Nearly 60 textile and shoe brands
Nearly 60 textile and shoe brands came together in November 2024 to identify issues related to the recyclability of their products and to provide solutions in terms of eco-design.
Below is a summary of their discussions.
Why ecodesign for recyclability?
For a textile or footwear product to be eligible for recycling, it is necessary to anticipate this stage right from the design phase.
So, what are the advantages of eco-designing for recyclability? Here are a few:
- Reduce the environmental impact of the product’s end of life: a product designed to be recycled could, once it reaches end of life and is collected, have its material transformed and used as raw material for a new product;
- Contribute to increasing supplies of recycled materials and to creating more local value chains (since there are recycling plants in France and Europe), to favour circularity;
- Capitalise on R&D efforts that can lead to new ideas;
- Engage suppliers in a collective effort;
- Improve brand image with consumers and communications to customers (existing or new). Moreover, it is possible to engage customers in favour of circularity and generate more interactions with them;
- Raise consumer awareness, notably of the importance of sorting and collection at drop-off points;
- Mobilise teams: in this cross-cutting project, several departments must collaborate to implement it. In addition, the pride in contributing to a worthwhile mission such as reducing waste and reducing a product’s environmental impact can be an important motivational factor;
- Anticipate the introduction of certain regulations
How to ecodesign for recyclability?
Several levers exist to ecodesign a product for recyclability. Among these levers are:
- Provide ecodesign plans by product category;
- Prioritise: redesign best-sellers first, for example, or carry-over items;
- Simplify the product;
- Favour mono-material constructions;
- Use less elastane (no more than 5%, if this does not impede the product’s function or compromise comfort);
- Favour monochrome products;
- Avoid adding non-essential features;
- Rethink product assembly to prioritise techniques that enable easy separation of different components at end of life. For footwear, replace permanent adhesives with heat-activated adhesive (hot-melt adhesive);
- For shoes, focus efforts on the sole, as it is currently the most recyclable part of the shoe.
Need the keys to designing textiles and footwear for recycling? Consult the Best practice design guides for recycling for Textiles and for Footwear.
Durability is the ability of a product to last over time.
There are several types of durability:
- Physical durability, also called "intrinsic durability", is the ability of the product to resist wear and ageing;
- Emotional durability is the ability of the product to suit the customer and remain to their liking for as long as possible (definition by WRAP taken from the guide Sustainable clothing, p5). It is also called "extrinsic durability"
Can durability and recyclability be combined?
Certain durability criteria also facilitate recycling:
- The presence of a composition and care label can help extend the product’s lifespan. This label can also provide information to the recycler (for example, if the product is mono-material it will be easier to recycle);
- Choosing a timeless style and a classic colour will allow the product to be worn for longer, without the risk of going out of fashion. It also makes the product easier to recycle if it is monochrome and unprinted (particularly avoiding flock printing);
- Using the same material throughout the product, to prevent colours from ageing differently over time. Mono-materiality is also a facilitator for recycling;
- Limiting the number of trims, as these components can break before the fabric wears out. Moreover, reducing the number of trims and accessories on a product will facilitate its disassembly, an essential step in preparing it for recycling;
- Omitting elastane or reducing it (to less than 5% of the fabric composition) to prevent the garment from deforming too quickly after several washes;
- Simplifying the product so it can be worn in multiple situations. Favour functionality and timeless, versatile designs to avoid rapid trend-driven obsolescence.
Consider the recyclability of a product at the design stage.
Considering a product’s recyclability at the design stage may, at first glance, seem a path fraught with pitfalls and constraints. However, this is not always the case: it can create genuine opportunities.
A creativity booster
Eco-designing a product for recyclability can open up new avenues for creativity:
- Play with colour nuances and textures to minimise recycling disruptors;
- Create modular products to increase the number of wears across different seasons;
- Tap into trends and the latest innovations, such as ‘no dye’
An incentive for collaboration
The topic of recyclability must involve several stakeholders (internal and external):
- The company’s employees: it is necessary to involve designers, product developers, pattern makers, buyers, quality managers, etc., and to train them so that recyclability criteria are taken into account from the product design stage;
- Suppliers: by adding recyclability criteria to the specifications and drawing on their expertise to propose alternatives, the project can create a stimulating new dialogue;
- Other brands in the same sector: moving forward together and sharing good practice helps increase the share of products eco‑designed for recycling and standardise material streams for recyclers. This is a win‑win strategy for the entire industry;
- Recyclers: it is necessary to understand recyclers’ constraints so that they can be built into product design specifications