonization of rules and 
legislation across the EU and 
beyond, particularly regarding 
textile waste management and 
reuse 

Administrative barriers 

(cid:129) 

(cid:129)  Lowering business rates in cities to enable 
clustering of mutually beneficial operations 
that link design-supply-and production 
Investment in and subsidies of textile waste 
management 
Investment in R&D to advance and scale up 
technologies for sorting and chemical 
recycling 

(cid:129) 

(cid:129)  Harmonizing regulations such as end of 

waste criteria 

(cid:129)  Removing administrative barriers for start-

(cid:129) 

(cid:129) 

(cid:129) 

ups and SMEs 
Introduction of mandatory Extended 
Producer Responsibility schemes to 
encourage circular thinking across the value 
chain (while considering lessons from the 
French ECO-TLC scheme and investing in 
recycling to ensure sufficient capacity) 
Incentives through tax reductions such as 
0% VAT on repair services or second-hand 
items to support reuse, tax shifts from 
labour to resource use 
Introduction of levies such as charges per 
each garment produced to be re-invested in 
improving clothing collection and sorting 
facilities  

(cid:129)  Mandatory or industry agreements on 

required % of recycled materials in all new 
products to enhance economic viability of 
textile recycling, possibly to be pioneered 
by the largest players (e.g. H&M) 

65

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

Challenges/Needs 

Insufficient incentives for 
environmentally and socially 
responsible players 

Incentives/Enablers  
(cid:129)  Rewards for innovative design-led 

integration of waste and deadstock and tax 
for materials with high CO2 emissions 

(cid:129)  Voluntary adoption of Product 

Environmental Footprints (PEF) 
(cid:129)  EU and member state governments’ 

commitments to Green Public Procurement 
and Circular Procurements  

Table  5:  Overview  of  key  findings  on  challenges  and  enablers  for  fashion  SMEs  in 
adopting sustainable/circular business models.  

The  fashion  and  textile  industries  remain  a  vital  element  of  industry  and  society, 
providing  livelihoods  and  a  major  share  of  GDP  globally.  However,  as  is  widely 
acknowledged, 
levels  of  overproduction  and 
overconsumption  has  contributed  significantly  to  accelerating  climate  change,  depletion 
of natural resources and loss of biodiversity. A greater sense of urgency is now pervading 
the  industry  with  a  growing  number  of  initiatives,  networks,  and  events  targeted  at 
solutions for a more circular and sustainable economy for fashion and textiles.  

the  current  model  of 

increasing 

During the preparation of this report, the findings of the research have been triangulated 
as  each  of  the  three  tasks  were  implemented.    The  research  first  identified  current 
opinion and policy recommendations contained in the academic and grey literature. Much 
of  this  has  only  recently  emerged,  as  momentum  has  built  towards  concrete  actions  in 
the  face  of  the  impending  environmental  crisis  that  the  UN  COP  2015  Paris  Agreement 
aims to mitigate. Consequently, key research focused on sustainability and circularity in 
fashion  and  textiles  industries  is  either  recently  completed  (MISTRA,  TCBL,  Resyntex, 
Trash2Cash,  WEAR  Sustain)  or  currently  in  progress  (FSP,  WORTH  Partnership, 
REFREAM) as outlined in Annex 7.4. Results from these projects will begin to impact the 
sector and contribute to change in the immediate future. 

The  mapping  of  current  organizations  and  activities  either  operating  as  or  supporting 
SMEs  towards  adopting  sustainable  and  circular  business  was  created  from  both  desk-
based  research,  and  interviews  with  43  academic  and  industry  experts  across  28  EU 
member states. From this activity we identified a database of over 400 entries, as shown 
visually  in  section  3  and  given  in  detail  in  Annex  7.2.  As  described  in  section  3.3  and 
evident  from  the  diagrams,  there  are  clear  regional  differences  in  the  levels  of  current 
activity,  as  shown  by  the  relative  numbers  of  SMEs  already  working  with  sustainability 
goals  and/or  aiming  to  achieve  circularity  in  the  use  of  textile  and  clothing  resources 
(diagram1).    The  Eastern  European  countries,  and  also  those  where  the  industry  is 
focused more on production for the global industry, show the smallest concentrations of 
sustainable  fashion  SMEs  and  designers/brands.  The  highest  concentrations  of  SMEs 
working with sustainability and /or circularity were found from our research to be in the 
Netherlands and the UK. 

