Syntetica Turns Old Nylon Into New Material — A Fashion Story That Deserves Far More Attention
Nylon is everywhere — sportswear, underwear, accessories. Paris-based Syntetica has the technology to turn used nylon back into raw material. But the technology is only half the work; what's missing is a place in fashion, not more presentations about polymers.
The fashion industry produces enormous volumes of synthetic material and still has no good answer for what happens once the garments are done. Paris-based Syntetica is developing technology to recycle nylon, among other materials, through chemical processes that break the material down and make the raw input usable again. Wired UK lists the company among Europe's hottest startups.
This is a business that should be of serious interest well beyond the chemicals sector. Nylon sits in sportswear, outdoor, underwear, accessories and any number of everyday garments — which means Syntetica's technology could become relevant to some of the largest consumer brands in the world.
Fashion brands need more than a sustainability report
Syntetica's commercial customers are companies, but the end consumer still matters. Fashion brands need to be able to explain why a new material is better and why the customer should care — particularly after years of fairly vague talk about "sustainable collections".
That makes Syntetica potentially more than a supplier. The company can help its partners build a credible narrative around circular materials.
BBMB's recommendation: take a place in fashion
I'd like to see Syntetica far more visible at fashion weeks, at design conferences, and in collaborations with carefully chosen brands. A technical material becomes far easier to grasp when the customer can see it, feel it and wear it.
One limited-edition collaboration with a fashion or sports brand would do more for awareness than fifty industry presentations about polymers. The partner has to be credible, of course, and the collaboration has to have substance — otherwise it's just another green campaign on a beige background.
BBMB works with fashion, lifestyle and premium brands where product, storytelling and PR need to develop in step. Syntetica has unusually good raw material for exactly that kind of story.
B2B doesn't have to look dull
The company should also have the confidence to build a more design-literate identity. Selling advanced chemistry doesn't mean the brand has to communicate like a catalogue from an industrial warehouse.
If Syntetica wants to change the materials the fashion industry uses, it might as well look like a company that actually likes fashion.