The International Textile Manufacturers Federation (ITMF) has announced the five winners of the ITMF Start-up Award 2026.
The awards recognise start-ups with new ideas for the textile industry. The winners will present their business models at the ITMF & IAF Conference 2026.
The conference will take place on 14–15 October 2026 in Fortaleza, Brazil. The Brazilian Textile & Apparel Industry Association (ABIT) will co-host the event.
ITMF Start-up Award 2026
The ITMF Start-up Awards give young companies a platform to showcase their ideas.
The programme also helps start-ups meet established companies. These companies come from across the global textile value chain.
The five winners were selected from different areas of textile innovation. They are listed below in alphabetical order.
Matereal, Switzerland
Matereal is working on biobased polymers and AI for textile manufacturing. Its business concept is “Charting the New Frontier – Biobased Polymers and AI for Textile Manufacturing.”
no.wasTee, Brazil
no.wasTee Soluções em Confecções Sustentáveis focuses on zero-waste design. Its business concept targets a low-CO₂ textile industry.
Tellura Technologies, Brazil
Tellura Technologies develops natural yarn. Its business concept covers applications from fashion to aerospace biocomposites.
Unspun, USA
Unspun focuses on apparel supply chains. Its business concept uses 3D weaving to automate apparel production.
Yuantian Biotechnology, China
Yuantian Biotechnology (Tianjin) works on PET waste recycling. Its business concept uses enzymes to recycle waste PET plastic.
Winners to Present at ITMF Conference
The five start-ups cover several areas of textile innovation.
These include new materials, recycling and textile manufacturing. They also cover apparel design and supply chain technology.
The winners will present their business models during the ITMF & IAF Conference 2026 in Fortaleza. The event will bring together companies and industry professionals from across the textile value chain.
