H&M’s new joint project makes trash fashionable
Sustainable fashion extends to kidswear as H&M is partnering with DanoneAQUA for the Bottle2fashion project. From Indonesia’s shores, discarded plastic bottles were transformed into recycled polyester, which were then blended with organic cotton and recycled cotton for the H&M kidswear collection.
The Danone-AQUA bottled-water company collected around 71 tonnes of PET bottles from Kepulauan Seribu (Thousand Island) and the Bandung Area.
The collaboration supports the Indonesian government’s initiative against marine pollution — while also generating local jobs — by collecting the PET bottles; sorting, cleaning as well as shredding them into flakes; and then turning them into recycled polyester fibres.
“Helping to keep beaches and oceans clean, Bottle2fashion is another exciting step forward for a more circular and collaborative approach at H&M. To give a second life to disposable plastic bottles as recycled polyester is valuable in many ways not only to Indonesia’s environment, economy and social values but also the world and our customers,” says H&M assortment sustainability responsible executive Nellie Lindeborg.
The collection includes comfortable and co-ordinating hoodies, joggers and longsleeve tops. The designs also feature stylish details such as twist knots, colour-blocking, cropped length and tie-dye while the palette ranges from blush pink and bright green to sunflower yellow and vibrant blues.
“We wanted to focus on pieces that kids could really be kids in — playful, comfy and confident. Though the garments can be co-ordinated, we put together a wide-ranging colour palette that could be easily mixed and matched. I always love to see what kids come up with and I hope they will also learn about the Bottle2fashion project along the way,” says Sofia Löfstedt, head of Kidswear Design at H&M.
Once the children outgrow the clothes, the items can be brought back to H&M through its garment collection initiative for recycling once again.