Snapshot
ReLondon’s ReWear grant programme funded 10 circular fashion businesses with up to £15,000 each to scale solutions that reduce Londoners’ need to buy new clothes. These businesses are doing more than shifting people’s habits: they’re building the infrastructure behind a more resilient, sustainable fashion industry. From resale and repair platforms to rental services and brand partnerships, these innovators are developing the tools that help both retailers and customers make circular fashion the easier choice.
This programme demonstrates the pivotal role of small businesses in making London’s fashion sector more circular, inclusive, and resilient. As a result of the programme, all grantees improved their business health, with two-thirds creating or safeguarding green jobs.
What was the opportunity?
London’s fashion industry needs to change: Today, each Londoner buys 48 items of new clothing on average per year and disposes of 44 items, 40% of which end up in general waste. This high demand for fashion is wasteful and environmentally damaging. It’s also an economic loss, with an estimated $500 billion of value lost every year to clothing that’s barely worn and rarely recycled. But what if we could transform this into an economic and environmental opportunity – by enabling viable business models that extend the life of clothes?
In London, there is a growing ecosystem of small, circular fashion start-ups that are disrupting the status quo – and their innovations play a key part in paving the way ahead for both the industry and citizens. We wanted to showcase their solutions through these grants.
What was the response?
We designed ReWear to support promising circular fashion solutions and help them scale their operations and impact. With 100 applications, the programme was 10 times oversubscribed, demonstrating how active and ambitious the circular fashion innovator scene is in London.
10 London-based businesses were selected based on their alignment with displacing the need for newly made clothes, as well as their potential to deliver business impact and contribute to a wider system shift. A panel of experts from the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, British Retail Consortium, and Hubbub helped ensure a strong and diverse cohort, capable of strengthening the industry as a whole and tapping into this vibrant ecosystem.
Meet the businesses
The Seam is a platform connecting customers with local makers for clothing repairs and alterations.
Vamp Sneaker Cleaning are specialists in sneaker cleaning and restoration to extend footwear lifespan.
SOJO is a fashion-tech platform providing door-to-door repair services with a “plug and play” repair solution for brands, as well as an in-store repair offering.
Hosts of pop-up clothes swaps across London and the UK. Verte partners with brands and commercial landlords to create curated, premium pre-loved shopping experiences.
Give Your Best is a dual-model business addressing clothing poverty and promoting sustainable fashion via a pay-it-forward in-person store
Tern Eco is a B2B SaaS platform for circular programmes, integrating resale and repair options for retailers.
Known Source is a second-hand platform with verified sellers specialising in high-quality pre-loved fashion. Known Source resell any items purchased with them, making sustainable shopping more convenient.
Continue Technology is a peer-to-peer resale platform for retailers, making second-hand options accessible and profitable for businesses of all sizes.
Kiraa is a rental platform providing access to luxury and culturally-rooted fashion brands, particularly those from Africa, fostering a community around sustainable fashion.
The final cohort reflected the diversity of business founders within the industry, bringing in a range of life experiences and perspectives to inform the design of different solutions: 60% of the grantees were women-led, 60% led by people from Black, Asian, or minority ethnic backgrounds, and 10% by individuals self-identifying with disabilities.
From previous programmes, we know that relationship and partnership strengthening, profile raising and networking are key elements of building resilience for businesses. Therefore, beyond funding, we offered grantees the opportunity to connect with one another, present their solutions to the wider sustainable fashion community through a celebration event, and other platforming opportunities with circular fashion initiatives such as Fashion District and Circular Fashion Innovation Network (CFIN).
Josephine Philips Founder & CEO, SOJOIt’s so difficult to get small businesses off the ground […]. But getting grant funding and support from ReLondon was really useful as it enabled us to put extra investment into certain parts of our business that needed extra support. Plus – being part of a community of other circular start-ups is always a bonus so the journey doesn’t feel lonely!
What were the outcomes?
Our goal with ReWear was to support the fashion industry in seizing the opportunities offered by circular business models – and to show how supporting a variety of such solutions can build resilience across the sector.
The selected businesses spanned a broad range of business- and customer-facing models, with many operating at the intersection of both. Collectively, they contributed to a diverse and evolving circular fashion ecosystem by:
- Reaching niche and underserved audiences and use cases, such as knitwear repair, sneaker cleaning, children’s clothing rental, and culturally-rooted brand rentals in inclusive size ranges
- Connecting informal or fragmented networks of repairers and vintage sellers to larger, more diverse audiences via platform infrastructure
- Enabling both large and small retailers to access takeback and resale software, with and without peer-to-peer components
Grantees used the funding flexibly to increase their capacity, improve services, and strengthen their market position. They hired staff, upgraded operations, launched new services, and onboarded retailers – laying foundations for long-term growth.
In just four months, all grantees improved their business health, contributing directly to the resilience of the industry. Excitingly, 42 new partnerships were formed with a broad mix of actors including designers, retailers, brands, landlords, workspaces, fulfilment providers, technology partners, London Fashion Week, and advertising agencies.
Investing in circular innovation is also an investment in the skillsets of tomorrow: 50% of grantees saw improvements in staff skills, and two-thirds created or safeguarded jobs during the programme. The results also show that circular models are in demand: more than 4,700 garments had their life extended in just four months, and all surveyed grantees reported growth in revenue or customers, reflecting strong demand for their solutions.
Jordan Taylor Director, Vamp Sneaker CleaningThis support has been truly life-changing. As a small business owner, opportunities like this don’t come often, especially when navigating the challenges of growing a sustainable business with limited resources. Being recognised and given capital to not just survive but to thrive has been transformative. The support has been immense – […] it’s taken me from 0 to 100 in such a short time.
What was learned?
ReWear is demonstrating how supporting even a small group of innovators can contribute meaningfully to the growth of London’s fashion industry – both in terms of the businesses’ own growth and by supporting the sector’s resilience: three-quarters of ReWear grantees reported being more financially stable by the end of the programme, cumulatively increasing their revenue by nearly £100,000 since last year. The same proportion of businesses improved their products or services, enhancing their ability to serve customers, clients, and partners, while reaching more than 1,000 new customers over the course of the programme.
We continue to see evidence that relatively modest amounts of funding (£10,000–£15,000) can be highly effective in accelerating early-stage growth: all grantees reported that their outcomes would not have occurred, or would have been slower, smaller, or of lower quality, without this support.
Finally, the programme yielded additional, sometimes unexpected, benefits: some businesses experienced greater credibility with brand partners due to the scaling of operations made possible by the grant, while others cited improved mental and physical wellbeing thanks to the increased financial security.
Kate Walmsley Co-founder, Tern EcoReLondon are a truly proactive organisation, committed to sharing knowledge and supporting our collective goals. They are also great connectors and champions for the industry – uniquely positioned to bring together local business and service providers and leveraging resources where they exist.
What’s next?
ReLondon will continue to support the ReWear cohort through our business community and Circular Economy Matchmaker, facilitating ongoing partnerships and integration into London’s circular economy ecosystem.
We will also continue working to channel public and philanthropic funding toward circular innovation that drives economic growth – both within London and across the UK.
Read about our innovation grants for the food industry here.
To explore how you can partner with ReLondon to tackle sector-specific issues through innovation grants, get in touch: business@relondon.gov.uk
ReLondon’s business transformation programme and the ReWear programme is funded by the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund.
