Textile Recycling International Limited

What Textile Recycling International Limited does

Textile Recycling International Limited (TRI Group) is a privately held UK holding company headquartered in Bilston that operates one of Europe's largest platforms for collecting, sorting, grading, and exporting used clothing, shoes, and textiles. Its operating model is delivered through four wholly-owned, regionally specialized subsidiary brands: Nathan's Wastesavers (Scotland and North of England, with the 'SCOT' quality mark sold into African wholesale markets), Cookstown Textile Recyclers (Northern Ireland, supplying Africa, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and the Indian subcontinent), JMP Wilcox (Midlands, positioning around automation in sorting), and SWD Premier Clothing Exports (Manchester, a vintage and retro apparel specialist serving the UK, Europe, Africa, Japan, and North America). Collectively these subsidiaries provide UK-wide collection coverage and supply graded used textiles to international secondary markets.

The core technology is mechanical and operational rather than software-defined: textile sorting, grading, and processing capability, with automation adoption flagged at JMP Wilcox. There is no disclosed proprietary software platform, AI model, or data product, and product offerings are characterized as services (collection, sorting, grading) rather than packaged products. The group employs 501-1,000 staff across its UK collection and processing network.

The business is B2B wholesale: TRI and its subsidiaries collect used clothing, shoes, and textiles (largely through UK regional channels), grade and sort them at scale, and sell the resulting graded material to wholesalers and secondary-market buyers across Africa, Europe, the Middle East, Eastern Europe, the Indian subcontinent, Japan, and North America. Revenue mechanics are described as a transaction-fee/transactional model on the sale of processed textile materials, with pricing not publicly disclosed. End customers are unspecified wholesalers and downstream resale markets rather than named enterprise accounts, and no customer logos are disclosed in the source data. The corporate website (t-r-i.co.uk) frames the group around extending textile product lifecycles and supporting the transition to a circular textile economy.

Name

Textile Recycling International Limited

Legal name

Textile Recycling International

Website

https://textilerecyclinginternational.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

Textile Recycling International Limited is a UK private holding company operating TRI Group, one of Europe's largest collectors, sorters, and exporters of used clothing, shoes, and textiles. Through four regionally specialized subsidiaries it serves B2B wholesalers and secondary markets across the UK, Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Asia, and North America.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Textile Recycling Services

NAICS

Recyclable Material Merchant Wholesalers (42393), Piece Goods, Notions, and Other Dry Goods Merchant Wholesalers (424310), Clothing and Clothing Accessories Merchant Wholesalers (424350)

SIC

Wholesale-Apparel, Piece Goods & Notions (5130)

akta.pro primary industry

Textile & Apparel Recycling and Sorting (Non-E-waste) (BPALADAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Textile & Apparel Sorting/Recovery Facilities (EUAIADAJ), Post-Consumer Textile Collection & Sorting (Take-Back/Charity/Reverse Logistics) (IMAOAMAA)

Keywords

• Used clothing collection
• Textile sorting grading
• Clothing footwear recycling
• Secondhand textile export
• Circular textile economy

Headquarters

HQ city

Bilston

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Textile Collection and Processing Services: Collecting, sorting, and grading used clothing, shoes and textiles at scale, then selling processed materials to secondary markets including wholesalers across Africa, Europe, Middle East, and Asia

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

TRI Group collects, sorts, and grades used clothing, shoes and textiles at scale across the UK through regional subsidiary brands, then sells processed materials to secondary wholesale markets internationally. It positions itself as one of Europe's largest collectors and sorters supporting a circular textile economy.

Product overview

Textile Recycling International Limited operates as a unified group of textile recycling brands under the TRI Group umbrella. The core offering consists of collection, sorting, and grading services for used clothing, shoes, and textiles. The group comprises four subsidiary brands—Nathan's Wastesavers (Scotland's largest textile merchant), Cookstown Textile Recyclers (Northern Ireland's principal collector and grader), JMP Wilcox (Midlands-based automated recycler), and SWD Premier Clothing Exports (vintage/retro apparel specialist)—each serving distinct geographic markets and customer segments while collectively delivering high-quality reuse solutions at scale across the UK, Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and Asia.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• SCOT: Trusted quality brand for textile products sold to wholesalers across Africa, operated under Nathan's Wastesavers subsidiary.

