Textile Innovation

The Textile Innovation Podcast speaks to Katie Fensome of UK conservation consultancy Biodiversify about biodiversity and how fashion businesses can better meet Environmental, Social and Governance targets. Biodiversify is a conservation consultancy advising a range of private, public and third-sector clients who want to act for nature. The company has worked with fashion brands including Primark and Kering – owner of Gucci, Balenciaga and Yves Saint Laurent – to design strategies that incorporate biodiversity and develop sustainable supply chain solutions. In episode 98 of WTiN’s Textile Innovation Podcast, we speak with Katie Fensome, principal consultant at Biodiversify about how the consultancy advises the fashion and textile industry to help businesses meet their Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) targets. Fensome explains why collaboration is key to addressing environmental issues, how the consultancy helps companies address biodiversity in their supply chain management and how to overcome challenges that arise in implementing them. If you would like to learn more, please visit biodiversify.com. You can listen to the episode above, or via Spotify and Apple Podcasts. To discuss any of our topics, get in touch by following @wtincomment and @abi_wtin on X, formerly Twitter, or email aturner@wtin.com directly. To explore sponsorship opportunities, please email sales@wtin.com.

The Textile Innovation Podcast speaks with Dr Yuly Fuentes-Medel of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Fabric Innovation Hub about how academic collaboration is transforming practices within the fashion industry. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s (MIT)’s Fabric Innovations Hub seeks to answer how academia can benefit industry. The hub fosters a community of experts in fibres and fabrics to promote research, technology, education and innovation in support of the future of the textile industry. In episode 97 of WTiN’s Textile Innovation Podcast, we speak with Dr Yuly Fuentes-Medel, project manager for fibre technologies at MIT’s Fabric Innovations Hub about the relationship between academia and the fashion industry. She speaks about how the hub operates and both its internal and external partnerships. Fuentes-Medel also touches on her work with the Footwear Collective, which is driving a collaborative and circular approach for the footwear industry by partnering with leading brands, dedicated to scope, develop and scale circular solutions. If you’d like to learn more, please visit fabric-ideas.mit.edu. You can listen to the episode above, or via Spotify and Apple Podcasts. To discuss any of our topics, get in touch by following @wtincomment and @abi_wtin on X, formerly Twitter, or email aturner@wtin.com directly. To explore sponsorship opportunities, please email sales@wtin.com.

Cotton accounts for roughly 65% of the fibres present in wardrobes worldwide. It is therefore a key discussion topic in the textile industry’s transition towards a sustainable future. In episode 96 WTiN’s Textile Innovation Podcast, we speak with Alia Malik, chief development officer at Better Cotton, about the company’s drive towards a traceable supply chain. Better Cotton is a world-leading sustainability initiative for the natural fibre. Its mission is to help cotton communities survive and thrive, while protecting and restoring the environment. Better Cotton already accounts for 22% of global cotton production. Malik speaks to WTiN about the company’s 2030 strategy, within which it launched Better Cotton Traceability at the end of 2023, to make it possible to trace Better Cotton back to its country of origin. She explains how the market is demanding more information and how this aligns with the company’s efforts to help farmers access these markets and generate sustainable livelihoods. If you’d like to learn more, please visit bettercotton.org. You can listen to the episode above, or via Spotify and Apple Podcasts. To discuss any of our topics, get in touch by following @wtincomment and @abi_wtin on X, formerly Twitter, or email aturner@wtin.com directly. To explore sponsorship opportunities, please email sales@wtin.com.

This month, WTiN speaks with Daniel Rufenacht, chief executive officer at Bluesign. Based out of Switzerland, Bluesign partners with brands, manufacturers and chemical suppliers, from fibre to finished product, with the aim to make safer workplaces and textile products that are less impactful on the environment and people. Rufenacht talks about the difference between a standard and an index – and why one is far more superior, why collaboration is integral as the current period continues to evolve when it comes to the planet and textiles, and most importantly: how to stay ahead of legislation. Contact Bluesign at bluesign.com/en/. To discuss any of the topics in the episode, get in touch by following @wtincomment and @rubyatwtin on X (formerly Twitter), or email rpenson@wtin.com directly. To explore sponsorship opportunities, email sales@wtin.com.

