However, without sufficient resources and industry coordination in place, progress has been slowed, the survey report noted.

Among the brands surveyed, 70 per cent said they have a sustainability team addressing innovative materials; 48 per cent indicate they have an innovation team or financial resources allocated specifically for material innovation.

Of the suppliers surveyed, 63 per cent said they had a dedicated research and development (R&D) team focused on innovative materials, including sustainability and innovation, and the financial resources to allocate to the material innovations.

The fashion industry can achieve a paradigm shift where next-generation material innovations in fashion follow similar growth trajectories to climate tech sectors like solar energy and electric vehicles, resulting in lower costs through regulatory support, investment and economies of scale, improving performance through R&D partnerships, and resulting in accessibility for consumers globally, the report said.

Despite an uncertain economic climate dampening the investment and retail landscape, there are strong drivers in place making a transition to next-generation innovations in the fashion sector all but certain, it noted.

Fashion for Good estimates that there are over 650 innovations in the material innovation space across materials and recycling, up from 130 in 2017, an increase of 400 per cent. Collectively, these innovators have raised €1.19 billion in investment since joining the Fashion for Good programme.

Hurdles related to price, performance and implementation continue to block adoption. A perceived lack of commitment and resistance to changing the status quo were also identified as significant barriers that add another layer of difficulty, according to the report.

The survey identified three priority areas to create a pathway to scale for the industry: information creation, R&D optimisation and confronting funding.

There is a need to focus on alignment and standardisation through industry cooperation and transparency, optimization of R&D through supplier partnerships and shared resources, and catalytic public and private funding opportunities, the report said.

Innovators’ biggest obstacles to obtaining funding are limited investor knowledge of the fashion industry, technological risks associated with scaling, and misalignment with the timing of funding.

Alternative leather innovators face unique challenges. They were more likely to face challenges with the crowded landscape than other innovator groups—more specifically as a major obstacle to investment—and are also associated with a greater likelihood of securing partnerships and supply agreements, it noted.

Innovators working on circular solutions (recycling technologies) said limited information to report impact was the top challenge they have faced in obtaining funding.

A correlation analysis revealed that companies struggling with limited information to report impact also tend to lack sufficient internal resources to develop financial projections or business plans.

Innovators working on dyes and finishes were the only group of survey respondents to include beauty and chemicals in their top five most applicable sectors. They were also the only innovator category to cite technological risk associated with the scaling of the innovation as the primary obstacle to obtaining funding.

Innovators working on biomaterials were the only group that cited the supply chain’s resistance to changing the status quo as the top obstacle to strategic partnerships (as opposed to the price premium) and limited investor knowledge of the fashion industry as one of the main hurdles to obtaining funding, the report added.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)