In this episode of Thread Talks, part of the Circular Soundbites podcast, host Aimée Campanella, Reconomy's Development Director for Textiles EPR, is joined by Katherine Beacham, Head of Raw Materials, Packaging and Sustainability at Marks & Spencer.

Katherine has spent 14 years at M&S, moving from fabric technologist to leading raw materials, packaging, and now ethical and responsible sourcing. In this conversation, she takes us through M&S's journey from Shwopping, the UK's first clothing takeback scheme, launched in 2008 with Oxfam, to Another Life, the retailer's current circularity programme spanning rewear, repair, resale and recycling.

In this episode:

• How M&S moved from Shwopping to Another Life, and what convenience means for driving customer behaviour change
• The four pillars of Another Life: rewear (Made to Last standards), repair (the Sojo partnership), resale (Reskinned and eBay, including a first-of-its-kind live shopping event), and recycling
• M&S's raw materials progress, from converting to preferred cotton to the push toward fully preferred fibres by 2030, and early work on textile-to-textile recycled polyester
• Supplier decarbonisation, including the Schneider Electric partnership and the Future Supplier Initiative
• Inside the ACT project, the UKFT-led automated sorting pilot that saw 6,000 of 9,000 collection bags used in under a week
• Beauty packaging takeback, and how empty containers get a second life
• Why EPR matters for unlocking investment in UK textile sorting and recycling infrastructure, and how the UK compares to EU markets already moving on this
• Advice for any brand or retailer considering launching their own takeback scheme

Listen to the full episode on all major streaming platforms or on the Reconomy YouTube channel. To learn more about Reconomy and the circular economy, visit reconomy.com.

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In this episode of Thread Talks, part of the Circular Soundbites podcast from Reconomy, host Aimee Campanella, Development Director for Textiles EPR, travels to Glasgow to meet Owen Ritchie, Managing Director of Clyde Recycling, as the family business marks its 40th anniversary.

Owen traces a remarkable history, from his great-grandmother collecting clothing door to door across Glasgow's East End to a modern operation processing 100 tonnes of textiles every week, the equivalent of seven or eight 40-foot containers. He walks through how it works in practice: collections from charity shops, textile banks, schools and retailers across Scotland, hundreds of constantly shifting grades on the sorting lines, and the export markets in West Africa, Eastern Europe and Pakistan where reusable clothing finds a second life.

The conversation does not shy away from the pressures facing the sector. Owen and Aimee discuss the impact of ultra-fast fashion on quality and margins, the steady decline of UK sorting infrastructure, the ethics of shipping waste abroad, and why the UK should take more responsibility for its own textile waste. They explore what would help the industry survive and thrive, from business rate relief to an import tax on ultra-fast fashion, and how textile Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), already moving across Europe, could become a vital stabiliser if it arrives in the UK.

It is a candid, ground-level look at the realities of textile reuse and recycling, the value of long-standing global relationships, and the legislation and investment needed to make the system truly circular.

Circular Soundbites is available on all major streaming platforms and on our YouTube channel. To learn more about Reconomy and the circular economy, visit reconomy.com.

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This episode of the Circular Soundbites "EPR Now" series covers California's new EPR source reduction rules. Environmental Compliance Coordinator Kristen Kelly explains key requirements, compliance pathways, and what producers need to do next to meet ambitious packaging reduction targets. 

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Collaboration is one of the biggest challenges, and opportunities, in the transition to a circular textile economy.

In this episode of Circular Soundbites: Thread Talks, Anaïs De Bergeyck, Policy Officer for Sustainable Businesses at Euratex, shares a Europe-wide perspective on how organisations can move beyond ambition and start delivering circular outcomes at scale.

Across the textile value chain, progress is often slowed by fragmented systems, competitive silos, and a lack of shared infrastructure. Many of the barriers to circularity are not technical, they’re organisational.

In this conversation, we explore:

•  Why collaboration is critical to scaling circular solutions 
•  How pre-competitive spaces enable data sharing and alignment 
•  The role of regulation, including EU textile EPR and Digital Product Passports 
•  What businesses need to do to move from insight to implementation 

As regulatory pressure increases and expectations grow, organisations will need to work together in new ways to enable reuse, repair, and recycling at scale.

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This episode of Circular Soundbites is part of our series “EPR Now.” In it, CEO of Reconomy’s comply division, Patrick Wiedemann, offers context surrounding the current situation producers face as they race to comply with packaging reporting deadlines.  

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In this episode, we chat to Ava Kenny-Colwell, the Compliance Manager at UKFT. 

UKFT takes centre stage in this episode as we chat about the latest global textile policy landscape. Even without mandatory UK EPR yet, brands face EU pressures like ESPR and national schemes. We will also share insights from France, California, and Australia. You'll share UKFT's view on what's shifting, what brands need to prep for, and how to avoid compliance pitfalls while driving real circularity.

We'll cover why regs level the playing field, unlock infrastructure, and move past pilots, plus footwear specifics, eco-modulation, and actionable steps for multi-market brands.

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The first episode in Circular Soundbites’ Thread Talks series features Alan Wheeler, one of the UK’s leading voices in textile recycling and circular policy. In this episode, Alan shares:

• The current state of textile recycling in the UK
• The impact of upcoming textile Extended Producer Responsibility schemes
• The role of policy in shaping reuse and recycling markets
• Global trade dynamics affecting used textiles
• Practical steps needed to strengthen circular textile systems

As the UK and EU accelerate regulatory reform across textiles, eco-design and EPR, this conversation provides essential context for brands, retailers, waste operators and compliance teams.

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