Creating a business alternative to fast fashion. This is the key idea behind the textile and clothing ideas selected in Spain. In total, the 40 selected entrepreneurs will follow a series of training sessions that will take place during the month of May and June. TEXFOR, the Spanish partner from STAND Up! project, has been the responsible for launching the call for applicants and for the selection of green business ideas that aim to move to a validated business model.

In this sense, women represent 67% of selected participants who are mostly young people under 35. In fact, 19 projects are leaded by innovators between 25 and 35 years old and 6 projects are carried out by entrepreneurs between 18 and 25 years old. In terms of feasibility, 70% of the selected entrepreneurs have a project in an early-stage phase or a prototype idea. Only 12 out of 40 projects can be considered start-ups with an existing business activity with no more than 2 years.

Alma Green Design, Sylvia Calvo BCN or Swim Against are some of the projects that will join the trainings conducted by TEXFOR. Avoiding the pollution from the fashion industry and producing ethical and sustainable clothes are some of the motivations behind the projects, that will be able to access to finance and market alongside the ongoing of the project. At this point, a huge variety of products such as athleisure, sustainable footwear, circular bags or baby clothes are the solutions that green entrepreneurs have in their minds.

“Textile waste is a growing problem, every second a truck of clothes is burned or sent”, states Marina Martins, the entrepreneur behind the Co-Creation Lab selected idea. Single-size pieces of clothes and production of local garments are some of the ideas that aim to have a positive impact on reducing the footprint that fast fashion industry is leaving behind. “Being able to produce locally eliminates all the carbon footprint generated by producing in foreign countries”, says Laia Muntal, woman entrepreneur behind the MUBA project.

Tackling the challenges that climate change is bringing us is then a core issue that all projects want to face. In a nutshell, the 40 participants will be divided into two groups of 20 for the training, established on the basis of the state of development of the project ideas (initial state and more advanced level) for which six theoretical sessions are planned each for the implementation of the Green Business Model methodology.

STAND Up! is an EU-funded project under ENI CBC MED Programme and it’s intended to promote eco-innovative business projects in the textile, clothing and fashion sectors that positively contribute to an environmentally and socially responsible circular model in which entrepreneurs from five Mediterranean countries participate: Spain, Italy, Egypt, Lebanon and Tunisia. The Regional Activity Centre for Sustainable Consumption and Production is the Lead Beneficiary.