INTERVIEW #5 REUSED REMADE
“We wanted to create a product that wasn’t made of plastic, but we were sceptical about textiles though they require a lot of resources. ”
What is Reused Remade and why did you start?
It’s a company with sustainability as it’s foundation. We started in 2016 with the ambition to find a more sustainable way to carry products. We wanted to create a product that wasn’t made of plastic, but we were sceptical about textiles though they require a lot of resources. What kind of already used textiles can you find that is easy to remake? What is scalable? Is it available over the whole world? How can we source materials as regional as possible? We wanted to be circular from day one. And that’s how we came up with the idea of making bags out of bedsheets waste from hotels.
What is your sustainability profile?
“It’s a part of a circular model to invite these countries in the transition towards a more sustainable industry. It’s also where the bedsheets were made in the first place. ”
We want to be sustainable the whole way. It sounds ambitious, but we want the product we produce to meet a need, The materials are also sustainable since they’re upcycled and we want to produce in a good way. It should be factories we can visit and keep a long-term relationship. Even in packaging! We are using recyclable plastic, reused cartoons and as little labels as possible. The product has a good quality!
We’re happy about the factory in Pakistan since the workers are happy about using the material we’re sending to them. It’s already washed several times and doesn’t contain any dangerous chemicals. The workers don’t have to cover their mouth for protection. It’s a part of a circular model to invite these countries in the transition towards a more sustainable industry. It’s also where the bedsheets were made in the first place.
How are the products produced?
“We’re talking about a waste of 500-700 tons of textiles every year in Sweden”
The laundry service companies wash the bed sheets for the hotels, and we cooperate with them. So, all the bedsheets that can’t be used again at the hotels, because they might be broken or contain a stain you can’t remove, we can take care of. We’re talking about a waste of 500-700 tons of textiles every year in Sweden. And that’s a low estimation but there’s no good data on this.
A bedsheet normally last for 100-150 laundries. The hotels are selling the experience to sleep and as consumer you expect the bedsheets to be clean and you wouldn’t allow a single stain, so the bedsheets has to be thrown away. Maybe we should change our perspectives on that, just to allow an old stain to stay as long as the bedsheets are clean?
What has been/and is the major challenges?
What we are doing is complete new, to collect waste textiles and use them in this way. There’s no logistic solution out there for our business model. We have to contact the laundries ourselves and collect a certain volume we can work with. And the quality matters too. We want the material to be categorised in a certain way to guarantee quality. To import it to Asia is not easy. All used material comes with a tax due to the history of western countries exporting their waste. We have to prove that we’re actually going to buy the material back again and not contribute to waste. There’s a lot of bureaucracy in this process, so howcan we make it easier for circular business models?
“Our bags were 900 times better based on a LCA”
We have done a Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) of our bags and they are based on a study in Denmark where they compared several bags, everything from plastic to sugarcane materials. In that study plastic bags where the winner. They compared their results towards our bag and ours were 900 times better, including the shipping back and forth to Pakistan.
What has been/is the largest gains (in any means, financial, spiritual)?
It’s truly awesome to see our idea to become reality. We have really done the homework with LCA and UN programs for Agenda 2030 and its global goals, we can tell that we’re making a difference. We can also look our children in the eyes and say that we are working for something that makes the world a better place. We’re trying not to overuse our planets recourses.
What do you think needs to change now in the fashion industry to make it more sustainable?
You have to change regulations and laws and producer-responsibility! The big companies need to take a larger responsibility and change their business models. Just like the mass-consumption and how we lived the last 60 years. I think it’s going to be an exception if you look at it from a longer perspective. It’s the last few years economic boom! The party is now over, the recourses are finished! It has come to an end and only two generations have enjoyed it. We will not be able to live this way, it’s an exception! It’s been a profitable exception.
“The best innovations are a head of us!”
The best innovations are a head of us! There’s plenty of new companies coming up now and we have to be creative. In 20-30 years, things will look very different. Everything will be produced based on the environment.It’s an exciting time! To change or to develop? I believe developing is a positive thing! Profit will be measured in a different way.. maybe related to mental health, environment and so on. Our economic system has to change!
What do you believe is “greenwashing” and what can producers and consumers do to avoid it?
Greenwashing is a big word with a lot of meaning. Many companies are using words such as “climate smart” or “eco”. But what is sustainability for people? Depending on who you are words can mean different things. It’s easy to fool consumers. What does the word climate positive for example mean as used by Max Burgers? What does it mean if everyone can be climate positive but we’re not able to solve the climate crisis?
Be careful about the words you’re using at different times. Greenwashing can result in people stop believing inmore sustainable products.
What would you advice consumers to do who seeks to create a sustainable closet and lifestyle?
The best item of cloth is the ones who is not bought. The second best is the one bought in a conscious way. It should be used for a long time, it’s produced in a way I understand. And just by using a T-shirt twice the time it’s in average used (30 times) your climate impact is reduced by half. Use what’s already in your closet and what you do buy, buy it consciously! And be creative about how to reuse your clothes. If you have pants that are broken or to short, you can make shorts out of them! It’s about increasing the lifespan of textile materials!
“Just by using a T-shirt twice the time it’s in average used (30 times) your climate impact is reduced by half!”