Many  of  the  important  supporting  networks  for  transformation  in  the  fashion  industry, 
whether  major  industry-led  (GFA  and  SAC)  or  campaign-led  (Ellen  MacArthur  and 

66

 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

Fashion Revolution) have emerged in Northern Europe and the US over the last decade, 
with  the  UK,  Nordic  countries  and  The  Netherlands  taking  a  clear  lead  in  Europe  (see 
Diagram  3).    As  SAC  and  GFA  are  working  with  large  global  brands,  their  influence  is 
spreading  beyond  Europe,  and  further  consortia  are  being  built  between  EU  and 
international  trade  associations.  For  example,  in  May  2019,  a  Manifesto  for  Circular 
Economy  Textiles  was  released  by  a  consortium  comprising  Euratex,  GFA,  SAC, 
Federation  of  the  European  Sporting  Goods  Industry  and  International  Apparel 
Federation. Strengths in fashion education for sustainability and circular design are seen 
in  the  UK,  The  Netherlands,  Denmark  and  Sweden,  consolidated  in  a  new  EU  Erasmus 
funded  research  project  FashionSEEDS  currently  underway  between  EU  partners  UAL 
(UK), Politecnico di Milano (IT), Design School Kolding (DK) and Estonian School of Arts 
(EE), due to finish in 2021 (see Annex 7.4). 

The  aim  of  true  textiles  circularity  is  to  transform  waste  textiles  into  new  textiles  and 
products of equal or higher value. Several case studies demonstrate this: re:newcell aims 
to facilitate true textile to textile circularity by chemical recycling of cotton textile waste 
into new fibre of the same quality as virgin fibre. RiFò, MUD Jeans, REDU, Elvis & Kresse 
and  VEJA  reuse  and  upcycle  textile  or  leather  waste  from  the  fashion  industry  into  new 
fashion products. MUD Jeans use between 23% and 40% recycled post-consumer denim 
from jeans in their new jeans, and RiFò use 100% post-consumer recycled cashmere (a 
high value material) in their new cashmere knitwear and 100% post-consumer  recycled 
denim  made  in  to  yarns  for  their  unique  denim  knitwear.    Three  case  studies  Elvis  & 
Kresse,  Ecoalf  and  Orange  Fiber  repurpose  waste  from  different  industry  sectors  (fire 
hose and parachutes, orange waste, plastic waste) into textiles and fashion to transform 
a useless waste product into a material or product with new value.  

However  according  to  our  interviewees,  there  are  still  clear  barriers  for  true  textile 
recycling that need to be overcome and harmonized at the EU level in order to incentivise 
the transition to a circular economy where the concept of waste can be truly eliminated.  

It is also evident that circular systems alone are not sufficient to solve the current state 
of overproduction and overconsumption within the fashion and textiles sectors. Consumer 
education  and  a  paradigm  shift  in  consumption  behaviour  are  required;  circularity  will 
only  achieve  its  goals  of  resource  conservation  and  regeneration  if  overall  throughput 
from demand and production and fundamentally reduced. 

67

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

6. BIBLIOGRAPHY  

Aakko, M. (2016). Fashion in-between. artisanal design and production of fashion. 

Helsinki: Aalto University. 

Aakko, M., & Niinimäki, K. (2018). Fashion designers as entrepreneurs: Challenges and 

advantages of micro-size companies. Fashion Practice, 10(3), 354-380.  

Accenture & Global Challenge Awards (2018) Circular x Fashion TechTrend Report 2018. 

Accenture. Authored by Perzon et al. Retrieved from 

Accenture & Fashion for Good (2019). The Future of Circular Fashion: Assessing the 

viability of circular business models. Retrieved from 

Armstrong, C.M, Niinimäki, K., Kujala, S., Karell, E. & C. Lang (2015). Sustainable 
product-service systems for clothing: Exploring consumer perceptions of 
consumption alternatives in Finland. Journal of Cleaner Production, 97, 30-39. 