Products and services

• TRI Group Textile Collection, Sorting & Grading Core service collecting, sorting, and grading used clothing, shoes and textiles at scale, then selling processed materials to secondary wholesale markets to extend product lifecycles and support a circular textile economy.
• Nathan's Wastesavers Scotland's largest textile merchant, operating from central Scotland, collecting from Scotland and the North of England and supplying markets in the UK, Europe, Africa and the Middle East. Its 'SCOT' brand is a trusted mark of quality with wholesalers across Africa.
• Cookstown Textile Recyclers The principal and largest textile collector and grader in Northern Ireland, collecting throughout Ireland and supplying markets in Africa, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and the Indian subcontinent, specializing in high-quality grading.
• JMP Wilcox A long-established textile recycler from the Midlands, an early adopter of automation in the industry, whose goods are sought after worldwide.
• SWD Premier Clothing Exports Manchester-based specialist in vintage and retro apparel operating for 20 years, supplying diverse markets from the UK and Japan to North America, Europe and Africa.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Nathan's WastesaverscoreOthersSubsidiary brand operating as the largest textile merchant in Scotland. Collects from Scotland and North of England, supplying markets in UK, Europe, Africa and the Middle East. The Nathan's brand 'SCOT' is a trusted mark of quality with wholesalers across Africa.
• Cookstown Textile RecyclerscoreOthersPrinciple and largest textile collector and grader in Northern Ireland. Collects all over Ireland and is a well-established supplier to markets in Africa, Eastern Europe, the Middle East and the Indian subcontinent. Specializes in high-quality grading.
• JMP WilcoxcoreOthersLong-established textile recycler from the Midlands. An enthusiastic adopter of automation in the industry; their goods are much sought after all around the world.
• SWD Premier Clothing ExportscoreOthersStarted 20 years ago, SWD has developed a strong brand in key markets throughout the UK, Europe and Africa. Based in Manchester, SWD specializes in Vintage and retro apparel, supplying diverse markets from UK and Japan to North America.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• TEXAID: One of Europe's largest textile recyclers, headquartered in Switzerland with operations across Germany, Austria, and other European countries. Directly comparable to TRI as a B2B collector, sorter, and exporter of used clothing and shoes, operating at pan-European scale.
• SOEX Group: Major German-based textile recycling group (formed via merger of SOEX and I:CO). Closely comparable to TRI in its collection, sorting, and resale of used clothing and footwear across European and international secondary markets.
• William Tracey Group: UK-headquartered waste management and recycling group with a significant textile recycling arm. Comparable to TRI as a UK-based collector and sorter serving both domestic and export wholesale markets.
• Van der Spek: Long-established Dutch textile recycling company that collects, sorts, and exports used clothing globally. Highly comparable to TRI in its grading, wholesale export model, and reliance on secondary market distribution channels.
• Bovelacci (BOVL): Italian textile recycling and used-clothing company with a multi-decade history of collection, sorting, and export. Comparable to TRI in its European footprint and global export customer base, particularly across Africa and Eastern Europe.
• Hilton Textiles (Transfashion Group): Australian-headquartered used textile collector and exporter with global wholesale reach. Comparable to TRI as a large-scale B2B sorter supplying graded used clothing to wholesale markets in Africa, Asia, and other emerging regions.
• I:CO (I:Collect): Global provider of textile collection and sorting systems, now part of the SOEX Group. Comparable to TRI in providing collection infrastructure and post-consumer textile sorting services for retailers and municipalities.

Emerging players

• Oxfam GB (Trading Division): Operates one of the UK's largest networks of charity shops collecting and reselling donated clothing. Comparable to TRI as a major UK-based participant in the used-textile value chain, though a charity model with overlapping collection sources.
• Salvation Army Trading Company: UK charity-operated textile collection and resale enterprise. Comparable to TRI through its large-scale collection of used clothing in the UK and downstream wholesale/bulk sale of unsold items, making it both a collection source and a partial competitor.

Broad incumbents

• Veolia (UK Recycling Division): Global environmental services and waste management major with UK textile recycling capability. Comparable to TRI as a large incumbent participating in textile sorting and recovery, though as part of a much broader waste and recycling portfolio rather than a focused textile specialist.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/textile-recycling-international-limited

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

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