Orange Fiber wins Vogue Yoox Challenge
The second edition of the Vogue Yoox Challenge concluded recently, with Sicilian company Orange Fiber crowned winner of the €50,000 (around $56,500) prize, which also includes mentorship in business areas such as distribution and communications.
Vogue Italia and Milan-headquartered fashion e-commerce firm Yoox, the two organisations behind the prize, framed the competition through the lens of “the future of responsible fashion”, describing it as an opportunity to foster innovation in the industry.
International designers, creatives and startups were all encouraged to enter.
Catania-based Orange Fiber has patented a traceable pulp production process for citrus by-products. Last year, it partnered Austrian cellulose fibre producer Lenzing in making limited-edition Tencel fibre in a ratio of 80% wood pulp and 20% citrus pulp. (Read more about the potential for creating fibres from cellulose-rich agricultural waste in our latest issue here.)
The competition was judged by a committee of over 15 industry figures, including Yoox Net-a-Porter Group founder, Federico Marchetti, former Vogue Italia editor Emanuele Farneti, dean of fashion at Parsons School of Design, Dr Ben Barry, plus the team behind British materials science company Saltyco, the winner of last year’s challenge.
Image: Orange Fiber.
