Change of clothes

Global – Retailer H&M has thrown down the gauntlet to innovators everywhere with a bid to help ‘close the loop’ in fashion.

• The Global Change Award is an initiative from the H&M Conscious Foundation aimed at driving long-lasting change in the fashion industry
• Judged by an expert panel, five winners will be announced on 1 February 2016

The inaugural Global Change Award invites early stage innovators to help change the way garments are designed and produced, shipped, bought, used or recycled.

According to Karl-Johan Persson, CEO of H&M: ‘The question for fashion is no longer ‘what is the new black?’ It is ‘what innovative ideas can close the loop?’’

Five winners, chosen by a judging panel of scientists, editors and environmentalists, will share a grant of £729,372 (€1m, $1.1m) and gain access to a ‘tailor-made innovation accelerator’ developed in partnership with Accenture Strategy and the KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm.

The Big Picture: H&M has dedicated the fourth floor of its London flagship store to sustainable fashion. Read our Seed, The Conscious Lounge, for more.