STAND Up! has selected 10 textile and fashion start-ups to join the access to finance in Tunisia. After the call for applications that was closed on the 21^st of March 2022 CITET, which is one of the Tunisian partners of the project, selected a group of entrepreneurs to develop their financial literacy skills, get knowledge on how to raise funds and get chances to meet with local and regional investors to potentially secure funding opportunities.

The selected entrepreneurs will participate in a 10-days-long training that will focus on building the financial projections of their start-ups, understanding readiness, trends and opportunities in the investment landscape. The training program in Tunisia will be followed by two events organised in the country to provide investment feedback to the entrepreneurs and receive local and regional exposure with potential investors.

Among the selected participants, 50% have participated in the capacity building phase and the incubation phase. Find more information about the contents of the training and the pitching events in this article.

Meet the 10 start-ups selected that will access to finance

Ecobrik: This start-up transforms textile waste into thermal insulation and ecological bricks. It’s designed by Hazar Bettaieb, a young student in industrial engineering with a Bachelor’s Degree in Logistics and Transport.

Lami Mode: It’s a fashion collection that creates a range of clothing from fibers and natural dyes, with a modern and traditional touch with the aim of protecting cultural heritage and enhancing end-of-life items. The start-up is conceived by Lamia Hamrouni, a fashion designer and clothing technician, with 25 years of experience in tailor-made high fashion.

Agaruw: It’s an online marketplace project designed for green products and recycled textile waste developed by Mejda Khaled, a textile engineering student at the Higher Fashion Institute of Monastir with a multidisciplinary artist background in sculpture, painting, fashion and product design.

Packtus: It’s a project that manufactures ecological plastic to create packaging bags or clothing and fashion accessories with cactus-based products. Ismail Wali, a young man aged 25, is the entrepreneur behind this idea.

Authentic Tunisian Wool: It proposes a valorisation of Tunisian wool in a zero waste concept. Makrem Ghidhaoui is the entrepreneur behind this idea, aiming at achieving sa systemic and sustainable change in the fashion and textile industry to close the loop by looping everything in the value chain, and using bio-based materials from sustainably-managed resources or by recycling.

Artwo: It’s an idea based on producing mats and decorative objects (bed sides, seats, etc.) and sorting of textile waste. The project is led by Sarra Bouchareb, holding a Bachelor's Degree in Cellular and Molecular Biology combined with experience in selling handicraft products and a good network of contacts in textile factories.

Prestige Haute Couture: The project is focused on the recovery of cutting waste for the production of artisanal carpets. Marwen Cherni is the entrepreneur behind this idea

Fripeji.tn: It’s a digital marketplace that matches both sellers and buyers of the second hand clothing. Thrift stores will be able to open an online store on our Marketplace and open up to a much larger population. Also, thrift shop clothes collectors will be able to exhibit and sell their products easily and individuals will be able to sell or donate their old clothes.

Medical-Pro: Medical-Pro is a dynamic and innovative company whose activity is the design, manufacture and distribution of single-use non-woven products intended for health establishments, the industrial sector, the world of beauty and the hotel industry. Abdelhamid Chaoua, a 36-years-old entrepreneur, was graduated in 2005 from the University of Medical Technologies in Tunis.

Proact: Proact is conceived as a web platform of green services for professionals, collectors, recyclers and craftsmen in the textile sector. The project is developed by Ibtissem Aoidhi, graduated with a Master's Degree in Quality and Productivity with 10 years of experience in supporting and monitoring the quality of automotive, textile, footwear and leather goods companies.