The Business & Art of Fashion Upcycling Newsletter - 01

"Question Everything"

- Angie Aguirre, Founder of tHERAPY Recycle & Exorcise, COM/VERGE Podcast Host

1. EDITORS NOTE - THE BRIEFING

When we launched the COM/VERGE by RIVED podcast in July this year, we had one question: is anyone going to listen? A few months later, we have a loyal audience in almost 30 countries. That told us something we suspected all along: upcycling is everywhere. It just doesn't have a shared place to meet.

But we want to go further. Upcycling has a large circle of supporters who don't upcycle themselves. With this newsletter, we want to keep everyone informed: those inside the movement, those working alongside it, and those simply curious about it.

This first edition arrives at a busy moment. We're launching a free tool to make upcycling's impact visible, we're counting Berlin's fashion upcycling with the Zero-Waste-Agentur during the Zero Waste Aktionswochen, and on November 15 we record our first live episode at LOOPTOPIA, the 48 hours of circularity hosted by Circular Berlin.

Thank you for being here from the start. Reply anytime. We read everything.

1. IN FOCUS

STORIES AND DATA - MAKING FASHION UPCYCLING VISIBLE

Niches are invisible from the outside. Yet they often show exactly where things are going. In Look, Danish author Christian Madsbjerg argues that to understand where the world is heading, we should look closely at what people at the margins are already doing.

Fashion upcycling is such a niche. Big brands are only now discovering it: as The Business of Fashion reported in August, it is moving from sustainability capsules into mainstream collections. But thousands of independent makers, collectives and people at home have been doing it for years, in every country. Almost none of it is seen, and what isn't seen is hard to be considered.

To be seen, a movement needs two languages. Stories speak to people: they carry emotion, culture and meaning. Data speaks to the circles that need evidence before they move: policy, funding, industry. Many movements are strong in one and weak in the other. Upcycling is rich in both. It just hasn't been captured yet.

That's why we're building an ecosystem that may look unconnected from the outside: a podcast, editorial content, events, and digital tools. For us, they are two halves of the same work. Stories and data. Meaning and evidence.

Look and listen closely, the future of fashion is already happening.

1. TECHNOLOGY

THE RIVED TRACKER IS HERE!

We built a free tool to make fashion upcycling impact visible. 

For all fashion upcyclers: brands, workshops, designers, DIYers, communities.

Explore it and start tracking here 

1. LAW & REGULATION

THE EU ASKS : HOW SHOULD VAT SUPPORT THE CIRCULAR ECONOMY ?

On 10 September, the European Commission opened a public consultation on how VAT rules can better support circular business models, as part of the upcoming Circular Economy Act. Deadline to contribute is 4.11.2026. Read more

5. PORTRAIT

ANGIE AGUIRRE, THE VOICE OF COM/VERGE

“Our role as upcycling designers is to be loud. We have to bring disruption. We have to make noise. We have to make people wake up”

Originally from Córdoba, Argentina, and based in Berlin, Angie founded the fashion upcycling brand tHERAPY Recycle & Exorcise and is active in several of the city's creative collectives. For Angie, upcycling is a channel for expresion, for art and social activism. Read more

6. COMMUNITY

NEWS PICK

Fashion Revolution's Bündnis Textilwende launched

Fashion Revolution Germany's new alliance for circular textile policy, including upcycling, is open to join; founding event on 12 November. Read more

Louis Vuitton Wins €920K in Upcycling Case Against Kamad Reworked

A French court ruled that upcycling genuine LV pieces while keeping the logos visible is trademark infringement. What does this mean for your work? Read the analysis of this ruling by Dr. Dominik Ingendaay, specialist lawyer in intellectual property, copyright and media law. Read the analysis

EVENTS

Oct 1 - Dec 26 - GLOBAL - Worlds Top Upcycler - Submission Period

Apply
Oct 29th - GLOBAL - Kickoff webinar, RIVED Impact Tracker (DE/EN)

Register (English) - Register (German) 

Nov 2 to 29 · BERLIN - Zero-Waste AktionsWochen

Information and Schedule

Nov 14 to 15 - BERLIN - LOOPTOPIA - 48 Hours of Circularity in the City

Information and Schedule

Nov 21 to 29 - EUROPE - European Week for Waste Reduction

Read more