H&M Group and Circ® partner to launch circular fashion with recycled polycotton fibers
Circ®, a leader in textile-to-textile recycling, has announced a major collaboration with H&M Group to incorporate its recycled fibers into H&M’s product line. This groundbreaking partnership marks a significant milestone in sustainable fashion, as H&M will feature Circ®’s recycled fibers from polycotton waste in its garments for the first time. The first products are expected to debut in Fall 2025, with a women’s fleece sweatshirt made using Circ® Polyester. In Spring 2026, menswear denim will also be launched, crafted with TENCEL™ | Circ® fibers, powered by Lenzing’s REFIBRA™ technology.
A key player in this partnership is Lenzing Group, a global leader in regenerated cellulose fibers. Lenzing will commercialize Circ®’s recycled pulp through its global supply chain, producing TENCEL™ | Circ® fibers with 30% Circ® pulp derived from textile waste. This collaboration demonstrates how existing fiber platforms can facilitate circularity on a large scale, offering a solution to the textile industry’s waste problem.
This partnership follows a two-year pilot program between Circ®, H&M Group, and local suppliers in Bangladesh under the United Nations Industrial Development Organization’s (UNIDO) SWITCH2CE initiative. The successful recycling of 2.6 tonnes of polycotton waste into Circ® Lyocell and Polyester laid the groundwork for this global launch. The pilot not only showcased the feasibility of Circ®’s recycling technology but also demonstrated the commercial viability of circular fashion within existing supply chains.
Peter Majeranowski, CEO of Circ®, emphasized the importance of collaboration in scaling circular fashion. “By working with partners like H&M Group and Lenzing, we’re showing that circular fashion can be commercially viable,” he said. Lenzing’s Florian Heubrander echoed this sentiment, stating, “By integrating Circ’s recycled pulp into REFIBRA™ technology, we’ve demonstrated how existing mill relationships can make circular fashion a reality.”
The products from this collaboration are developed through close cooperation across the supply chain. For the menswear denim, AGI Denim wove the fiber into fabric, while for the women’s sweatshirt, Circ’s recycled PET chips were converted into polyester staple fiber by Palmetto, and the fabric was knitted by Fakir Knitwear. This seamless integration of Circ® technology into existing manufacturing processes ensures minimal disruption and enables partners to easily adopt circular materials.
Garment samples from the collaboration will be on display at The Textile Exchange Conference 2025 in Lisbon, Portugal, from October 13–17, 2025. As sustainable fashion gains momentum, this partnership sets a positive example for the industry, proving that collaboration and innovation are key to closing the loop in fashion’s supply chain.