Black, S. & Eckert, C. (2009). Developing considerate design: Meeting individual fashion 

and clothing needs within a framework of sustainability. In F. T. Piller, & M. M. Tseng 
(Eds.), A handbook of research in mass customisation and personalisation (pp. 813-
832). New Jersey: World Scientific Publishing. 

Black, S., Eckert, C. M., Delamore, P., Geesin, F., Harkin, S., Watkins, P. & 

Eskandarypur, F. (2009). Considerate design for personalised fashion. In T. Inns 
(Ed.), Designing for the 21st century: Interdisciplinary methods and findings (pp. 
67-86). Aldershot: Gower. 

Black, S., Edwards, M. J. & G. Miller (2015). What’s Digital about Fashion Design 

(Workshop report). EPSRC RCUK NEMODE Network + (New Economic Models in the 
Digital Economy). Retrieved from 

Black, S. (2018). Digitalisation and Sustainability. In V. Karaminas & A. Geczy (Eds.), 

The End of Fashion – Clothing and Dress in the Age of Globalization (pp. 113-131). 
London: Bloomsbury. 

Boer, C., Pedrazzoli, P., Sorlini, M. & A. Bettoni (2013). Mass Customization and 

Sustainability: An Assessment Framework and Industrial Implementation. Basel: 
Springer. 

Boiten, V.J., Li-Chou Han, S. and Tyler, D. (n.d.) Circular economy stakeholder 

perspectives: Textile collection strategies to support material circularity. Resyntex. 
Retrieved from 

Brooks, A. (2015). Clothing Poverty: the hidden world of fast fashion and second-hand 

clothes. Zed Books: London. 

Bukhari, M.A., Carrasco-Gallego, R. & C. Ponce-Cueto (2018) Developing a national 

programme for textiles and clothing recovery. Waste Management & Research, 36(4) 
321–331. Retrieved from 

Business of Fashion & McKinsey & Co (2019). The State of Fashion. Retrieved from 

68

 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

Centre for Fashion Enterprise. (2008). The UK Designer Fashion Economy. Value 

relationships – identifying barriers and creating opportunities for business growth. 
Retrieved from  

Cipola, M.A., de Roy van Zuidewijn, W. & F. Thureau (2017). Editorial to the Special 

Issue ‘Independents’, In: _zine, Online First, Retrieved from 

Commission of the European Communities (2003). Green paper: Entrepreneurship in 
Europe. COM (2003) 27 final. Retrieved from 

Common Objective (2019). Mapping the Global Fashion Industry. London, UK. Retrieved 

from 

Connor-Crabb, A., Miller, K. & J. Chapman (2016). Design strategies for the eternal 

reoccurrence of the new. Fashion Practice, 8 (1), 22-43.  

Connor-Crabb, A. (2017). Fashion Design for Longevity: Design strategies and their 
implementation in practice (Unpublished PhD thesis). University of Brighton. 

Cooper, T. (Ed.) (2010). Longer lasting products: Alternatives to the Throwaway Society. 

Farnham: Gower.  

ECAP (2018). Embedding Circular Procurement in the Purchasing of Workwear. Study 

commissioned by Rijkswaterstaat under the European Clothing Action Plan (ECAP). 
Prepared by Sustainable Global Resources Ltd. Project code: LIFE14 ENV/UK/00257. 
Retrieved from 

ECAP (2018). Used Textile Collection in European Cities. Retrieved from 

Ecopreneur.eu (2019). Circular Fashion Advocacy Strategy Towards a Circular Fashion 
Industry in Europe. European Sustainable Business Federation. Retrieved from 

Ellen MacArthur Foundation (2017). A New Textiles Economy: Redesigning Fashions 

Future. Isle of Wight, UK. Retrieved from 

Euractiv (2016). European Textiles and Fashion: Facts and Figures. Retrieved from 

Euratex (2017). Policy Brief: Prospering in the Circular Economy – The case of European 

Textile and Apparel Manufacturing Industry. Retrieved from 

Euratex, FESI, GFA, IAF & SAC (2019). A Manifesto to Deliver a Circular Economy in 

