Ecocitex

Ecocitex is a Chilean textile-recycling company established in 2020 around the recovery of clothing that is unsuitable for ordinary second-hand sale. Its name derives from economía circular textil, or circular textile economy. The company emerged from Travieso, a second-hand clothing business founded by Rosario Hevia and Daniela Ehijo. In September 2019, Travieso had accumulated more than 400 kilograms of garments in poor condition. After finding old spinning equipment, Hevia experimented with converting those garments into yarn and succeeded in producing material that could be sold through the Travieso shop. Hevia and four other partners subsequently acquired a bankrupt spinning factory and established Ecocitex, with Hevia becoming its general manager. The company operates a graded recovery model. Clothing in good condition can be sold or donated as second-hand apparel. Items in poorer condition may be transformed into hats, accessories or other products, while garments considered unsuitable for those uses are prepared for fiber recovery. Recyclable textiles are sorted by color, cut into pieces, shredded and spun into recycled yarn. The process described for Ecocitex does not require water or dye, distinguishing it from many conventional textile-coloring and fiber-processing routes. The company therefore combines resale, upcycling and mechanical recycling rather than treating all incoming clothing as a single waste stream. Ecocitex sells second-hand clothing and accessories, products made from damaged garments, and yarn produced from recycled textiles. Its model addresses the environmental burden associated with textile disposal in Chile and internationally. The company has stated that it receives all types of clothing and that a substantial share must be sorted into different recovery pathways. In 2023, it reported recycling approximately four tonnes of clothing per month, compared with a stated processing capacity of 20 tonnes per month. The business also has a social-employment dimension. It employs women prisoners and people undergoing social reintegration for parts of its process and works with the Abriendo Puertas foundation in connection with that activity. Ecocitex reported that it operated at a loss during its first three years. In 2021, its general manager described a mismatch in which the company received more clothing than it recycled and recycled more material than it sold. By 2023, it had recorded three profitable months, although its partners still were not taking salaries. A major disruption occurred in June 2023, when a fire affected the company's factory and destroyed nine machines, its entire inventory and its store in Macul. The incident exposed the operational fragility of a small circular-manufacturing company, but available reference material continues to describe Ecocitex as an operating Chilean textile-recycling business. Its positioning is centered on diverting unwanted textiles from disposal, extending the useful life of garments and creating locally produced recycled yarn without water or dye in the recycling process.

Ecocitex developed from the Chilean second-hand clothing business Travieso, founded by Rosario Hevia and Daniela Ehijo. In September 2019, Travieso held more than 400 kilograms of clothing that was in too poor a condition for normal resale. Hevia encountered old spinning machinery and tested whether the damaged garments could be converted into yarn. The experiment succeeded, and the resulting yarn was sold through the Travieso shop. Hevia and four other partners then purchased a bankrupt spinning factory and formed Ecocitex in 2020. The name refers to the concept of a circular textile economy. Hevia became the company's general manager. Rather than focusing only on recycling, Ecocitex established several recovery routes for incoming clothing. Garments in good condition could be sold or donated, those in poorer condition could be made into hats or accessories, and the least usable textiles could enter the recycling process. For recycling, clothing is sorted and then separated by color. It is cut into smaller pieces, shredded and spun into recycled yarn. The process described for the company does not use water or dye. This allows Ecocitex to combine waste diversion with the sale of a material that can be used in textile products. Its commercial activities include second-hand clothing, upcycled accessories and recycled yarn. The company also incorporated a social component by employing women prisoners and people in social reintegration, working with the Abriendo Puertas foundation. Its early financial development was difficult: Ecocitex was loss-making during its first three years. In 2021, its general manager said that the company received more clothes than it recycled and recycled more than it sold, illustrating the difficulty of balancing collection, processing and demand. By 2023, the business had experienced three profitable months, although its partners still did not receive salaries. In June 2023, a fire affected the Macul factory. Nine machines, the complete inventory and the store were lost. Before the fire, Ecocitex stated that it recycled around four tonnes of clothing each month and had capacity to process 20 tonnes. The incident became a significant operational setback in the company's development. Ecocitex's documented model remains focused on extending garment life through resale and transformation while converting otherwise unusable textiles into recycled yarn.

1. 2023Factory fire disrupts operations

   A June fire in Macul destroyed nine machines, all inventory and the company's store.

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2. 2023Reported recycling output reaches four tonnes per month

   Ecocitex reported recycling approximately four tonnes of clothing per month against a stated capacity of 20 tonnes.

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3. 2021Early operating imbalance is reported

   The general manager reported that Ecocitex was receiving more clothing than it recycled and recycling more material than it sold.

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4. 2020Ecocitex is established

   Rosario Hevia and four partners acquired a bankrupt spinning factory and created Ecocitex, a company named after the circular textile economy concept.

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5. 2019Travieso identifies a yarn opportunity in damaged clothing

   Travieso accumulated more than 400 kilograms of garments unsuitable for ordinary second-hand sale. Rosario Hevia tested old spinning equipment and succeeded in making yarn from the clothing.

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A Chilean circular-textile brand combining second-hand resale, textile upcycling and mechanical recycling to recover unwanted clothing and produce recycled yarn without water or dye.

• Recycled yarnTextile fiber2020

  Ecocitex produces yarn from second-hand clothing that is too damaged for ordinary resale or direct reuse. The garments are sorted by color, cut, shredded and spun again. The documented process does not use water or dye, and the yarn is one of the company's principal circular-textile outputs.

• Second-hand clothingApparel resale2020

  Garments received by Ecocitex that remain in good condition can be sold as second-hand clothing or given away. This resale pathway is the highest-retention option in the company's sorting model because it keeps usable garments in circulation without first reducing them to fiber.

• Upcycled hats and accessoriesUpcycled apparel and accessories2020

  Clothing that is too poor for normal second-hand sale but still suitable for transformation can be converted into hats, accessories and related products. These items represent an intermediate recovery route between direct resale and full mechanical recycling.

• 2023Respond to factory fireOther

  A fire affected the Macul facility and destroyed nine machines, the full inventory and the store.

  What changed. The documented material records the loss and its operational consequences but does not specify a detailed recovery or reconstruction plan.

  Aftermath. The fire represented a major disruption to Ecocitex's manufacturing and retail operations.

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• 2020Adopt a multi-stage circular textile modelStrategy

  Travieso had accumulated clothing in poor condition that could not readily be sold through the second-hand market. Experiments showed that some of this material could be converted into yarn.

  What changed. The founders and partners established Ecocitex around sorting clothing into resale, donation, upcycling and recycled-yarn pathways.

  Aftermath. The company created a business combining second-hand sales, transformed textile products and recycled fiber production.

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• 2023Fire destroys Ecocitex factory, machinery, inventory and store

  A fire in June 2023 affected Ecocitex's facility in Macul. The company lost nine machines, its entire inventory and its store.

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• 2023Ecocitex reports textile-recycling capacity and output

  The company reported recycling about four tonnes of clothing per month while having stated capacity of 20 tonnes per month.

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• 2023Ecocitex records limited profitability during early operations

  After reporting losses during its first three years, Ecocitex indicated that it had achieved three profitable months by 2023, while partners still did not receive salaries.

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1. Ecocitex