As part of its global “Be Your Own Champion” campaign, Champion Athleticwear revealed last week the launch of Champion Renewed in partnership with The Renewal Workshop.
The partnership helps extend the lifespan of the brand’s apparel and reduce waste, while supporting the “Be Your Own Champion” initiative inspired by Champion’s consumers “who care as much about how they play the game as the end result,” the company said.
The exclusive Champion Renewed line features the brand’s Reverse Weave sweatshirts restored by The Renewal Workshop. The collection ranges from $30 to $45.
“To us, ‘Be Your Own Champion’ means encouraging consumers to do things the right way and do them with heart–both on and off the field,” Jon Ram, group president of global activewear for Champion’s parent company, Hanesbrands said. “Extending the life of apparel that would have likely ended up in landfill is part of that effort and it gives our consumers yet another reason to be proud to wear our brand.”
The Renewal Workshop uses life cycle assessment methodology to measure the impact of the textile fibers most frequently received, such as cotton, polyester and wool. Using this data, in addition to each garment’s weight, the organization can evaluate energy savings, greenhouse gas reductions and water consumption decreases for each item that is renewed.
The Renewal Workshop then sorts, grades and sanitizes the products using state-of-the-art waterless technology and repairs them to like-new standards. Once inspected and verified to joint quality standards, they are given a Renewal Workshop tag and made available for purchase.
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“We’re eager to support the brand in its larger efforts to salvage apparel, giving clothing a chance for a second life,” Nicole Bassett, co-founder of The Renewal Workshop, said. “By having a brand as iconic as Champion begin the process with us, we’re encouraged that others within the industry will soon follow suit.”
The partnership between Champion and The Renewal Workshop is part of the brand’s promise to increase the use of responsibly made fabrics and find ways to creatively reuse products to reduce energy use and water consumption during the manufacturing process. As part of the Hanesbrands family, Champion’s efforts support the company’s 2025-2030 global sustainability goals, which include all of its brands having a fully circular product or significant circularity initiative by 2025.
Champion noted it has already made significant progress reaching ongoing sustainability goals, including offering classic jersey Ts made with 100 percent U.S. cotton that is traceable, introducing two environmentally conscious collections, Natural State and Rally Pro Earth, in 2021, and manufacturing “Game Day” sweats using 95 percent recycled polyester fibers.