Textiles. Retrieved from 

Eurochambres (2019). The Circular Economy: Challenges, Opportunities and Pathways 

for European Businesses. Retrieved from 

Euromonitor (2016a) The New Consumerism: The Data Behind the Trends. Retrieved 

from 

Euromonitor (2016b) Fast Fashion in 2016: Industry Disruption and Geographic 

Dominance Part 1. Retrieved from 

European Clothing Action Plan (2017). Mapping Clothing Impacts in Europe: the 

environmental cost. Retrieved from 

69

 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

European Commission (n.d.). Fashion and high-end industries in the EU. Retrieved from 

European Commission (2016). Boosting the competitiveness of cultural and creative 
industries for growth and jobs. EASME/COSME/2015/003. Retrieved from 

European Commission (2017). Staff Working Document (SWD) Sustainable garment 

value chains through EU development action. Retrieved from 

European Commission (2019). Staff Working Document (SWD) Sustainable products in a 
circular economy – Towards and EU product policy framework contributing to the 
circular economy. Retrieved from 

European Commission (2019).  Final Circular Economy Package. Retrieved from 

European Parliament (2018). Expected real GDP growth for 2019 in EU Member States. 

Retrieved from 

European Parliamentary Research Service (2019). Environmental impact of the textile 
and clothing industry – what consumers need to know. Briefing Number: 633143, 
Brussels. Retrieved from 

European Skills Council (2014). Textile Clothing Leather Footwear Report. Retrieved from 

Eurostat (n.d.). Textiles and Clothing in the EU. EC.EUROPA.EU Retrieved from 

Fischer, A. & S. Pascucci (2017). Institutional incentives in circular economy transition: 

The case of material use in the Dutch textile industry. Journal of Cleaner Production, 
155 (2017) 17-32. 

Fletcher, K., & L. Grose (2012). Fashion & Sustainability: Design for change. London: 

Laurence King Publishing. 

Fletcher, K. (2012). Durability, Fashion, Sustainability: The Processes and Practices of 

Use. Fashion Practice, 4 (2): 221-238. 

Fletcher, K. & M. Tham (Eds.). (2014). Routledge handbook of sustainability and fashion. 

London, New York: Routledge. 

Fletcher, K. (2016). Craft of Use: Post-Growth Fashion. Abingdon: Routledge. 

FSP Rethinking Fashion Design Entrepreneurship: Fostering Sustainable Practices (2018-
21). Grant AH/R006768/1   https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=AH%2FR006768%2F1 

Global Fashion Agenda (2017) A Call to Action for a Circular Fashion System – Policy 

Brief. Retrieved from 

Global Fashion Agenda & Boston Consulting Group (2017) Pulse of the Fashion Industry 

2017 Retrieved from 

Global Fashion Agenda & Boston Consulting Group (2018) Pulse of the Fashion Industry 

2018 Retrieved from 

Global Fashion Agenda & Boston Consulting Group (2019) Pulse of the Fashion Industry 

2019  Update. Retrieved from 

70

 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

Greenpeace (2017) Fashion at the Crossroads.  Retrieved from 

Gu, X. (2014). Developing entrepreneur networks in the creative industries - A case 
study of independent designer fashion in Manchester. In E. Chell, & M. Karataş-
Özkan (Eds.), Handbook of research on small business and entrepreneurship (pp. 
358-373). Cheltenham: Edward Elgar Publishing. 

House of Commons Environmental Audit Committee (2019 (16)). Fixing Fashion: 

Clothing consumption and sustainability. London, UK. Retrieved from 

I:CO Company (2018). Transforming Vison into Reality. Retrieved from 

Jönsson, Ch., Levenstam Arturin, O., Hanning, A-Ch., Landin, R., Holmström, E. & S. 

Roos (2018). Microplastics Shedding from Textiles – Developing Analytical Method 
for Measurement of Shed Material Representing Release during Domestic Washing. 
Sustainability, 10 (7), 2457, 1-17. 

Kent, T. (2017). Personalisation and fashion design. In: I. Kuksa and T. Fisher (Eds.), 
Design for personalisation. Design for social responsibility series. Abingdon: 
Routledge. 

