London, 2017-Apr-16 — /EPR Retail News/ — From the over 250 applicants and a shortlist of twenty, a final selection of twelve start-ups have been awarded a place in the ‘Plug and Play – Fashion for Good’ accelerator, a collaboration between Plug and Play, Fashion for Good and Kering which aims to fast-track sustainable innovation within the luxury and apparel industries.
The twelve start-ups selected, who come from varied fields and academic backgrounds around the world, are Agraloop, Amadou, Dragon, Dropel, ICA Bremen, MySource, MycoTex, Pili-bio, RePack, Sundar, Tersus and Tipa. Selected for their comprehensive approaches to the textile supply-chain, the start-ups’ innovations range from developing new raw materials which will reduce fashion’s environmental impacts, to alternative production methods which will increase clothes’ longevity, and the development of new processes which enable closed-loop product lifecycles.
Under the accelerator, the start-ups will follow a unique 3-month programme during which Plug and Play, Fashion for Good and Kering will support them in scaling-up their innovations by providing mentoring, training, networking opportunities, and other valuable resources.
The accelerator’s second edition will take place later in 2017, with applications already open to start-ups.
FOR DETAILS ON THE 12 START-UPS CLICK HERE.
“At Plug and Play, we have been helping the startup world for the past eleven years, and now, with the creation of the Plug and Play – Fashion for Good accelerator, we are looking for startups that have both social impact and environmental impact. With the direction of Fashion for Good and Kering, the twelve companies we have accepted will make an impact on a global scale,” says Saeed Amidi, Founder and CEO of Plug and Play.
“These 12 exciting start-ups are helping the world reimagine how fashion is designed, made, worn and reused. They were chosen because they can all play a pivotal role in achieving the Five Goods of a new, transformed fashion industry: Good Materials, Good Economy, Good Energy, Good Water and Good Lives. The Plug and Play – Fashion for Good Accelerator nurtures and funds early-stage ideas, business models and technologies likes these to scale them and embed them into the industry. We can’t wait to get it started,” said Leslie Johnston of C&A Foundation, the founding partner of Fashion for Good.
“The key to sustainable progress is innovation, and the ingenuity and endless possibilities that these twelve start-ups have brought to us is truly impressive,” said Marie-Claire Daveu, Chief Sustainability Officer and head of international institutional affairs of Kering. “We look forward to working closely with them to achieve operational practicality, and at the scale required for widespread adoption so that we can support the transformational change that is critically needed in our industry.”
Press contacts:
Emmanuelle Picard-Deyme
+33(0)1 45 64 61 87
emmanuelle.picard-deyme@kering.com
Emer Hallahan
+33(0)1 45 64 63 07
emer.hallahan@kering.com