Sustainability needs more than good intentions today-this was shown by the 56th Innatex in Hofheim-Wallau near Frankfurt am Main. From July 19 to 21, 2025, over 200 Green fashion brands gathered at the international trade fair for sustainable textiles to present the collections for spring/summer 2026. There was a good order mood in particular on Sunday, especially in view of the general challenges in the market.
“While fast fashion is growing, the public interest in sustainable fashion has decreased. This affects not only to us dealers: inside, but the entire supply chain,” says Laura Ott, buyer at Marlowe Green Fashion and a member of the marketing committee of the International Association of Nature Textile Economy (IVN). “We are all entrepreneurs: inside with similar challenges, but different focuses and experiences. This is a resource that is not least economically valuable.”
Reframing well -known concepts
Many fashion brands rely on alternative materials that combine several advantages. Sloppy Tunas, for example, has developed its own version of a high-tech textile in cooperation-partly from accumulated sea sculpture. The label made of Barcelona produces light, quick -drying swimming shorts and closes the circulation itself: worn shorts are withdrawn and recycled with cutting remains from the cut to new yarn and fabric.
The call for innovation and functionality is so loud that proven, naturally sustainable textiles can get into the background. Companies react to reorganize classics: the clothes of the Berlin Label Moefe consist of 100 percent organic cotton. A special knitting technique makes the fabric stable, durable and stretchy – even without Elasthan. Mor Khadi, in turn, translates Indian traditional craft into modern streetwear. The special quality of the Khadi tissue makes clothes breathable and thermore-regulating.
Legal changes require adaptability
“The industry is in the middle of a fundamental transformation between Sheinification, right-hand, generation change, digitization and growing price sensitivity,” says Nina Lorenzen, co-founder of the Fashion Changers and member of the Expert: Inner Council Sustainability of the Textile industry journal. “Companies remain relevant when they are willing to think again – for example by making shopping an experience or designing fashion as a statement and protest form.”
Dealing with both more recent and upcoming legal requirements is also a challenge. By September 2026, the EU member states will have to transfer the Empo guideline (Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition), which came into force in 2024. Among other things, it regulates how companies can communicate sustainability. Another example affects leather processing: A substance that has also been used for ecological tuning is currently limited by the EU. This forces manufacturers: inside to change their processes.
“We find an extremely high need for conversation,” sums up Alexander Hitzel, project manager of the Innatex. “The requirements for green fashion are becoming more complex and dynamic. There is not a simple solution for all actors: inside and problems. Now it counts that companies find suitable answers to their specific questions. Platforms that provide impulses and promote cooperation are more important than ever.” On August 17th and 18th, the Innatex Showroom in Bern (Switzerland) invites around 40 brands at the end of the order season.
The upcoming Innatex will take place from January 17th to 19th, 2026.