Laitala, K. & C. Boks (2012). Sustainable Clothing Design: Use matters. Journal of Design 

Research, 10 (1/2): 121 – 139.  

Maldini, I., Stappers, P.J., Gimeno-Martinez, J.C. & H.A.M. Daanen (2019). Assessing the 
impact of design strategies on clothing lifetimes, usage and volumes: The case of 
product personalisation. Journal of Cleaner Production, 210: 1414-1424. 

Mamoq (2018) Sustainable Fashion Blueprint 2018 Retrieved from 

Matthias, B. D. (2014). Wearing many hats: The forces impacting role identity changes 

over time (Interactive paper). Frontiers of Entrepreneurship Research. 34 (6), Article 
12. 

McRobbie, A. (1998). British fashion design: Rag trade or image industry? London: 

Routledge. 

McRobbie, A., Strutt, D., Bandinelli, C. & B. Springer (2016). Fashion micro-enterprises in 

London, Berlin, Milan. CREATe Working Paper 2016/13. Retrieved from 

McRobbie, A. (2016). Be creative: Making a living in the new culture industries. 

Cambridge and Malden, MA: Polity Press. 

Mills, C. (2011). Enterprise orientations: A framework for making sense of fashion sector 

start‐up. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research, 17(3), 245-
271. 

MISTRA Future Fashion (2015). Future Fashion Manifesto. Retrieved from  

MISTRA Future Fashion (2017). State of the Art in research on ‘Policy for Future Fashion’. 

Retrieved from 

MISTRA Future Fashion (2017 (2)). Field report Consumer Survey. Copenhagen Business 

School. Retrieved from 

71

 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

MISTRA Future Fashion (2017 (4)). Evaluation of business models for increased reuse, 
collective use and prolonged lifetime of textiles. IVL Svenska Miljøinstitutet. 
Retrieved from 

MISTRA Future Fashion (2017 (7)). Business Models Extending Active Lifetime of 

Garments: Supporting Policy Instruments. Plan Miljø and IVL Swedish Environmental 
Research Institute. Retrieved from  

MISTRA Future Fashion (2018 (3)). Report on geographic differences in acceptance of 

alternative business models. Copenhagen Business School: Frederiksberg. Retrieved 
from 

MISTRA Future Fashion (2018 (4)). Developments in global markets for used textiles and 
implications for reuse and recycling. IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute: 
Stockholm. Retrieved from 

MISTRA Future Fashion (2019). Sustainable fashion. Retrieved from 

MISTRA Future Fashion (2019 (1)). The Swedish market for pre-owned apparel and its 
role in moving the fashion industry towards more sustainable practices. Stockholm 
School of Economics: Stockholm. Retrieved from 

Niinimäki, K. (2013). From pleasure in use to preservation of meaningful memories: a 

closer look at the sustainability of clothing via longevity and attachment, 
International Journal of Fashion Design, Technology and Education, 6 (3), 190-199. 

Parliament UK (18.6. 2019). Government rejects recommendations to force fashion 

industry pay to clean up its act. Retrieved from 

Parliament UK (2019). Government response to the 16th report of the Environmental 

Audit Committee - Fixing Fashion: clothing consumption and sustainability. Retrieved 
from 

Pedersen, E.R.G. & M.A. Gardetti (Eds.). (2015). New Business Models for Sustainable 

Fashion [Special issue]. Journal of Corporate Citizenship, 57. 

Pedersen, E.R.G. & M.A. Gardetti (Eds.). (2015). Introduction. New Business Models for 
Sustainable Fashion [Special issue]. Journal of Corporate Citizenship, 57: 5-10. 

Pine, B.J. (1993). Mass Customisation: The New Frontier in Business Competition. 

Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press. 

Pine, B.J. & J.H. Gilmour (2011[1999]). The Experience Economy: work is theatre and 

every business a stage (2nd ed.). Boston: Harvard Business School Press. 

Rigby, E. (2016). Fashion Design and Laundry Practices: Practice orientated approaches 
to design for sustainability (Unpublished PhD thesis). University of the Arts London. 

Rreuse (2017). Reduced taxation to support re-use and repair. Brussels, Belgium. 

