Fairbrics

Fairbrics is a French startup that develops a process to convert captured CO2 into a polyester feedstock used for textiles and packaging as well as in the automotive sector. The company uses CO2 captured from industrial fumes, which is reacted with a catalyst and a solvent using electricity to create chemicals used in polyester synthesis. The chemicals are then polymerized into PET/polyester pellets, which are spun into yarn for fabrics. 

In December 2023, Fairbrics opened a pilot lab at the sustainable chemistry incubator BlueChem’s facility in Antwerp, Belgium, to scale up operations. In January 2023, it reported its aims to have a 100 kg/day pilot line in place by 2024 and expand to a 1 tonne/day demo plant by 2026. The company uses green hydrogen and renewable energy to sustainably produce its feedstock.

Key customers and partnerships

In 2022, the company secured purchasing agreements with footwear producer On-Running for shoe uppers and apparel producer Aigle. In May 2023, green packaging company Citeo partnered to create plastic packaging made from Fairbrics’ feedstock.

In January 2023, it became the coordinator for “Threading-CO2,” a 48-month project partly funded by the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation program to create sustainable polyester from waste CO2 on an industrial scale. Its project partners include 13 manufacturers from seven European countries, which are present across the entire value chain.

In May 2021, the company partnered with H&M to unveil a t-shirt created from fabric that was developed with the help of H&M Group’s Circular Innovation Lab. H&M is also a customer.

Funding and financials

In January 2023, the company secured EUR 22 million (~USD 24.3 million) for its Threading-CO2 project, which aims to commercialize its technology, together with development partners. Horizon 2020 contributed EUR 17 million (~USD 18.8 million), while the development partners contributed EUR 5 million (~USD 5.5 million).

In March 2022, the company secured EUR 6.5 million (~USD 7.2 million) in a pre-Series A funding round led by AP Ventures, with participation from H&M CO:LAB and Sake Bosch. The funding was earmarked to build a pilot plant.