The British Fashion Council and eBay UK have announced the six finalists for its 2024 Circular Fashion Innovator’s Fund. 

Targeting “early stage businesses with the potential to transform the fashion industry, offering a variety of sustainable solutions, from rental models to curated children’s pre-loved clothes boxes” the finalists are:

Swoperz, a subscription-based preloved kids’ clothing community (run by kids and managed by grown-ups); Give Your Best, a circular platform where people and brands donate clothes online, so vulnerable people in the UK such as refugees or trafficking victims can shop clothes online for free; Made Super, enables rental business models on Shopify with its beta product Supercycle allowing merchants to offer rental membership, manage inventory and returns, and sell via Shopify; Finds World, a social marketplace that lets people use videos to buy and sell secondhand, vintage and handmade fashion, while connecting with like-minded people; Thrifthood, a female-founded online retailer of secondhand childrenswear, individually curated and delivered to customers’ doors; and Loanhood, a circular commerce platform including a fashion rental marketplace app and a B2B solution for SMEs. 

The Fund offers £15,000 for each selected small business with an additional £10,000 awarded to the overall winner. Alongside the financial support, finalists also embark on a six-week mentoring programme, gain access to industry networking opportunities and receive support from environmental charity Hubbub, an ongoing advisor for the Fund.

Jemma Tadd, Head of Fashion, eBay UK, said: “We are dedicated to empowering the UK’s most innovative thinkers who are pioneering solutions for fashion waste and driving a circular fashion economy. I am immensely proud of this initiative and can’t wait to see this year’s Circular Fashion Innovator’s Fund winners grow with our support. Together, we are truly reimagining the future of fashion.”