Zalando brings 80,000T textile recycling to private label with 20% next-gen cotton

TURKEY – Zalando has launched a commercial T-shirt collection using 20 percent textile-to-textile recycled fibre from Re&Up, marking the first integration of the 80,000-tonne-capacity recycler’s material into the online retailer’s private label range.

The collection, which became available on Zalando recently, includes five T-shirts across the Yourturn and Even&Odd private labels. 

The garments use a circular-knit fabric composed of 80 percent organic cotton and 20 percent Re&Up Next-Gen Cotton. Re&Up processes pre- and post-consumer textile waste through sorting, deconstruction and decolorisation, producing recycled materials that meet commercial production standards. 

Commercial-Scale Recycling Moves Beyond Pilot Phase

Re&Up, a subsidiary of the Turkish Sanko Group, operates two industrial-scale plants with a combined annual capacity of 80,000 tonnes of recycled cotton and polyester. 

The company aims to reach 1 million tonnes of global recycling capacity by 2030, with plans to expand to 200,000 tonnes in the short term. 

Özgür Atsan, Chief Commercial Officer of Re&Up, stated that industrial-scale circularity is no longer aspirational but operational, adding that collaborations like this allow brands to move from pilot projects to repeatable, scalable production with confidence. 

The company has also secured Cradle to Cradle Certified Circularity certification across its entire product line, with recycled cotton fibres achieving Platinum level recognition.

Zalando’s Private Labels as Testing Ground for Recycled Materials

Frederic Teufel, Commercial Director for Private Labels at Zalando, noted that the company’s private label brands bring together entry price points, quality and new materials for customers, adding that the commercial T-shirt range meets strict quality standards and passes the test any next-generation material must pass before scaling. 

The collaboration comes as Europe faces a growing textile waste challenge, with 13.3 million tonnes of post-consumer textile waste generated in 2025. 

Re&Up’s process converts European textile waste into spinnable fibres for applications including T-shirts, sweaters, trousers, bed sheets and sportswear. 

The initiative demonstrates how textile-to-textile recycling can move beyond small-scale trials into commercial production, providing a template for other brands to integrate next-generation fibres into their supply chains. 

The partnership positions Zalando to meet increasing regulatory pressure from EU waste directives while offering customers products with verifiable recycled content.

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