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It will not be easy to create a business model based on local garment production. Without taking into account the infrastructure (sewing machines, space etc) sewers need to earn back at least ca. 10 euro's per hour. As even the fabric has to be created, the process is labour intensive. The first sample, a sweater, took me (an experienced sewer) a full workday. To create a sustainable businessmodel, this proces has to be much more cost-efficient.

To survive in the real economy I have to cash in other values, like

the fun of the creating and learning experience

the effort-factor (people value products more if they put in more effort)

the value of being responsible, authentic and unique

and the sentimental or emotional value (reusing cherised garments)

This can be achieved by giving workshops or masterclasses.

Another way is to dive into the 'free economy'. If people experience the activity of reusing old garments as a hobby, they are not only more willing to spend time, but also money. My aim is not to become a rich woman, but to save sweaters (at least one life cycle) from incineration. The more people save sweaters (this way) the more value we create. If all the people making jig saws during lock down, would engage in reusing their old garments, the impact could be enourmous. To achieve this, I need to develop a good DIY kit and share the fun of doing it.

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When is my project succesfull?
As my project aims to develop a technique to create fabric (from discarde clothes), my project is succesfull if I can answer the following questions:
1. Can I develop a method to create new fabric

with maximum use of the garment-waste? Can I reduce the waste % to 30%?

that can easily be applied by home sewers or local sewing ateliers?

with a broad range of raw materials (like wool, cotton, lycra etc)?

2. Can I develop a businesscase

for social enterprises like the Kledingbank-Rotterdam and Talentfabriek010?

that is scalable or can be multiplied?

As this technique will be developped to make circular impact, I want to make this impact as large as possible. Situation 0 is that sweaters are likely to end up in landfill or incineration as they are often made of combined fibre or acryl fibre. Reuse of sweaters is extra difficult because it is hard to sell it on the second hand market. Lengthening the lifetime of this material by at least 1 year is the minimum impact I want to start with. In my first sample I used 3 sweaters to create 1 new (bigger sweater). The average weight of a sweater is 500 to 1.000 grams. To measure the total impact of my project, I want to use these indicators:

number and weight of sweaters used to create new fabric or garments

type of materials used (wool / acryl / ..)

number and weight of new garments

hours spent to create a 'new' garment

To follow the development a frequentie of quarterly monitoring is nessessary.

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I received feedback from a textile waste advisor at my municipality, a start-up coach, an entrepreneur in circular textile, a felt designer and my sewing teacher. Although I am not unique in creating new clothes out of old, I choose a new angle (punching / needle felting) and combine elements from known projects. As I collaborate with a local NGO, collecting textile waste is not an issue. Scaling up production could become an issue as processing waste demands specific permits. Further, I would have to check if someone else already has patented this concept.

My project contributes to the transition to a circular economy because we can reuse more textile locally. Especially because the type of material that is very suitable for needle felting (like acrylic knits), is difficult to sell abroad. The process is intensive, therefore impact will not be large, unless I industrialize the process. But it creates opportunities for job creation (for unemployed).

I am encouraged to bring this project further. Although it will be a challenge to earn back the added value in the Dutch clothing market as labor is expensive and clothes are cheap. They advised me to seek collaboration with education institutes, fashion hubs and (high end) designers. This will also prevent my project from becoming a fussy initiative.

As I volunteer at a clothing bank, I can bring my ideas in practice, as we have a sewing atelier (with an embellishing machine). I also want to share my findings with designers (to be) by seeking collaboration will the local fashion hub and a fashion school. I also want to explore the options to apply for funding. And if we can create new garments out of old this way, we can enhance our collaboration with local (social) textile ateliers.

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Punching (or needle felting) is known as a technique to decorate or repair clothes. But how can it be used to create 'new' fabric from unwearable clothes? The activities therefore focus on developping this concept into a method for remanifacturing fabric  and garments. I execute this in two ways:
1) Sharing my knowledge and co-develop my technique with local (fashion) designers
2) Starting small scale production (trial and error) in at a local NGO (Kledingbank-Rotterdam)

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The strategy is to create an open source method (the punchline) to extend the life cycle of unwearable clothes. These clothes are collected by NGO's and can be processed by local workshops. By working with social enterprises a chain can be created by collecting, remanicafacturing and reselling of clothes. The scale can vary from DIY to communities to serious social enterprising. But the strategy is to open the source for mechinal remanifacturing clothes (by needle felting).

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Kledingbank-Rotterdam: as this social enterprise already collects and distributes second hand clothing to poor households and has a production facility

De Wasserij: local fashion hub

Local production facilities like Talentfabriek010 that aim for an inclusive labour market

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Community-based Model

Developping a new fabric production technique on a local level asks for a community-based business model.

As the technique is not fully developped (that's one of the aims of this project), I create an 'open source' method. By sharing my knowledge about this way of fabric production, I hope to reach out and collaborate with the local design and fashion community.

In collaborating with NGO's like the Kledingbank-Rotterdam, I can already start small scale production.

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I want to add value to discarded garments and return this profit to the community. By making it technically possible to reuse unwearable garments by turning them into fabric, I add value to this textile stream. This fabric can be source for new apparel which can return into the local retail market. Both the reusing process as the production create options for a local inclusive labour market.

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My dream is to find a way to locally reuse more waste streams of clothing. By developping a (dry needle) method to create fabric from non usable clothing. With this fabric, people can make new garments. To do this locally, I hope to create more ways for people to give (economic and emotional) value to (their) discarded clothes. I also hope to create more awareness about textile (waste streams) and thereby increase the amount of textile waste collected separately.

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Less than 50% of discarded apparel is reused in the second-hand clothing market. Often clothes cannot be reused because they need to be in good condition. But also new garments, especially warm winter apparel, is not reused. As we (Dutch) sell our second-hand clothing abroad to markets with warmer climates, there is no use for warm winter clothes. Even reuse of the material is difficult, because the fibres are often mixed. I want to give warm winter apparel, even if it is damaged or made of mixed fibres, a new life.