Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s New Video Tells the Story Behind the Jeans Redesign

The Ellen MacArthur Foundation have released a new video - The Story of the Jeans Redesign. The short film gives an insight from those at the heart of the fashion industry on their journey to creating circular jeans. The Jeans Redesign is part of the Make Fashion Circular Project, which was a Dream Fund winner in 2019. 

Kelly Slater, Evet Sanchez, Marina Testino, and Thania Peck feature alongside brands Tommy Hilfiger and Weekday, and manufacturer Hirdaramani to reveal what’s really different about these jeans compared to the ones we wear today.

Jeans are iconic - most of us have a pair in our wardrobes, yet the way they are designed and produced is harmful to the environment and those working in the industry. Transforming fashion towards a circular economy requires new ways to create and make clothes, so they can be durable, recyclable, and made with good materials.

The Jeans Redesign was launched back in July 2019 with the aim of bringing together leading fashion brands, manufacturers, and fabric mills to transform the way in which jeans are produced - from a linear to a circular model. Towards the end of 2019, the project was extended to fabric mills and recyclers with the aim of covering all aspects of the supply chain.

The Jeans Redesign is focused around a set of guidelines, created by the Foundation, along with over 80 denim experts. Based on the principles of the circular economy, the guidelines ensure that circular jeans: last and are used for longer, can be easily recycled, and are made in a way that is better for the environment and the health of garment workers.

The final list of 67 confirmed participants includes: Advance Denim, AGI Denim, American Eagle Outfitters, Artistic Denim Mills, Artistic Fabric Mills, Artistic Milliners, Arvind, Atelier & Repairs, Balzac Paris, Bamboo Clothing, Banana Republic, Blue Design America, Bestseller, Blue of a Kind, Boyish, C&A, Cone Denim Mills, Creative Knits, Crescent Bahuman, Crystal Group, DEMCO, Denim Clothing Company, Denim Expert, Denim Village, DL1961, DNM Textile, Ereks Garment-Blue matters, Fairblue, Frame, Frank & Oak, Frontline Clothing, GAP, Green Lab, Guess, H&M, Hantex, Hirdaramani, Honest Jeans, House of Gold, Icicle, Indigo Garments FZE, KG Fabriks, Kipas Textiles, Lee, Mud Jeans, Naveena, nu-in, Organic Basics, Orta Anadolu, Outerknown, Outland Denim, Panther Denim, Prosperity Textile, Reformation, Remi Holdings, SAITEX, Sapphire Fibres, seventy + mochi, Soorty, Tarasima, Tat Fung, Tommy Hilfiger, Triarchy, unspun, Weekday, Wrangler and Zamira Fashion.

Each participant is creating circular jeans by May 2021 and exploring solutions for a world where clothing never becomes waste. Find out more about the Jeans Redesign nd watch the video documentary here.