What do you do with old corporate clothing? From textile waste to value

Workwear wears out over time, becomes outdated, or no longer matches your brand due to rebranding. Before you know it, there's a huge pile of textile doing nothing: old jackets, polos, or safety clothing, often still bearing logos. What should you do with it, you might wonder?

At i-did, we are strong advocates for textile reuse. Perhaps some of the clothing can be repaired, or individual items can be used as spare clothing. Unfortunately, in practice, this is only feasible for a small portion of the clothing. Donation is also often not an option due to branding (e.g., logos). Unfortunately, it still too often happens that this worn workwear ends up as waste. That's not necessary.

Old workwear is not waste (but raw material)

What many companies don't realize: worn-out workwear is actually a valuable raw material. Yet, a large part of textile still ends up in landfills or incinerators. It's a shame, as it means materials, energy, and potential are lost.

By recycling workwear:

• You reduce textile waste

• You save raw materials and water

• You contribute to a circular economy

But there's something else important.

Why reuse is often not an option

Unlike post-consumer textiles, workwear is often immediately recognizable. Think of logos, colors, and materials that are part of your brand. This often makes reuse or donation difficult. But it is precisely this recognizability that makes the material unique.

That's where textile recycling comes into play.

From old workwear to new material

At i-did, we process old workwear into fibers. These fibers form the basis for a new material: felt. No incineration, but a visible transformation.

What was once a jacket, for example, becomes:

• Wall covering

• An acoustic wall panel

• A gift for clients and employees

This way, textile waste becomes part of your story.

More than recycling: visible impact

Recycling workwear is not just about reducing waste.

It's about:

• Making your sustainable ambitions visible

• Taking concrete steps towards a circular organization

• Actively involving people and employees in your story

And at i-did, there's something else. As a social enterprise, we help people who have been unemployed for a long time or never worked before. So, your organization's textile waste not only becomes raw material but also an opportunity.

How does workwear recycling work?

The process is surprisingly concrete:

1. Collecting old workwear

2. Sorting and assessing the textile

3. Mechanically processing it into fibers and felt

4. Developing new applications

Everything happens locally in The Hague: transparent, tangible, and without unnecessary transport. Read here how workwear recycling works at i-did.

What does it yield for your organization?

More and more companies are choosing a circular solution for their textile waste. Not only because of sustainability, but also because it yields results:

• Less waste and lower impact

• Fulfillment of ESG and CSRD objectives

• A strong, visibly sustainable story

• Unique products with your own material

Organizations such as Defensie, Cortina, KLM, and Efteling have already led the way.

Give your workwear a second life (but for real)

Hopefully, the question is no longer: what do you do with old workwear? But:
what do you want it to become?

A cost item? Or an opportunity to make an impact?

Want to discover what's possible with your old workwear?

Check out the possibilities on our you-felt page or contact us. We'd be happy to brainstorm with you.