#Textiles & Apparel / Garment

2024-07-04

The 7th Avantex Fashion Pitch competition prize goes to Materra

The Avantex Fashion Pitch jury has awarded the 2024 prize to Materra. This young British company, founded in 2019, designs solutions to support the cultivation of cotton adapted to climate change on a fair trade model. At the other end of the chain, it encourages fashion companies to source from the producers it supports, offering brands (Mango, Ecoalf, Positive Materials...) a service designed on a Cotton-As-A-Service model, guaranteeing a totally transparent supply chain with full traceability.

"Our teams at Messe Frankfurt, like the members of the jury, were very impressed by the quality of the models presented at this 7th edition of the Avantex Fashion Pitch. In singling out Materra's project, the jury chose to support an ambitious response to an urgent problem facing the fashion industry. It's a decision we can only applaud", said Frédéric Bougeard, President of Messe Frankfurt France.

The final of the 7th Avantex Fashion Pitch competition, organised by Messe Frankfurt France, rewards the most innovative, sustainable and relevant projects for the future of fashion. Each of the eleven finalists - Darwie, Drippy, Finds, GoldenEye Smart Vision, Imki, Materra, Podium, Style Shifter, Swyco, Synovance and Trace For Good - was given five minutes to convince the jury, which was made up of Claudia Cesiro, start-up mentor and founder of The Ace Project agency, Élodie Lemaire Nowinski, historian, specialist in innovation and sustainable development in fashion and researcher at the Glasgow School of Art, Jayne Simone Estève-Curé, expert fashion and luxury consultant and Yoobin Jung, ventures associate sustainability at Plug and Play Tech Center.

Materra will benefit from a stand worth €2,800 at Avantex Paris 2025 courtesy of Messe Frankfurt France, plus €2,000 from Texpertise Network, the textile network of the Messe Frankfurt group, and 1 year's incubation at Foundry courtesy of IFA Paris, official partner of the competition.

Texworld Apparel Sourcing Paris highlights evolving global sourcing landscape

From 31 August to 2 September 2026, Texworld Apparel Sourcing Paris will bring together more than 1,000 international exhibitors at Paris-Le Bourget Exhibition Centre. This edition reflects the new global balance of textile and apparel sourcing, highlighting a strong diversity of sourcing countries — some unexpected.

Messe Frankfurt commits further to East Africa: three textiles trade fairs during Africa Sourcing and Fashion Week from 2027

Messe Frankfurt and its Texpertise Network continue their steady, successful trajectory in the region. As Africa Sourcing and Fashion Week (ASFW) opened today, Member of the Executive Board Detlef Braun announced that Messe Frankfurt is licencing its three leading international trade fair brands Texworld, Apparel Sourcing and Texprocess to Nairobi, Kenya for the first time in 2027. From now on, they will take place annually as part of the Africa Sourcing and Fashion Week (ASFW) Nairobi.

C&S strengthens its governance to support its evolution

C&S announces the appointment of Marco Lucietti to its Board of Directors. With extensive international experience across the textile and denim industries, Lucietti will work alongside CEO Federico Corneli, contributing to the company’s managerial development, organizational structure and long-term strategic direction.

Carrington Textiles publishes third Sustainability Report

Carrington Textiles has announced the publication of the third Sustainability Report from the RTS Textiles Group, highlighting another year of progress towards more responsible manufacturing across its global operations. The report outlines continued investment in technologies and initiatives designed to improve environmental performance and support long-term business resilience across the Group’s manufacturing facilities in the UK, Portugal and Pakistan.

YKK develops concept EXCELLA® zipper tape using nonwoven fabric partially derived from used clothing

YKK Corporation has developed a concept version of its premium EXCELLA® zipper series made from nonwoven fabric sheets created by fiberizing used clothing and other textile materials. Based on a proposal by fashion designer Yuima Nakazato, this item was created as a result of collaboration between Nakazato, Seiko Epson Corporation and YKK. The concept zipper was incorporated as a material component for pieces in the newest YUIMA NAKAZATO Couture Collection, “INFERNO,” which was unveiled in Paris, France on July 8, 2026.

Industrial scale meets verified governance: RE&UP is now B Corp™ certified

RE&UP, the circular-tech transforming global textile waste into high-volume Next-Gen materials, has officially become a Certified B Corporation™. The milestone establishes the industrial recycler among a select group of manufacturing infrastructure providers verified as meeting B Lab Standards for social and environmental performance, transparency, and accountability.