Europe is forcing the fashion industry to change - and Amsterdam is taking center stage

At a pivotal moment for Europe’s textile and fashion industry, the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences (AUAS/HvA) will host the international Textile ETP Conference from 26 to 28 May 2026, Europe’s leading platform for future-proof fashion and textiles. Researchers and the industry will join forces to make transformation possible, as new European legislation forces companies to change how they design, produce and sell clothing. One major catalyst: the EU’s upcoming Digital Product Passport.

This month, science and industry join forces in Amsterdam to assess how digitalisation and data-driven business models will reshape the textile and apparel sector. A crucial moment, as Brussels is introducing new rules that will fundamentally change this industry.

“The industry is not quite there yet, footwear for instance is not as willing as we had hoped”, says Troy Nachtigall, professor Fashion Research and Technology at AUAS. “The Digital Product Passport transformation is coming through the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products regulation (ESPR). It will dramatically change the landscape. The product passport digitalizes a sector that has resisted being digitalized, but that opens up all kinds of new possibilities.”

Front-runners

The conference of the European Technology Platform for the Future of Textiles and Clothing (ETP) in Amsterdam aims to accelerate this transition, by bringing together science and industry. Over the past decade, Nachtigall’s research group and its partners from ETP have already explored what the future of fashion and textiles could look like. This knowledge is becoming increasingly urgent, as companies must change due to European legislation.

“As a research group we use a lot of speculative design,” says Nachtigall. “We’re taking the impossible, making it barely possible and helping companies taking it from there and make it better.” The researchers work together with companies as Knitwear Lab and ByBorre, pioneers of the future of fashion production.

Microfactory

Nachtigall thinks that automation and robotics will play a crucial role in the future of fashion manufacturing. The Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences has a robotized microfactory where knitted sweaters can be produced on-demand.

“We don’t see a lot of people that want to do textile engineering or the manual side anymore, not even in China or Bangladesh. One of the more interesting things we see, is that no generation wants their children to work in textiles. This idea that we’re starting to move towards robots and automatization is way to go.”

Nachtigall points to a future in which designers can test products before they even enter production. “A designer can make something, put it on Instagram, and could have sold 10 pieces before they even go into manufacturing and production. And when it’s made by someone who’s closer to you, I think that will cause a deeper connection towards clothing.”

Global players

Worldwide, only a small number of institutions are researching how robotics and digitalization can transform the fashion industry. Besides AUAS, Nachtigall points to institutions such as Politecnico di Milano, the Swedish School of Textiles and MIT. “It’s a small group of people working in this way, and we all basically know each other.”

Hosting this conference of European innovators in Amsterdam gives the Fashion Research & Technology research group and AMFI an international platform to showcase the impact of practice-based research. “What makes our research group unique is our holistic perspective,” says Nachtigall. “We don’t focus on just one part of the fashion industry, but look at the entire ecosystem.”

Through the NewTexEco network, AUAS collaborates with other research partners to tackle sustainability challenges across the entire supply chain, from fibre production and manufacturing to retail and waste streams.

AUAS is also preparing students for this rapidly changing industry through its Fashion Research and Technology research group, AMFI, and the Master’s programme in Digital Fashion Technology.

The anniversary conference in Amsterdam is organised by AMFI, AUAS and Modint in collaboration with the European network for textile and clothing innovation.

About the EU Legislation

The European Union is developing new legislation designed to make sustainable fashion and textiles the standard. One key element is the Digital Product Passport (DPP): a digital record that shows exactly where a garment was made, where its materials come from, how it was produced, and how it can be repaired or recycled.

The passport is part of the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR). The rules will apply to all brands selling clothing, textiles or footwear within the EU. In addition, large fashion companies will no longer be allowed to destroy unsold clothing and footwear from 2026 onwards. Medium-sized companies will follow in 2030, while small brands are currently exempt.

The EU is expected to finalize the textile and Digital Product Passport regulations in 2027.