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#Sustainability

Award for sustainability: Michael Spitzbarth from Bleed is Designer of the Year 2022

Together with the VDMD – Network of German Fashion and Textile Designers – Messe Frankfurt will award the Designer of the Year for sustainable collections at Neonyt Lab. On Saturday, 25 June 2022, at 3 p.m., the Sustainability Award will be presented to Michael Spitzbarth, Founder & CEO of Bleed, at Union Halle in Frankfurt's East end district.

Since 2018, the award has been presented by the VDMD to designers who have dedicated their designs and collections to the increasingly important topic of sustainability, use sustainable materials and produce responsibly. This means that the companies must be managed in a holistically sustainable manner, this also includes their supply chains, for example. Previous award-winning designers are Sophia Schneider-Esleben, Anke Frese-Brammer and Laura Krettek. This year's award winner, Michael Spitzbarth, founded his outdoor and streetwear label Bleed in 2008 – his aspiration: to inspire a sustainable lifestyle that is fun and easy to integrate into daily life. After his studies in textile design, he worked for several years as a freelancer for different clothing companies. During this time he gained deep insights into the conventional textile industry and decided to change something. “Nature had bled enough and it had to stop,” says Michael Spitzbarth, Founder & CEO of Bleed. “And just like that, not only the name but also the brand were born.”

Michael Spitzbarth, Founder & CEO, Bleed © 2022 Messe Frankfurt
Michael Spitzbarth, Founder & CEO, Bleed © 2022 Messe Frankfurt


Save the Date: Award ceremony during the Neonyt Lab.

The award ceremony will take place on Saturday, 25 June 2022, at the Union Halle in Frankfurt am Main on the Fashionsustain stage during Neonyt Lab. The award will be presented jointly by Olaf Schmidt, Vice President Textiles & Textile Technologies of Messe Frankfurt, and René Lang, President of VDMD. “We are delighted that the Sustainability Award presented by VDMD is again going to such an outstanding designer this year,” says Olaf Schmidt. “Bleed has been exhibiting at the Neonyt Trade Show for a number of years, and we have a long-standing friendship. Michael Spitzbarth and his team operate in a climate-neutral way, produce 'toxic free' fashion collections and have managed to win people for the green wave for more than a decade without appointing any fingers.” Lisi Maier, appointed member of the German Federal Government's Council for Sustainable Development and Director of the Federal Foundation for Gender Equality, will give a laudatory speech at the award ceremony.

Lisi Maier and Michael Spitzbarth will both be available for interviews afterwards. Interested media representatives should register at http://neonyt.com/accreditation and contact the VDMD in advance at info@vdmd.de




Frankfurt Fashion Week – shows sustainable Fashion, Design & Art

In the week from 20 to 26 June 2022, the city of Frankfurt am Main will be dominated by sustainable fashion, design & art. Numerous events will take place throughout the city under the umbrella brand Frankfurt Fashion Week. Exhibitions, fashion shows, talks, presentations and open studios invite all interested citizens to explore and experience fashion and all topics related to sustainable design. Frankfurt Fashion Week thus also offers a marketing platform for the regional fashion and design scene as well as the cultural and creative industries. Parallel to Frankfurt Fashion Week, Messe Frankfurt is organising the Neonyt Lab from 24 to 26 June 2022 in the Union Halle, which is aimed at consumers and fashion professionals interested in sustainability. In addition, from 21 to 24 June 2022, Messe Frankfurt will be bringing together the globally oriented B2B events Techtextil, Texprocess and Heimtextil Summer Special, which will highlight themes of particular relevance to the international fashion and living sector. Frankfurt Fashion Week is a multi-layered, easily accessible and cross-generational offer of the city of Frankfurt am Main.

The Neonyt Lab will take place from 24 to 26 June 2022 at Union Halle in Frankfurt am Main.

Visitor ticket:

• neonyt.com/ticket




More News from Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd.

#Yarns

Yarn Expo Shenzhen 2026 closes doors, advancing sustainable and innovative sourcing in South China

Yarn Expo Shenzhen 2026 served as a strategically positioned mid-year sourcing platform for the Greater Bay Area, highlighting Shenzhen’s role in connecting regional demand, supply and innovation exchange across the textile value chain. During the three-day fair, over 20,000 visits were drawn from 74 countries and regions[1], as exhibitors and buyers engaged with new developments in greener, performance-led, and value-added yarn and fibre solutions. Held in conjunction with Intertextile Shenzhen Apparel Fabrics and PH Value, the fair underscored the benefits of closer synergy and new materials across yarn, fabric and apparel platforms for the South China market.

#Technical Textiles

Cinte Techtextil China maps textile future with specialised zones and forward-looking fringe events

As global demand for high-performance materials evolves, Cinte Techtextil China is set to steer the industry’s next growth phase by driving the convergence of global expertise, specialised zones, and forward-looking tech and insights. Building on its diverse scope, the upcoming edition will especially spotlight critical sub-sectors such as Medtech & Protech, Indutech and Buildtech. The offering will be augmented by the well-received Mobiltech and Textile Chemicals and Dyes Zones, alongside the high-calibre German and European Zones. Beyond the booths, the fringe programme structured around four core pillars will chart a definitive roadmap for technical textiles and nonwovens.