This month, WTiN speaks with Kris Cody. Founder and chief executive officer at PAKA, a company paving its own path with natural fibres since 2015. The idea of PAKA and traceable alpaca wool came after Cody was in Peru as part of a backpacking trip. After returning home, he booked a one-way flight back over to Peru and lived among the alpaca farmers and their families before starting the company. Now, nine years later, the company has hit a number of impressive milestones. One year after a kick starter campaign that raised over 1700% of its initial target, PAKA released its first activewear: BREATHE, which was forged in partnership with SeaLegacy. Just last year, PAKA released its first traceable alpaca hoodie releases, in partnership with AIA, followed by the release of PAKAFILL® - an ‘ethical’ insulation for clothing. Contact Cody at pakaapparel.com. To discuss any of the topics in the episode, get in touch by following @wtincomment and @rubyatwtin on X (formerly Twitter), or email rpenson@wtin.com directly. To explore sponsorship opportunities, email sales@wtin.com.

This month, WTiN speaks with Graham Stewart. He is the man behind a holistic patent-pending process called Fibre 52. The Fibre 52 process is holistic from prep to dye, and mill tests around the globe show it’s consistently repeatable. It also is integrated with no added machinery or upfront investment. Stewart talks about certification, sustainability, how the Fibre52 process came to be and how it can help manufacturing processes. Contact Stewart at fibre52.com. To discuss any of the topics in the episode, get in touch by following @wtincomment and @rubyatwtin on X (formerly Twitter), or email rpenson@wtin.com directly. To explore sponsorship opportunities, email sales@wtin.com.

This month, WTiN speaks with Ishan Chathuranga – an e-textiles engineer based in Ontario, Canada. Chathuranga has more than eight years’ experience in electronic textile product development, failure analysis, and manufacturing. Chathuranga delves into the issues around scaling e-textiles, stages of development and the need for plug-and-play technology and standardisation. To discuss any of the topics in the episode, get in touch by following @wtincomment and @rubyatwtin on Twitter, or email rpenson@wtin.com directly. To explore sponsorship opportunities, email sales@wtin.com.

Talk of the metaverse, blockchain and artificial intelligence (AI) has taken over the textile industry as of late. This month, WTiN speaks with Eric Benoist – a technology and data specialist at Natixis, a Corporate investment banking company headquartered in Paris, France. We talk about synthetic biology, how AI can help in terms of sustainability and the ethics that go alongside merging science with textiles. To discuss any of the topics in the episode, get in touch by following @wtincomment and @rubyatwtin on Twitter, or email rpenson@wtin.com directly. To explore sponsorship opportunities, email sales@wtin.com.

When looking for more circularity within the textile & apparel industry, most look to existing fibres and ways to elevate them. Keel Labs were on the hunt for something new and looked to the ocean. On this episode of Textile Innovation, WTiN talks to Tessa Callaghan, the chief executive officer and one of the co-founders behind Keel Labs. Based in the US, the company has an eye for innovation, starting with its seaweed-derived yarn called Kelsun that holds a significantly lower carbon footprint compared to legacy fibres. Created using an abundant polymer found in the kelp, Callaghan says Kelsun harnesses the renewable and regenerative power of the ocean. To discuss any of our topics, get in touch by following @wtincomment and @rubyatwtin on Twitter, or email rpenson@wtin.com directly. To explore sponsorship opportunities, email sales@wtin.com

The way most of us know fungi best is by mushrooms. Ecovative’s innovation, AirMycelium, is expanding the possibilities of working with mushrooms. This month, WTiN talks to Gavin McIntyre, co-founder of New York-based company, Ecovative. There is huge demand for sustainable and planet-friendly leather alternatives that feel, look and perform like the real thing. Ecovative has a specialised soft goods division called Forager that approaches the problem by using its AirMycelium technology to grow durable, synthetic-free and totally vegan materials for the fashion industry. Grown in only nine days, Forager’s AirMycelium hides have a naturally high tensile strength, tear resistance, durability and other traits that are equal to animal leathers. If you want to get in touch with Ecovative, you can find them at forager.bio. To discuss any of our topics, get in touch by following @wtincomment and @rubyatwtin on Twitter, or email rpenson@wtin.com directly. To explore sponsorship opportunities, email sales@wtin.com.

