#Retail & Brands

2023-06-08

H&M Foundation doubles GCA grant and winners to speed up textile industry transformation

Recyclable and biodegradable polyurethane, food waste polyester, circular dyeing, natural bio-colours, ultra high-performing textiles, seaweed material, AI textile sorting, corn husk and sugarcane fabric, zero waste pattern system, textile-to-textile recycling for polyesters – these are the ten Global Change Award winners 2023, sharing a €2 million grant from the non-profit H&M Foundation.

The Global Change Award is an early-stage innovation challenge seeking bright minds that can transform fashion. Every year, H&M Foundation selects and supports the five most impactful innovations with the ultimate aspiration of a planet positive fashion future. This year, H&M Foundation doubles both grant and winners to speed up the transformation. This year’s winners are:

Material

• Algreen (UK) – Biobased foams, adhesives and coatings crafted from natural sources.

• ALT TEX (Canada) – From waste to wardrobe: transforming food waste into biodegradable polyester.

• KBCols Sciences (India) – Bio-fermenting textile dyes with the magic of microorganisms.

• Nanoloom (UK) – Powerful high performance-fibre fuelled by graphene.

• PhycoLabs (Brazil) – Oceans of opportunity: making seaweed fibres that spur social innovation.

• Rethread Africa (Kenya) – Regenerating agricultural waste into bio-based synthetics.

Recycling

• DyeRecycle (UK) – Renewed colours: extracting and transferring dyes from old to new fabrics.

• Refiberd (US) – Adding lightspeed and laser precision to textile sorting with AI and spectroscopy.

• Tereform (US) – Enabling circular solutions for hard-to-recycle waste textiles.

Design

• SXD (US) – AI-powered platform turning design concepts into zero-waste patterns.

"We have an urgent opportunity to support innovations that could transform the entire fashion industry – that’s why we’re doubling the grant and the number of winners. We’re giving these innovators a total of 2 million euros and access to our accelerator program – but we’re also giving the industry an opportunity to connect with these brilliant innovators. I’m excited to see the impact these innovators will make on the industry."

Karl-Johan Persson, H&M Foundation board member

H&M Foundation launched the GCA to provide the tools, connections, and resources necessary for early-stage innovations to move from idea to scale as quickly as possible. The winners receive €200,000 each and embark on the yearlong GCA Impact Accelerator. H&M Foundation together with GCA’s core partners Accenture, KTH Royal Institute of Technology and The Mills Fabrica offer tailored coaching and support to accelerate their journey from idea to scale.

"There’s a wide range of solutions among this year’s winners. If scaled, I believe they could have a real impact on the industry – which needs a holistic transformation if we are to reach a planet positive fashion future. We look forward to working with the winners during the accelerator and help enable their innovations to accelerate and scale."

Christiane Dolva, Strategy Lead H&M Foundation

Neither the H&M Foundation nor the H&M Group take any shareholder equity or intellectual property rights in the innovations and the winners can collaborate with whomever they want.

Responsible Textile Recovery Act of 2024 signed by Governor

Senator Josh Newman (D-Fullerton) is proud to announce that Senate Bill 707 (SB 707), the Responsible Textile Recovery Act of 2024, has been signed into law by the Governor of California, Gavin Newsom. This groundbreaking legislation establishes the country’s first Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) textile recycling program, marking a significant step forward in the state’s efforts to combat waste and promote sustainability.

Modtissimo promotes sustainability with 28 coordinates in the Green Circle

Modtissimo is proving more and more to be a textile and clothing show that delivers the latest innovations in the area of sustainability, with the iTechStyle Green Circle being the main showcase for companies' creations. In this 60+4 edition, taking place on 12 and 13 September, 28 coordinates will be exhibited in a section organised by CITEVE and curated by Paulo Gomes.

The EU and Egypt team up to mobilise private sector investments at Investment Conference and sign a Memorandum of Understanding underpinning €1 billion in macro-financial assistance for Egypt

At the EU-Egypt Investment Conference, co-organised by the EU and the Government of Egypt on 29-30 June, the EU and Egypt are teaming up to intensify private sector investments in Egypt. They are also signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the disbursement to Egypt of up to €1 billion in Macro-Financial Assistance.

GORE-TEX® KIDSWEAR launches innovative membership scheme for kids’ jackets

With its revolutionary new membership model, GORE-TEX® Kidswear now offers families a simple, flexible and sustainable way of kitting out their children in top-quality jackets. It is aimed at the parents of children aged between five and ten and kicks off with a choice of functional winter jackets.

The Address of innovation and investment in textile technologies: ITM 2026

Sales for ITM 2026, one of the world’s most comprehensive and prestigious exhibitions in textile technologies, are continuing at full steam. The record number of exhibitors and visitors achieved at ITM 2024 once again proved the industry’s confidence and the commercial success of the exhibition; meanwhile, the strong interest shown in ITM 2026, to be held on 9-13 June 2026, has far exceeded expectations.

STOLL in focus:

At the beginning of this year, KARL MAYER announced that it would be shifting its focus back to its core areas of warp knitting, warp preparation and technical textiles. As part of this strategic realignment, the flat knitting machine business under the STOLL brand will be discontinued. The Reutlingen plant will close down on 31 October 2025. Production in China will end in December 2025. This was an extremely difficult decision for KARL MAYER.

Heimtextil 2026 strengthens the global home textile industry with trends, designs and AI technologies

With an optimised hall layout, progressive design collaborations, inspiring trends and AI-driven innovations, Heimtextil 2026 reacts to the current market situation – and offers the industry a reliable constant in challenging times. Under the motto ‘Lead the Change’, the leading trade fair for home and contract textiles and textile design shows how challenges can be turned into opportunities. From 13 to 16 January, more than 3,100 exhibitors from 65 countries will provide a comprehensive market overview with new collections and textile solutions. As a knowledge hub, Heimtextil delivers new strategies and concrete solutions for future business success.