New narratives for the circular future of the textile industry

CLIENT

Ucon Acrobatics

BRAND & COMMUNICATION
February – May 2024

The problem

Alongside the oil and gas industry, the textile industry is one of the biggest contributors to climate and environmental damage and is estimated to be responsible for 10% of global carbon emissions. One reason for this is that most textile waste is currently incinerated and only 0.6% is recycled into new textiles. The textile industry therefore needs to think of new ways to close the loop in a meaningful way.

Ucon Acrobatics has set itself the goal of reusing textile waste. The label produces bags and rucksacks in which 95% of the textiles used come from recycled textile waste. The raw material is processed into high-quality PET granulate and then into yarns. This saves 35% of CO2 emissions compared to non-recycled polyester. The company also dispenses with fillers such as hard plastic elements and foams.

Our solution

In Germany alone, almost two million tonnes of textile waste will be generated annually by 2025. That’s over 17 kilograms per person. In the media and reporting on the problem of textile waste, however, we have so far mainly seen images from the South American desert or other places far away from us in Germany.

To make textile waste and recycling tangible as a complex problem, we worked with Ucon Acrobatics to design a campaign titled “From Waste to Wearable” — and brought the problem very close: as ballast that we all carry around with us thanks to overproduction and overconsumption. With the help of specially developed “Wastesuits,” the textile waste we generate every year is visualized. However, the narrative solves the problem and describes that we are not powerless and that textile recycling is one of many potential solutions waiting in the wings to save valuable resources.

Our impact

Our in-house team produced a campaign video (directed by Nina Keinrath) titled “From Waste to Wearable” that went viral on Instagram and generated more than one million views within a month. The important message and Ucon Acrobatics’ material innovation thus achieved a completely new reach — and hopefully also one or two competitors, because in the end every innovation only achieves a really big impact if it scales and becomes the new standard…

Watch the campaign video