This month, World Textile Information Network talks to Edwin Keh, the CEO at the Hong Kong Research Institute of Textiles and Apparel or HKRITA ⁠— an applied research center for the textile, apparel and fashion industries. It says it’s goal is to engage in useful research, explore enhancements and create new values, applications and solutions for the challenges in the marketplace and in society. Ruby talks to Keh about Industry 4.0, sustainability and some of the innovations that the institute is working on. Like the apron made of a material that eats carbon from the air while it’s being worn, an extremely absorbent textile that could help farmers and the world's shortest supply chain that could fit into two 40ft containers. Since opening in 2006, the institute fulfilled its vision of being a leading center of excellence in research, development and technology transfer in fashion and textile industry. Keh shares a multitude of knowledge and insight with WTiN during the episode. You can listen to the episode above, or via Spotify and Apple Podcasts. You can find out more about HKRITA by heading to hkrita.com. To discuss any of our topics, get in touch by following @wtincomment and @rubyatwtin on Twitter or email rpenson@wtin.com directly. To explore sponsorship opportunities, please email sales@wtin.com.

This month, World Textile Information Network talks to Joel Furey, the founder and chief commercial officer at Noble Biomaterials. The intelligent materials company is based out of Scranton, Pennsylvania in the US and is the home of both Ionic+ and Circuitex – antimicrobial and conductivity solutions. Its silver-based wearable technologies are used across the textile spectrum from military to performance apparel and healthcare. Furey tunes in from the Electric City to share the company’s latest innovations as well as giving his insight and giving a sneak peek at what is coming next for Noble. You may recognise some of the big-name brands that use Noble’s anti-odour technologies, from Lululemon and Athleta to Anta and Mack Weldon, as well as other technologies that are used by NASA, Boeing and Lockheed Martin. Furey also talks about sustainability and what the company does to minimise its effects on the planet – including using predominantly recycled silver from electronics, for example, in its technology. You can find Noble Biomaterials by heading to noblebiomaterials.com, or you can get in touch over Twitter by following @noble_advantage. To discuss any of our topics, get in touch by following @wtincomment and @rubyatwtin on Twitter or email rpenson@wtin.com directly. To explore sponsorship opportunities, please email sales@wtin.com.

In this episode of The WTiN Podcast, we talk to Jason Finnis, executive vice president and chief innovation officer, and Caleb Beyers, brand and design manager, at Bast Fibre Technologies. Founded in 2016 and headquartered in Victoria (British Colombia, Canada), Bast Fibre Tech produces 100% plant-based natural fibres for a wide variety of nonwoven applications. Currently it has two products: Sero and Noval. Sero is a multipurpose hemp fibre and Noval is the company’s specialty linen fibre. In this podcast, Finnis and Beyers explain why bast fibres are suitable for nonwoven applications and how they can enhance and purify the fibres using Bast Fibre Tech’s wet processing, fibre modification and proprietary dry processing techniques. Elsewhere, they discuss overcoming obstacles such as continuity of supply and fibre consistency and explore the potential to replace synthetics with this family of fibres. Lastly, the pair note other potential applications and they make their predictions for where bast fibres might be in the next five to 10 years.

In this episode of The WTiN Podcast, we talk to Dr Giovanna Graziosi Casimiro, head of Metaverse Fashion Week at Decentraland. Decentraland is a software development company that is creating a virtual world (aka a metaverse) that will grow beyond any centralised control. To accomplish this, the company is building tools and applications designed to help people create three-dimensional (3D) content, games and applications. All of which are hosted and accessed on a fully decentralised virtual reality (VR) platform. In this podcast, Casimiro explains what the metaverse is and what associated terms such as Web3 and NFTs mean, before talking about the company’s first Metaverse Fashion Week. Held in March 2022, the event featured runway shows, panel talks, virtual shopping experiences and more. Casimiro explains what brands thought of the event, how they plan to improve it for next year and that it will not ever replace physical experiences but enhance them. Elsewhere, she talks about other opportunities that the metaverse offers textile and apparel companies and she provides her advice on how to get involved.

