Circular Fashion Group raises € 30 million for its regenerated fibers from textile waste

Circular fashion and textile technology group Infinited Fiber Company got 30 million euros (approximately US $ 35 million) in its last funding round. New investors include sportswear company Adidas and Invest FWD A / S, the investment arm of Danish fashion group BESTSELLER for sustainable fashion. The capital raised will make it possible to relaunch the production of regenerated fibers in its pilot plants.

Espoo-based biotechnology company Infinited Fiber has finalized a funding round for its reclaimed fibers made from household textile waste.

Circular mode

Over 92 million tonnes of textile waste are produced each year, the majority of which is equivalent to a truckload of clothes, ends up in landfills every second, according to the Ellen Macarthur Foundation. By 2030, this number is estimated to rise to 134 million tonnes of textiles per year.

At the same time, a report pointed out that the global textile fiber market is expected to soar 30% to 146 million tonnes by 2030, from 111 million tonnes in 2019.

Taking advantage of this, Infinited Fiber aims to answer the waste question through its innovative recycling system.

The company uses its patented technology to convert materials rich in cellulose, such as textile waste, discarded cardboard and wood into high-quality natural fibers. The company claims that these fibers match the qualities found in virgin fibers. Its Infinna fiber looks and feels like cotton.

These can then be easily dyed, used individually or mixed with other fibers to produce new items. They can be recycled a number of times, because the biodegradable fibers do not contain any plastic elements or impurities.

Support for investors

The Infinited Fiber financing round was supported by new investors such as Adidas, Invest FWD A / S and investment firm Security Trading Oy.

Existing investors have supported the cycle such as fashion giant H&M Group, investment firm Nidoco AB and Sateri, the world’s largest viscose producer and a member of the RGE group of companies.

“We are truly happy to welcome our new investors and grateful for the continued support of our older investors,” said Petri Alava, co-founder and CEO of Infinited Fiber Company, in a statement. “These new investments allow us to proceed at full speed with the pre-engineering, environmental permits and the recruitment of qualified professionals necessary to advance our flagship project. We can now also increase production at our pilot facilities to better serve our existing customers and expand our customer base in preparation for both our flagship plant and future licensees of our technology.

Head of H&M CO: LAB, H&M Group, one of Infinited Fiber Company’s early investors, Nanna Andersen said: “We are delighted to continue our journey with Infinited Fiber Company by investing more in this business. Being joined by other global brands is a clear testament to the shared belief in the scalability of their technology as well as the team behind it. More importantly, it also shows the enormous potential of their regenerated textile fiber to lead the industry towards a more sustainable fashion future. “

These new investments allow us to advance at full speed in the pre-engineering, environmental permits and the recruitment of qualified professionals necessary to advance our flagship project.

Petri Alava, co-founder and CEO of Infinited Fiber Company

Increase production capacities

The company plans to open its flagship factory in Finland, especially as brands like H&M, PVH Corp, parent company of Tommy Hilfiger and Calvin Klein, Wrangler and Patagonia have expressed interest in its regenerated textile fiber Infinna.

Lily: Meet Queen Of Raw, the blockchain-powered marketplace that turns unsold textiles into dollars

The factory will use household textile waste as raw material. It is expected to begin operations in 2024 with an annual production capacity of 30,000 metric tonnes. The new capital will be used to set up this plant and to ramp up production from its pilot facilities by 2024.

Adidas Senior Vice President of Sustainability Katja Schreiber said support for Infinited Fiber is in line with their ambition to make nine out of ten items from sustainable materials by 2025. important role in creating a more sustainable world. Today we already use over 60% recycled polyester and aim to be 100% virgin polyester free by 2024. We believe that the large-scale sustainability impact will require close collaboration and we look forward to pushing together the limits of cellulose-based materials. with Infinited Fiber Company.

We believe that the large-scale impact on sustainability will require close collaboration and we look forward to pushing the boundaries of cellulose-based materials with Infinited Fiber Company.

Katja Schreiber, Senior Vice President, Sustainability at Adidas

In addition, H&M Group signed a multi-year sales agreement in exchange for agreed quantities of Infinna from the flagship plant. The new investor BESTSELLER also signed a similar agreement.

In addition to world fashion leaders, Infinited Fiber innovation is in high demand by leading textile fiber producers like Sateri to develop closed-loop, circular and climate-positive cellulosic fibers.

Lily: We love these 5 recycled sneakers made from waste

Main image courtesy of Infinite Fiber.