Summary

Looptworks partners with businesses in the textile/clothing space and transforms excess textiles into usable materials. The company handles each steps of the process from textile collection to sorting and deconstruction, all in the United States. Once the company has possession of the excess/waste textile, one of three processes may be utilized: recycling, upcycling or downcycling. Fiber-to-fiber recycling refers to turning textile waste into new fibers that are then used to create new textile products. Upcycling refers to transforming the textiles into new products of higher value. Downcycling refers to deconstructing the materials into raw materials to be used in new ways. For example, damaged apparel items can be downcycled into fiber content for sofa stuffing. The company rescues high-quality leftover and used products and materials from premium goods manufacturers and, through design, transforms them into timeless, functional pieces with a lifetime guarantee. For example, in the case of their NBA range, they repurpose jerseys that can’t be sold (e.g. if a player has been traded to a new team) into bags, pillows, and other authentic limited edition items that gain a higher value and can sell out overnight, while conserving water and avoiding carbon emissions from using virgin materials (Source). The company also has a take back program to capture its products at the end of life. Looptworks has had partnerships with Delta Airlines, Nike, Adidas, Patagonia, Timberland, and the NBA. 

Story

Founder Scott Hamlin worked for Royal Robbins, Jockey and Adidas for over a decade, where he realized the potential of the excess materials thrown away in production. Pre-consumer waste averages 10-30% for every production. To solve this problem, Hamlin launched Looptworks to recover some of the 17 million tons of excess textiles from the landfill and transform them through circular solutions.

Pic Credit: Looptworks