Africa Collect (ACT) promotes the circular economy by collecting and sorting used textile and footwear for resale, re-use, upcycle or raw material, which is then looped back into the value chain to manage waste from fast fashion and second-hand clothes while safeguarding the environment.
The Founders Alex Musembi and Elmar Stroomer funded ACT in 2014. They were working with the largest collection company in Holland and they realized an important market opportunity in the textile recycling sector in Kenya, where every year 100mlns kg of used textile is imported and 35mlns are discarded (20mln in Nairobi only). They place containers in public places what can be reused is given to vulnerable groups and what can be recycled is re-manufactured to produce jeans bags, shoes, clothes, furniture and construction material will follow.
OPPORTUNITA' DI COLLABORAZIONE
Priorità per lo sviluppo
ACT is developing the technologies to recycle textiles and footwear into affordable building materials. Especially when the fibers are too short for spinning yarn, they can be processed into filling materials, non-woven matts and/or be pressed into insulating plate material. Adding resin can strengthen the fibers for making insulating corrugating sheets or high-end applications, e.g. furniture like chairs and table tops. Shoe soles are chipped and pressed into firm mats and tiles suitable for running tracks and children playgrounds
Ambiti di interesse
They look for: - A distributor company for their products for both Africa and Europe, - In-source machinery, technology, know-how on process for products production, especially in the apparel sector to increase shoes and clothes quality and in the building material area, - Capital raising, They can offer: - Future opportunities for product distribution - Branded “collection boxes” - Corporate social responsibilities initiatives