Retrieved from 

Salonoja, N. (2013). Bridging the equity and entrepreneurial gaps in the Finnish fashion 

industry: A comparative case study of the Swedish, Danish & Finnish fashion 
ecosystems. (Unpublished MA thesis). Aalto University. 

72

 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

SITRA & Circle Economy (2015). Service-based business models & circular strategies for 

textiles. Retrieved from 

Statista (2017). Apparel and Clothing Market Europe – Statistics and Facts. Retrieved 

from 

Thureau, F. (2017). Independent Agents of Change, In: _zine, Vol. 2, Issue 1. Retrieved 

from  

Todeschini. B.V, Cortimiglia, M.N., Callegaro-de-Menezes, D. & A. Ghezzi (2017)  

Innovative and sustainable business models in the fashion industry: Entrepreneurial 
drivers, opportunities, and challenges. Business Horizons, 60, 759—770. 

United Nations (2018). Fashion Industry Charter for Climate Action. Retrieved from 

Watson et al. (2018) Used Textile Collection in European Cities. Study commissioned by 
Rijkswaterstaat under the European Clothing Action Plan (ECAP). Retrieved from 

WRAP (2017) ECAP Mapping clothing impacts in Europe: the environmental cost. 

Retrieved from 

WRAP (2017). Valuing Our Clothes: the cost of UK fashion. Retrieved from  

WRAP (2019) Fibre to Fibre Recycling, U.K. Retrieved from 

Further reading and resources: 

Antonides, G. (Ed.). (2017). Sustainable Consumer Behaviour [Special issue], 

Sustainability, 9 (5)),  Retrieved from 

Bly, S., Gwozdz, W. & L. Reisch (2015). Exit from High Street – An exploratory study of 
sustainable fashion consumption pioneers. International Journal of Consumer 
Studies, 39 (2), 125-135. 

Chunmin, L. & C.M. Joyner Armstrong (2018). Fashion leadership and intention toward 

clothing product-service retail models. Journal of Fashion Marketing and 
Management, 22 (4): 571-587. 

Gwozdz, W., Nielsen, K.S. & T. Müller (2017). An environmental perspective on clothing 
consumption: Consumer segments and their behavioural patterns. Sustainability, 9 
(5), 762, 1-27). 

Hvass, K.K. (2013). Post-retail Responsibility of Garments – A Fashion Industry’s 

Perspective. Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management. 18 (4), 413-430. 

Hvass K.K. (2015). Business model innovation through second hand retailing: A fashion 

industry case. Journal of Corporate Citizenship, 57, 11-32. 

Norris, L. (2019). Urban prototypes: Growing local circular cloth economies. Business 

History, 61 (1), 205-224. 

73

 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

Pierson-Smith, A. & S. Evans (2017). Fashioning Green Words and Eco Language: An 

Examination of the User Perception Gap for Fashion Brands Promoting Sustainable 
Practices. Fashion Practice, 9 (3), 373-397. 

Sung, K., Cooper, T., Ramanathan, U. & J. Singh (2017). Challenges and support for 

scaling up upcycling businesses in the UK: insights from small-business 
entrepreneurs (pp. 397-401). In: C.A. BAKKER & R. MUGGE (Eds.), PLATE: Product 
Lifetimes And The Environment 2017 - Conference Proceedings (pp. 397-401). Delft 
University of Technology, Delft, The Netherlands, 8-10 November 2017. Research in 
design (9). Delft: IOS Press. 

UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (1992).Retrieved from  

Vendramin, P. (Ed.) (2010). Generations at work and social cohesion in Europe. Peter 

Lang: Brussels. 

