A new project in the UK wants to tackle the impact of textile waste in the football industry.
- The project between the University of Manchester and RÆBURN Design, a sustainable fashion studio, has been named KIT:BAG by RÆBURN.
The Initiative: The project will work with local sportswear suppliers and the local community transform surplus football shirts into unique reusable tote bags, while educating them of the environmental impacts of textile waste and how we can extend the life of garments.
- It aims to provide a fun, responsible way to keep kits in circulation while shining a light on the large-scale problem in the industry.
- As research partners, academics from the Department of Materials at The University of Manchester will focus on advancing current knowledge and generating new knowledge in this area.
- The researchers, including Lindsay Pressdee, Amy Benstead, Jo Conlon and student intern Lena Bartoszewicz, will look at post-consumer waste, diverting it from landfill and repurposing it into a new usable product—a key part of the circular design model.
The Problem: The UK disposes of 1 million tonnes of textiles every year, 300,000 tonnes of which end up in landfill or incineration.
- Some figures suggest 10% of global CO2 emissions come from the fashion industry.
- The football sector is a huge contributor to this—approximately 2.45 million Liverpool and 1.95 million Manchester United sports shirts were sold worldwide in 2021 alone.
- The waste of sportwear is a hidden problem. It known that football teams can have on average three kits per season, but what is not known is how many people have these in their homes, shoved in their wardrobes, or put away in their lofts.
The Launch: KIT:BAG by RÆBURN launched on 27 July. This will be followed by a community event for children and families on 29 July.
- The team plan to extend this to Manchester, where they will invite the local community to various workshops and have a go at making their own reusable bags.
WHAT THEY SAID:
Developing meaningful sustainable business models and consumer behaviours remains a key issue within the fashion sector and raises serious environmental concerns. This project focuses on the overlooked area of sportswear; how we can extend the life of these polyester garments and avoid them going into landfill or incineration, through the key principle of community education.
— Lindsay Pressdee
Senior Lecturer, Sustainable Fashion Marketing & Branding Communication
University of Manchester
As our business has evolved, we’ve tried, tested and proven our “Remade, Reduced, Recycled” motif can be scaled and translated into other industries outside of fashion, such as architecture, furniture design, film and cultural placemaking. KIT:BAG by RAEBURN marks our newest venture: bringing circular design solutions to the sports industry.
— Christopher Raeburn
Creative Director
RÆBURN
