Napapijri designs the future of circular fashion

Developed and tested over the course of three years, Napapijri Circular Series is the first family of recyclable, mono-material products to receive Cradle to Cradle Certified Gold from the Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute, which is dedicated to powering innovation for the circular economy through products that have a positive impact on people and planet.

Fillings and trims in the recyclable jackets are made of Nylon 6 (Polyamide 6), while the fabric is made of Econyl Regenerated Nylon, a high- performance yarn recycled from discarded fishing nets and other waste materials. The jackets are also linked to a take-back programme that allows customers to return them to Napapijri after two years from purchase and to be transformed into new fabric through the Econyl Regeneration System. "And this is just the beginning," a company release said.

What started in FW19 as Napapijri’s first circular fashion project, Infinity Anorak, has now been acknowledged by the Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute as one of the most innovative efforts at closing both product and technical loops, and is now due to turn into a fully-fledged family of circular products in upcoming seasons, the release added.

“Napapijri sits within VF’s family of brands as an incubator of new ideas, processes, and approaches to fashion-making” said Anna Maria Rugarli, Sustainability & Responsibility senior director EMEA, VF International. “Its dedication to sustainable practices is reflected in the positive choices the brand has been making in the last few years - from developing an alternative to down and phasing out all animal fur, to pioneering a series of jackets designed, created and brought to market in keeping with the golden standards of circular economy.”

This is an outstanding result for Napapijri and the fashion industry as a whole, as no previous brand has succeeded in developing a fully circular clothing system in such a short amount of time, and effectively engaging, reviewing and innovating across all tiers of the technical cycle, Napapijri said.

“Achieving Cradle to Cradle certification for the Circular Series at the Gold level is a demonstration of how material choices and deep collaboration with supply chain partners can holistically drive systems- level circularity from product to business model,” said Christina Raab, VP Strategy & Development for the Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute. “Napapirji’s use of Cradle to Cradle Certified to fast-track the implementation of a fully circular clothing system pinpoints the way the Cradle to Cradle framework can be used as an innovation lever for future-proofing the fashion industry.”

“Since 2012, we have been working to develop policies and technical solutions aimed at reducing the fashion industry’s environmental impact,” said Timo Schmidt-Eisenhart, global president Napapijri. “Now, more than ever, we are aware of the pressing issues we are collectively asked to address. We have chosen to play our part by pioneering the future of fashion with Circular Series, a range of products that embodies our efforts to combine design, sustainability and innovation to inspire a shift in the role our industry has to play in the preservation of the planet and its people through circularity.”

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (RKS)