Switching to circular materials in the textile, fashion and furniture industries 

CircularHub is a project that helps companies transition to a circular economy, focusing specifically on companies in the textile, fashion and furniture industries. The project is run by Science Park Borås in close partnership with IDC West Sweden. CircularHub encourages the reuse of materials or components in products. The aim is to move from a linear to a circular economy, inspired by what nature does. CircularHub uses a range of tools to educate companies about circular business models such as reusing materials, rental models and sharing platforms. 

– At Science Park Borås, we're working with the transition to a circular economy and solving the major challenge of sustainability. I'm part of many projects related to the transition to the circular economy in textiles and fashion, says Erik Valvring, innovation strategist at Science Park Borås. 

CircularHub encourages the use of new business models in order to reuse materials or components in products. The objective is to move from a linear to a circular economy. 

– At IDC West Sweden, we help enterprises to grow and develop. We also operate the Swedish branch of Material ConneXion, whose headquarters are in New York. It's a massive database and library of innovative and sustainable materials from all over the world, says Christian Bergman, industrial developer, IDC West Sweden. 

CircularHub is using different tools to educate companies on circular business models, such as reusing materials, rental models and sharing platforms. 

– The tricky part is to understand what the companies need, and in order to better understand this and support their development, we offer them coaching hours, says Erik Valvring. 

– It's about making companies think in a new way. At our workshops, we explain how innovation and alternative solutions might work in a circular production environment, says Christian Bergman. 

The textile, fashion and furniture industries all face a major transition as they are working to reduce plastics and waste. Simultaneously, it’s a significant challenge to find new sustainable materials. 

– Plastic is a material that can be recycled into a textile material. However, there must be more accessible bio-based materials. I think consumers play a significant role in the transition. If more people reject fast fashion, then the mindset of business leaders and companies will change, says Erik Valvring. 

– The total mass of all man-made things now exceed the total bio-mass, so that's where we're going to start looking for raw materials to find new circular solutions, says Christian Bergman.