For emerging designers who work hard to establish their brands, certain challenges can become opportunities to champion change in the industry. For example, to address the growing issue of textile waste, more emphasis has been placed on life cycle designs that extend a garment’s longevity. From a material perspective, this means incorporating the concept of circularity from the raw ingredient stage. Given that designers are deeply influential in driving sustainability in the industry through their choice of materials, it is crucial for next generation designers to be familiar with sustainable alternatives. Hence, fiber producers like Lenzing are well-placed to help empower young designers with access to resources and partners in the supply chain.

This year, Lenzing is once again a proud sponsor of fashion charity Redress’ Redress Design Award 2022, driving design circularity in the industry. Now in its 12^th cycle, the Redress Design Award is the world’s largest fashion competition for emerging designers to champion techniques in sustainable design. This year, contestants were invited to create looks using zero-waste, upcycling and reconstruction techniques. Lenzing’s flagship textile brand TENCEL™ was on board to help the finalists hone these skills through a “Meet the Experts: Closing the loop with fiber regeneration” masterclass during their educational journey in the Grand Final Week. Lenzing also supported the awards’ Hong Kong-based alumni, Eric Wong and Louise Lau, in helping them bring their latest collections to life with fabrics consisting of TENCEL™ branded fibers with REFIBRA™ technology.

In addition to Redress, Lenzing also joined RCGD Global and organizers of Graduate Fashion Week in the UK to bring sustainable eco-couture materials to the spotlight. Specially curated student webinars featuring Lenzing’s TENCEL™ branded fibers were hosted to inspire young fashion talent with knowledge about greener fiber material alternatives.