In this episode of The WTiN Podcast, we talk to Jeffrey Hsu, chief innovation and marketing officer, and Peter Decorte, chief operations officer, at NTX. NTX is a textile innovation and solution company that has developed a hybrid textile colouration system called NTX Cooltrans. Indeed, the pair say it is a mix of digital printing, sublimation and wet dye techniques – something they claim is completely new and unique. In this podcast, Hsu and Decorte explain how the NTX Cooltrans technology came about, how the different machines have evolved, and what the environmental benefits are of adopting the system. They also talk about production benefits regarding the ability to print on both sides of the fabric and how the fewer process steps results in an end product that retains its strength and quality. Lastly, the pair explain the company’s plan to roll out the technology through joint ventures and how companies can get their hands on NTX Cooltrans. To find out more about the company, visit www.ntx.global

In this episode of The WTiN Podcast, we talk to Yoel Fink, Professor of Materials Science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). MIT is well-known for its research concerning textiles & apparel, and most recently Fink and his team have developed a ‘fabric that hears’. The fabric works like a microphone, converting sound into mechanical vibrations, then into electrical signals, similarly to how our ears hear. In this podcast, Fink talks about the inspiration for the research and how the aim is to start ‘capturing the soundtrack of our lives’. He talks about how the team have made the fibre and resulting fabric, how it’s cost-effective to produce and the cool applications that range from monitoring unborn babies to detecting space dust. Elsewhere, he speaks of the ‘tremendous opportunities with fabrics’ and highlights a new course at MIT that combines computing with textiles called Computing Fabrics.

In this episode of The WTiN Podcast, we talk to Scott Mellin, CEO of LifeLabs. LifeLabs is a materials science company founded by Professor Yi Cui, director of Stanford University’s advanced materials laboratory, and Meng Sui, a chemist and CEO of clean-energy foundry EEnotech. The company has developed textile technologies to reduce energy consumption with the aim to shift the way that we think about fabric and its environmental impact. In this podcast, Mellin talks about the company’s two thermoregulating technologies – WarmLife and CoolLife – which he describes as a democratic solution to climate change. In fact, Mellin says that wearing these products 365 days per year can help one person to save 1,000 lbs of carbon in that time. Elsewhere, he talks about LifeLabs’s holistic approach to sustainability, his opinion on the Higg MSI and how the company’s technology could be applied to automotive, upholstery and sportswear in future.

In this episode of The WTiN Podcast, Jessica Owen interviews Britt Howard, founder of the Portland Garment Factory. Founded in 2008 and based in Oregon, US, the Portland Garment Factory is a full-service manufacturing company that can prototype, design, pattern grade, source fabrics and much more. In this episode, Howard discusses why she founded the company and more about the services she and the team offer. Elsewhere, Howard talks about working with clients ranging from small designers to global brands such as Nike, as well as the company’s zero waste manufacturing approach and the appeal of being made in the US. To find out more about the Portland Garment Factory, visit www.portlandgarmentfactory.com

To kick off 2022, Victoria Nickerson interviews Milon Hossein, a graduate research assistant at North Carolina State University (NC State) in the US.

The last guest on this year’s The WTiN Podcast is Lisa Kennedy, vice president of strategic partnerships at Genomatica. Founded in 2000 and based in San Diego (US), Genomatica develops commercial bio-based products and processes. Having started in the plastics and cosmetics industries, the company has since turned its attention to finding sustainable alternatives to nylon. In this podcast, Kennedy talks about the company’s innovations aimed at the textile & apparel industry such as its bio-nylon and alternative for thermoplastic polyurethan (TPU). Elsewhere, she mentions the challenges associated with developing new chemistries, talks about Genomatica’s collaborations with brands including Lululemon and hints at the next solution on the horizon. To find out more about Genomatica, visit www.genomatica.com