Vendramin, P. et al. (2008). Changing social patterns of relation to work – Final synthesis 
report. Deliverable 11 of the SPReW Project (Generational approach to the social 
patterns of relation to work – for the Programme ‘Citizens and governance in the 
knowledge-based society’, under the sixth EU framework programme of R&D). 
Retrieved from 

74

 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

7.0 APPENDICES 

7.1 Annex 1 List of expert interviewees 

Organisation 
Linz University of Arts and Design 
Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp 
Flanders District of Creativity  
National Academy of Arts 
Manufaktura Design 
Fashion Revolution 

Country 
Austria 
Belgium 
Belgium 
Bulgaria 
Croatia 
Cyprus 
Czech Republic  SLOU  
Denmark 
Estonia 
Finland 
France 
France 
France 
France 
Germany 
Germany 
Greece 
Hungary 
Ireland 
Italy 
Italy 
Italy 
Latvia 
Lithuania 
Luxembourg 
Malta 
Netherlands 
Netherlands 
Netherlands 
Netherlands 
Poland 
Portugal 
Romania 
Slovakia 
Slovenia 
Spain 
Sweden 
Sweden 
UK 
UK 
UK 
EU wide 
EU wide 

Global Fashion Agenda 
Reet Aus Design 
Aalto University 
Vivarte RSE and ex Vigeo 
Ethique sur l’Etiquette 
Eco TLC 
Big Blue Project 
Hanover University of Applied Sciences and Arts 
Fashion Revolution 
SOFFA 
Innovatext Co 
National Centre for Circular Economy 
Universita' Bocconi 
Lotto Zero 
University of Bologna 
Riga Fashion Week 
Latia 
Fashion Revolution 
Fashion Revolution 
Fashion for Good 
Circle Economy  
M-ODE 
FASHIONCLASH  
Slow Fix 
Moda Lisboa 
Katty Fashion 
Slovak Fashion Council 
Fashion Revolution 
Universidad Politécnica De Valencia 
TEKO, Swedish Textile and Clothing Industry Association 
University of Boras 
Fashion Revolution 
Fashion Revolution 
Centre for Sustainable Fashion 
Euratex 
Texaid 

75

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Report – Mapping Sustainable Fashion Opportunities for SMEs 

7.2 Annex 2 Full Database of initiatives and players 
Please refer to separate appendices document (COSME_MSO_Report_Annex2) 

7.3 Annex 3 Final Case Studies  
Please refer to separate appendices document (COSME_MSO_Report_Annex3) 

01 VEJA (FR) – footwear, using sustainable materials and regional production 

02 MUD Jeans (NL) - denim sector  

03 Stanley/Stella (BE) - B2B basic clothing using sustainable materials   

04 Elvis & Kresse (UK) - luxury upcycled accessories from waste materials  

05 REDU (RO) - upcycled clothing from textile waste  

06 The Nu Wardrobe (IR) – collaborative consumption and clothes reselling  

07 RiFò (IT) – knitwear from fully recycled materials  

08 Unmade (UK) - fashion on demand software systems  

09 re:newcell (SE)- circularity: chemical recycling of cellulose textiles (cotton)  

10 Ecoalf (SP)– circularity in clothing using upcycled fabrics from ocean plastics  

11 Orange Fiber (IT) - bio waste fibres and textiles  

12  Fashion  Revolution  (UK)  -  consumer  facing  and  industry  campaigns,  focused  on 
environmental and social justice, transparency.  

7.4 Annex 4 Listing of key recent research and enterprise projects relevant to 
and engaging with SMEs in fashion and textiles 
Please refer to separate appendices document (COSME_MSO_Report_Annex4) 

7.5 Annex 5 Financial Schemes and Instruments at EU and member state level  
Please refer to separate appendices document (COSME_MSO_Report_Annex5) 

76

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
HOW TO OBTAIN EU PUBLICATIONS 

Free publications: 

• one copy:

via EU Bookshop (http://bookshop.europa.eu);

• more than one copy or posters/maps:

from the European Union’s representations (http://ec.europa.eu/represent_en.htm);
from the delegations in non-EU countries
(http://eeas.europa.eu/delegations/index_en.htm);
by contacting the Europe Direct service (http://europa.eu/europedirect/index_en.htm)
or calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (freephone number from anywhere in the EU) (*).

(*)  The information given is free, as are most calls (though some operators, phone boxes or hotels may
charge you).

Priced publications: 

• via EU Bookshop (http://bookshop.europa.eu).

Priced subscriptions: 

• via one of the sales agents of the Publications Office of the European Union

(http://publications.europa.eu/others/agents/index_en.htm).

77

E
T
-
0
2
-
1
9
-
1
0
1
-
E
N
-
N

doi: 10.2873/694021