Seamless has announced a new program to support a coordinated national clothing collection, sorting, reuse and recycling system for Australia. The program received grant funding from the Australian Government, and it will enable Seamless to drive industry collaboration for clothing recirculation and ultimately stimulate next markets for clothing textiles.
The new program will include a focus on the clothing we can no longer wear to address the critical challenges facing the clothing industry, with over 220,000 tonnes of clothing textiles waste ending up in Australian landfill in 2024.
Seamless CEO, Ainsley Simpson, launched the program at an event in Melbourne, which includes the Seamless Circular Clothing Textiles Fund. The Fund will invest in projects with partners across Australia’s clothing and textiles industry – from clothing collection organisations to recycling operators – to deliver practical projects that collect, sort, process and recycle the clothes we no longer wear.
These projects, running in metropolitan, regional and remote areas in Australia, will provide critical data and insights into how the current system works, where the gaps and opportunities are, and what’s needed to build a coordinated national clothing system.
The information gathered will form the evidence for a scalable industry-led voluntary stewardship model to drive lasting, positive impact for Australia.
Seamless CEO Ainsley Simpson said, “This program drives the transition to a new coordinated national clothing system for Australia that is expanded to collect and sort the clothes we can no longer wear. It also ensures that clothing textiles are given a second life and recycled into new, high-value products and materials. This will reduce the significant amount of clothing sent to Australian landfill each year, creating positive environmental outcomes and economic value.”
Findings from the program for the coordinated national clothing system and scalable industry-led voluntary stewardship model will be delivered on 30 March 2026. They will provide insights on the feasibility and effectiveness of current clothing pathways, the next markets for clothing, and future system requirements for economic viability, technology, infrastructure and capability.
Learn more about the new program to support a coordinated national clothing system here.
