The deal marks Primark’s first multi-year offtake agreement with a textile-to-textile recycler and aims to boost the company’s use of circular materials while reducing its reliance on virgin polyester, in line with its sustainability objectives.
Under the agreement, the recycled polyester will be manufactured at Circ’s planned industrial-scale facility.
The commercial facility will obtain textile feedstock from multiple regions worldwide, using both post-consumer and post-industrial waste, with plans to include European textile waste among its sources.
The company’s technology focuses on recycling polycotton blends, materials that constitute a significant portion of the apparel sector’s overall waste stream and have proven challenging to recycle using conventional methods.
The process recovers both polyester and cellulose from textile waste, enabling the production of new, high-quality fibres for use in fashion manufacturing.
Circ CEO Peter Majeranowski said: “This partnership with Primark represents exactly the kind of long-term commercial commitment needed to move textile-to-textile recycling from innovation to industry standard. When a global fashion retailer commits to integrating recycled materials into future collections, it sends a powerful signal across the industry: the demand is here, the materials are ready, and the opportunity to scale circular material supply chains is real.”
As part of its Primark Cares strategy, the retailer has outlined efforts to extend the lifespan of clothing and materials, including incorporating circular design principles into its product development and supporting customers in reusing and repairing garments.
Primark Cares director Lynne Walker said: "We launched Primark Cares with a focus on improving the quality and longevity of our clothing, and in the process show that clothes made to last longer don't have to come at a higher price.
“Since then, we've delivered tangible progress, including increasing the use of recycled fibres, introducing products designed to be recycled and enhancing traceability across our supply chain. This partnership is an important milestone in accelerating our ambitions to further embed circularity in our business and help scale innovative textile-to-textile recycling solutions that could play a transformational role in the future of fashion."
