The Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s Fashion ReModel project, now backed by a $1.5 million investment from the H&M Foundation, is accelerating circularity in fashion. The initiative, launched last May, aims to decouple revenue from production and resource use while scaling up circular business models like recycling, rental, repair, and resale.
Brands including Reformation, Primark, and H&M Group’s Arket, Cos, and Weekday have set targets to increase revenue from circular efforts over the next three years. The project will share annual updates, highlighting progress and challenges.
Circular business models, once niche, are proving highly lucrative. In 2019, they represented a $73 billion market, with potential to reach 23 per cent of the fashion industry by 2030 a $700 billion opportunity, according to the Ellen MacArthur Foundation.
For fashion to achieve circularity, both products and business models must be redesigned. The initiative's framework, shaped by over 150 stakeholders, focuses on key areas such as finance, policy, climate, and marketing to drive industry-wide transformation.
Workstream insights will be published annually, with plans to expand Fashion ReModel by mid-2025. A comprehensive progress report is slated for 2028.
As brands work to move beyond the take-make-waste model, the project aims to accelerate circular solutions, tackling emissions and fostering a more sustainable fashion future.
