Circular fashion company Circ on Tuesday announced over $30 million in Series B funding, backed by some of the biggest international clothing companies and venture capital firms, including Spanish clothing group Inditex , the US textile manufacturer Milliken & Company, the company Breakthrough Energy Ventures (BEV) founded by Bill Gates and the international investment group Lansdowne Partners.
“At Inditex, we are very pleased to announce our first venture capital investment in a clean technology company, Circ. In partnership with Circ, we aim to drive change across the fashion industry. We look forward to using our knowledge and entrepreneurial skills to contribute to Circ’s rapid success and industrial scale,” comments Inditex CEO Óscar García Maceiras in a statement.
The company’s revolutionary system of technology, which turns clothes back into the raw materials from which they were made, has already attracted the attention of major brands and organizations such as early investors Patagonia, Marubeni and Fashion For Good. The latest round of funding will help Circ complete its engineering work on larger facilities while continuing to go to market with key partners. The funds will also be used to expand the core team in engineering, R&D, management and business development.
“The combination of world-class financial investors, led by Breakthrough Energy Ventures, with investments from leading fashion company Inditex is a stepping stone to rapid success in large-scale manufacturing,” said Circ CEO Peter Majeranowski.
The company’s technology allows mixed polymer streams to be separated and recovered, particularly blends of polyester and cotton, which make up the bulk of the fabrics manufactured, and hence the clothing. This significantly reduces the carbon emissions generated by the fashion industry.
“Recycling can reduce the emissions associated with the extraction of textile raw materials, but most textiles are blends that are difficult to separate and recycle. We view Circ’s ability to recycle blended textiles as a significant breakthrough that can help us meet our global carbon goals by reducing the carbon intensity of textile raw materials,” said Carmichael Roberts, co-founder and associate of BEV.
“With this investment round, we have attracted suppliers, buyers and key financial players to create a much cleaner fashion future. We already have all the clothing items we need to make all the clothing items we will ever need. Now, together with our partners, we can give all shoppers access to recycled clothing,” adds Majeranowski.
Previous investors who participated in Circ’s recent funding round include 8090 Partners, Alante Capital, Card Sound Capital and Marubeni.