After a successful launch last year, eBay Australia announced the second edition of the Australian leg of eBay’s Circular Fashion Fund (CFF) initiative.
Launched initially in the UK in 2022, CFF aims to help fashion start-ups scale their solutions that would benefit the circular economy.
The launch also coincided with the CFF’s global expansion as it will provide a global investment of US$1.2 million to start-ups in the global markets by the end of 2025 and over 200 hours of mentoring and networking support for applicants from industry experts.
There is also a competition element to the fund, with eBay Ventures, eBay’s venture capital arm, selecting one winner from the global selection of market winners to become “Circular Fashion Innovator of the Year” and receive an investment of US$300,000.
For CFF’s Australia leg, the winner will receive an AU$100,000 cash prize, while the two runner-ups will receive AU$50,000 each. All three finalists will receive bespoke mentoring sessions, educational workshops and networking opportunities. Winners will be chosen by a judging panel of industry experts across fashion, academia, and sustainability, including those from the Australian Fashion Council (AFC) who is this year’s partner for the competition.
Since it launched in the UK in 2022, the CFF has helped 15 businesses scale their circular solutions, including the three funding recipients of the inaugural CFF in Australia. The Australian recipients included the overall winner, Dempstah, a design practice that recycles Australian textile waste into spun yarn, and runners-up RCYCL (also an ISB Top 50 Small Business winner) and The Very Good Bra.
eBay Australia’s Fashion Lead, Anne-Marie Cheney, stated, “The Circular Fashion Fund exemplifies the power of collaboration and innovation between companies like eBay and fashion start-ups. By uniting our resources and expertise, we’re scaling circular fashion businesses to help build a more sustainable future and reduce clothing going to landfill.”
CEO of the Australian Fashion Council, Jaana Quaintance-James, said: “Building on the success of the inaugural Circular Fashion Fund in Australia, we’re excited to see the innovative solutions this year’s applicants propose. Initiatives like this Fund help accelerate innovation and support the Australian industry to create more sustainable and circular business models. By fostering creativity and resilience within our industry, we can pave the way toward a more sustainable future for fashion.”
Applications for eBay’s CFF are open until 15 November 2024 via eBay’s site.
