Luxury conglomerate LVMH - the owner of Louis Vuitton, Dior and Givenchy - is launching an online marketplace for unused fabric and leather.

The initiative is good news for designers who use discarded fabrics, known as ‘deadstock’, as a cheap alternative to high-quality materials for collections.

Such a big-name industry player shifting focus onto upcycling will go a huge way towards helping the industry become more circular and sustainable. France, the home of LVMH, is also looking into the possibility of banning brands from burning or dumping unsold clothing - which would force more brands to consider upcycling and deadstock sale as an option.

Unused fabric costs the industry $120 billion per year, according to online deadstock marketplace Queen of Raw.

korean traditional fabric rolls at shoppinterest
GEOLEE//Getty Images

“For so long this waste and unused inventory has been going on and nobody was paying attention to it,” Stephanie Benedetto, co-founder of Queen of Raw, told Business of Fashion.

“It doesn’t make sense for people and the planet, but it sure as hell doesn’t make sense for profit.”

In addition to LVMH, online marketplace TheRealReal is launching a collection “upcycled” from old luxury garments.

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Courtesy of Stella McCartney
Stella McCartney autumn/winter 2019

The ReCollection programme will first drop with 50 pieces that have been donated from much-loved brands like Balenciaga, Dries Van Noten and Stella McCartney.

“This is just the beginning,” Allison Summer, director of initiatives at TheRealReal, explained.

“We saw the disrupted inventory flows that resulted in even more deadstock… that is what showed us this doesn’t need to be a single collection. This should be ongoing.”

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