Partnering with the Ellen Macarthur Foundation to help ‘close the loop’ in clothing

We’ve worked with the Ellen MacArthur Foundation since 2018 as part of its ‘Make Fashion Circular’ initiative. In 2021, we became Network Partners of the Foundation and joined its Advisory Board for Fashion. During this time, we’ve drawn on their network, knowledge and expertise to help embed more circular principles within our business.

2021: Reimagining Denim through The Jeans Redesign Project

In 2021, we joined The Foundation’s Jeans Redesign Project, which invited Primark and others to create a capsule collection of denim designed for the future. Our collection, made with organic cotton and recycled fibres, featured jeans and jackets. With rivet-free design features and labels that guided customers and recyclers on removing buttons and zips, it was all about making sure our denim was designed with the future in mind.

2022: Launching our Circular Product Standard

In 2022, we introduced our Circular Product Standard, a framework that redefines how we intend to design our clothing for the circularity. Inspired by The Foundation’s vision for a circular economy for fashion, our Circular Product Standard was developed with experts like WRAP, Circle Economy, and the Sustainable Fashion Academy. Today it’s our blueprint for circularity, and we’re training our designers, buyers, and suppliers to embed these principles into more of the clothing we make.

Read more about how we’ve embedded our Circular Product Standard here.

2024: Scaling Circular Solutions: Joining The Fashion ReModel

In 2024, we joined The Fashion ReModel, an exciting project lead by The Foundation, bringing together major brands to scale circular business models. From resale and rental, to repair and remaking, we’re exploring new ways to keep clothes in circulation.

And we’re already putting it into action. Since 2022, we’ve partnered with WornWell Vintage, a concession in Primark offering pre-loved clothing in select stores in the UK and Ireland.