Sustainability Moves in Bestseller
Fashion group Bestseller is stepping up its integration of textile-to-textile recycled polyester into its supply chain. The brand Only is now converting its staple jersey basics into products made from recycled polyester sourced from textile waste. The first items from this initiative have already reached stores.
Collaboration Details
This project is a joint effort between Only, RE&UP, a company specializing in textile-to-textile recycling, and the Turkish garment supplier Deniz. Bestseller emphasizes that material choices carry significant environmental weight, and this new initiative underscores the group’s strategic aim to reduce dependence on virgin materials, notably primary polyester.
What’s New: First Production Cycle
In the initial production run, 11 styles have been switched from conventional polyester to next-generation RE&UP recycled polyester. That represents over 100,000 T-shirts. Meanwhile, production capacity is being scaled up so that by 2030, the group hopes to recycle up to one million tons of textile waste.
Broader Impact within Bestseller
Only now joins other Bestseller brands already incorporating recycled materials into their existing ranges, for example the “Never Out Of Stock” line. Earlier this year, Jack & Jones, a men’s brand under Bestseller, also transitioned a bomber jacket in its NOOS series to use polyester recycled from textile waste.
Statements from Leadership
Pernille Tøttrup, purchasing manager at Only, explained that the move allows them to produce items from pre-worn clothing and factory textile scraps, while maintaining the same performance and durability as items made from virgin polyester.
Dorte Reye Olsen, Bestseller’s Sustainability Director, added that they are rethinking material strategies, giving priority to switching from traditional cotton to organic, and from virgin polyester to recycled. She noted:
“In an ideal world, as garments wear out, they’d all feed into a circular production system. Here we see examples of how that can be done. At the same time, we recognize there’s still a long road ahead. So alongside exploring and investing in textile-to-textile solutions, we are also expanding the use of recycled materials from other waste streams.”