#Yarn & Fiber

Next week’s focus: Intertextile Shenzhen & Yarn Expo Shenzhen fuse textile tradition with sustainable, digital trends

Fashion will not be left behind in one of the world’s undisputed tech and manufacturing capitals. Which is why next week, at Intertextile Shenzhen Apparel Fabrics and Yarn Expo Shenzhen 2026, the organisers have made special efforts to integrate textile topics such as materials innovation, holistic sustainability, digitalisation and AI. Yet, from 9 – 11 June at the Shenzhen Convention and Exhibition Center, the platform also includes timeless tradition and heritage-inspired evolution in equal measure. Across both shows, over 600 exhibitors from 11 countries and regions are set to showcase everything from Peruvian alpaca wool fabrics to tea-derived fibres, while their fringe programmes will explore diverse solutions along the entire value chain.

#Home Textiles

Intertextile Shanghai Home Textiles unveils Trends 2027 alongside new lifestyle zone and product expansion

Intertextile Shanghai Home Textiles – Autumn Edition 2026 will spotlight forward-looking design directions and evolving consumer demand, as the global home and lifestyle market continues to adapt to sustainability priorities, emotional well-being, and diversified living spaces. Taking place from 18 – 20 August 2026 at the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai), the fair will present its latest trend theme, ‘BREATHE UP!’, developed in collaboration with leading international trend forecaster NellyRodi™ Agency, alongside expanded product categories, and the debut of the Home Textiles Lifestyle Zone.

More News on Sustainability

#Sustainability

Global Standards establishes new non-profit foundation to strengthen governance

Global Standards gGmbH, the nonprofit organisation behind the globally recognised Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS), announced a new governance structure designed to support its long-term mission and reinforce organisational autonomy of its Voluntary Sustainability Standards and programmes.

#Textile chemistry

DyStar releases FY2025 sustainability report, marking a new milestone towards its 2030 targets

DyStar, a leading specialty chemicals company with more than a century of expertise in product development and innovation, today announced the release of its FY2025 Sustainability Report, marking a significant milestone in its sustainability journey and reinforcing its commitment to long-term value creation.

#Textiles & Apparel / Garment

Catalyst Club launches in Florence: Where conversations become catalysts for change

The first chapter of Catalyst Club debuted in Florence, bringing together creative directors, entrepreneurs, manufacturers, journalists and innovators from across the fashion and textile industry for an evening of dialogue, exchange and connection.

#Sustainability

Renewables lower energy prices and play key role to reduce vulnerability to fossil fuel supply shocks

Renewables lower energy prices and play key role to reduce vulnerability to fossil fuel supply shocks Boosting the use of homegrown renewable electricity is Europe’s best way to reduce its vulnerability to volatile international energy supplies and rising energy prices according to a European Environment Agency (EEA) assessment published today.

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#Research & Development

ALADIN paves the way for circular and demand-driven textile production in Europe

Textile production can be organized sustainably by utilizing short supply chains and preventing overproduction. This can already be achieved today by intelligently connecting and efficiently utilizing existing infrastructure. At the same time, production becomes circular when innovative technologies and materials are used that enable high-quality recycling. The ALADIN research project, launched in May 2026 and co-funded with five million euros under the EU Horizon Europe program, is creating the conditions for this.

#Nonwovens

Katharina Obergruber appointed to the Management Board of Sandler AG

The Supervisory Board of Sandler AG has appointed Katharina Obergruber to the company’s Management Board. Effective September 1, 2026, the Board will consist of Philipp Ebbinghaus (CEO), Dr. Ulrich Hornfeck (currently CCO, future COO), and Katharina Obergruber (CCO). Katharina Obergruber, currently Chief Sales Officer Hygiene and member of the Management Team of Sandler AG, will assume responsibility for all sales activities as Chief Commercial Officer. She will assume this role from Dr. Ulrich Hornfeck, who will focus primarily on production and supply chain topics.

#Recycling / Circular Economy

Ence and ShareTex begin initial testing of the ATENEA innovation project to promote textile recycling in Spain

Ence and ShareTex are making progress on the Atenea R&D project, which aims to develop a complete value chain for textile recycling in Spain. Specifically, the goal of the ATENEA project—which is funded by the Center for Technological Development and Innovation (CDTI)—is to connect all the necessary stages for the recovery of textile waste, from collection and management, through recycling and transformation into new raw materials, to their incorporation into new textile products.

#Recycling / Circular Economy

DePoly Inaugurates its Showcase Plant in Monthey Switzerland

What if used plastic bottles, PET packaging material and polyester textiles could become raw materials just as high performing as virgin resources? That is the ambition of DePoly, a circular materials company based in Sion, Switzerland which inaugurated its Showcase Plant in Monthey on July 6th & 7th. The first depolymerization facility of its kind and scale in Switzerland, this industrial Showcase Plant represents a major milestone in the company's growth and its journey toward commercialization.

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