New Look, M&S, Sainsbury's Tu partner on circular textile initiative

UK fashion retailers New Look, Marks & Spencer (M&S), and Sainsbury’s Tu Clothing have partnered with charity retailer Oxfam and development firm Circle-8 Textile Ecosystems to launch The Circuit.

The collaborative model brings together businesses across the fashion value chain to convert UK-generated post-consumer textiles into circular raw materials.

The project aims to establish infrastructure to recover, sort, and pre-process non-reusable end-of-use textiles into input materials for mechanical and chemical fibre-to-fibre recycling.

Operational trial to commence in Batley

The first phase of the initiative will begin in January 2027 at Oxfam’s facility in Batley, Yorkshire. The initial operational phase will focus on testing automated sorting technology, establishing reporting frameworks for improved traceability, identifying circular material pathways, and exploring business models to support future scaling.

Oxfam will manage the separation of reusable and non-reusable garments and operate the automated textile sorting equipment at the site. Oxfam retail director, Rachel Cosgrove-Pearce, noted: “Developing the infrastructure to recover valuable fibres from end-of-use textiles is an important part of building a fashion system that uses fewer virgin resources and creates less environmental harm.”

Circle-8 is overseeing the commercial framework, building automated textile sorting and pre-processing facilities designed to connect post-consumer textile collection with recycling supply chains. Circle-8 chief executive officer and co-founder, Cyndi Rhoades, emphasised that retailers building circular value chains today will be positioned to influence future supply networks, inviting additional industry partners to join the initiative.

In 2024, approximately 1.4 million tonnes of post-consumer textiles were generated across the UK. Research indicates that nearly half of this volume consists of non-reusable garments, highlighting a gap in infrastructure for processing end-of-use fabrics into scalable feedstock.

Three leading brands hoin the initiative

“Building a more circular fashion industry requires collaboration right across the value chain,” said UK retailer New Look chief executive officer, Lynda Petherick. “The Circuit gives retailers an opportunity to play an active role in developing the systems that could turn non-reusable textiles already in circulation into the raw materials of the future.”

UK brand M&S head of sustainability and materials in fashion, home and beauty, Katharine Beacham, stated: “Through Plan A for Another Life, we have an ambition to give five million items another life by 2030 through rewear, repair, resale and recycling. However, when textiles reach the end of their usable life, we need better solutions to recover and recycle the materials they contain.”

UK supermarket chain Sainsbury’s Tu Clothing managing director, Ben Smith, added that the initiative presents an opportunity to test practical solutions to help shape a more circular textiles economy.