Reflecting changing times and a shifting world, Prada launches a pioneering new project, Re-Nylon, introducing a sustainable line of iconic Prada bag silhouettes executed in a unique new regenerated nylon, ECONYL®.
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The product of a partnership between Prada and the textile yarn producer Aquafil, ECONYL® nylon is obtained through the recycling and purification process of plastic waste collected from oceans, fishing nets, and textile fibre waste.
ECONYL® yarn, through a process of depolymerization and re-polymerisation, can be recycled indefinitely, with no loss of quality.
Re-Nylon is a bold move towards total sustainability – towards an ultimate goal of converting all Prada virgin nylon into regenerated nylon ECONYL® by the end of 2021.
It reflects the focus of the Prada Group on promoting a corporate culture that aspires to increasingly sustainable balances, incorporating into its daily work the idea of a return of value to society.
A vital component of Prada’s heritage and a hallmark of its approach to contemporary fashion – a challenging of convention, an elevation of utilitarian materials to fashion, a new form of luxury – nylon is an emblem of the brand.
This project is an evolution of a fundamental code of Prada, a reinvention of heritage. Yet, in the same way, a forward- thinking ethos is intrinsic to the cultural make-up of Prada: invention, experimentation, progress. A revolutionary new material, a radical new proposal, to reinvent our past.
The Prada Re-Nylon collection launches with six classic styles, both for men and women: the beltbag, the shoulder bag, a tote bag, a duffle and two Prada backpacks.
The entire range is produced from environmentally-friendly materials, bearing a unique interpretation of the Prada triangular logo that emphasises a bucking of the traditional, age-old linear supply chain into a cyclical one, focused on renewal.
Underscoring the importance of awareness and responsibility, a percentage of proceeds from the sale of the Prada Re-Nylon capsule will be donated to a project related to environmental sustainability.
Prada in partnership with UNESCO is developing educational activities that involve students from several countries to implement dedicated lesson plans using plastic and circular economy topics to inspire learners.
The approach of the educational program is built around two axes – learning and take action – and one of the outcomes will be an awareness raising campaign designed by the students.
Prada Re-Nylon reinvents the idea of timeless, as something that can truly last forever.
“I am very excited to announce the launch of the Prada Re-Nylon collection. Our ultimate goal will be to convert all Prada virgin nylon into Re-Nylon by the end of 2021,” said Lorenzo Bertelli, Prada Group Head of Marketing and Communication.
“This project highlights our continued efforts towards promoting a responsible business. This collection will allow us to make our contribution and create products without using new resources,” he continued.
“With this project Prada marks the step, taking on a leading role in environmental sustainability among Italian brands. We are happy to collaborate on their capsule collection, but above all, to support them as partners in the process of converting the entire nylon production,” said Aquafil Chairman Giulio Bonazzi.
Committed to protecting the environment, in recent years, the Prada Group has invested in projects aimed at saving energy and promoting examples of good practice within the luxury sector: the Prada Re-Nylon initiative is the latest proof of its sustainability commitment in action.
To showcase the cutting-edge processes behind the Re-Nylon initiative, National Geographic, Prada’s Storytelling Partner, has produced a short video series, What We Carry.
Expressing the aims, intentions and actuality of Prada Re-Nylon, as well as transparently underscoring the supply- chain of these unique projects, this series of short films takes viewers through a remarkable journey across every continent of the world, from Africa to America, Asia and Oceania to Europe, revealing the inner
workings of this unique enterprise.
Each of the five episodes showcases a different source of the recycled materials that comprise ECONYL® yarn, permitting viewers a glimpse inside the workings of the factories and facilities that produce this trailblazing fabric, as well as an idea of the scope of the initiative.
The first instalment, debuting Prada Re-Nylon, takes us to Phoenix Arizona, to the first US carpet recycling facility which can recycle up to 16,000 metric tons each year. Less than 3% of the 1.6 million tons of carpet discarded in the US each year is recycled.
In this video, actress and Prada reporter Bonnie Wright and National Geographic explorer and creative conservationist, Asher Jay show us one of the sources of ECONYL®nylon and unpack a new cyclical supply-chain upending traditional notions of production for a new generation.
As the name underscores, the focus is on the individual, the self – the notion that what each of us carry can affect the burden of the planet, for bad or for good. That personal input can have a global impact, that everyone and everything can make a difference.
ECONYL® is a regenerated-nylon yarn that can be recycled an indefinite number of times without affecting the quality of the material.
Prada Re-Nylon project is the product of a partnership between Prada and the textile yarn producer Aquafil, an Italian company with over half a century of expertise in creating synthetic fibers.
Across a number of years, Aquafil has invested heavily in ground-breaking research and development of sustainable materials, producing new from old.
ECONYL® yarn is made of recycling discarded plastic that has been collected from landfill sites and oceans across the whole planet.
The production process:
• Gathering of waste materials: fishing nets, discarded nylon, carpet and industrial waste are sorted and cleaned to maximize the quantity of recuperated nylon.
• Regeneration and purification: through a chemical de-polymerization procedure, the nylon waste is recycled right back to its original purity.
• At production plants in Ljubljana, Slovenia and Arco, Italy, the recycled materials is re-transformed into polymers and threads through a new polymerization process.
For every 10,000 tons of ECONYL® created, 70,000 barrels of petroleum are saved. This reduces environmental emissions of CO2 by 57,100 tons.
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By choosing to use ECONYL®, the impact of petroleum-fuelled nylon-production on global warming will be reduced by 80%.