What Sympany does

Stichting Sympany is a Dutch non-profit textile collection foundation established in 1987 and headquartered at Techniekweg 22, Utrecht, with sorting facilities in Assen, Utrecht, and Eindhoven. The foundation operates approximately 1,450 above-ground textile containers across roughly 70 Dutch municipalities, supplemented by door-to-door collection via partner Climpex and in-store take-back points at retailers such as Bever, De Bijenkorf, and Kuyichi. In 2025 Sympany collected approximately 16.2 million kilograms of used textiles, of which roughly 68–70% is resold as reusable (to second-hand markets in the Netherlands, wider Europe, and four African countries), approximately 23% is sold to recycling partners, and approximately 7% becomes waste.

Sympany's revenue model blends three streams: (1) sale of reusable sorted textiles to second-hand shops (the majority of operating revenue), (2) sale of non-reusable textiles to recycling partners such as SaXcell, Vodde, VRK/Métisse, Sympact, and Ducky Dons, and (3) recurring multi-year service contracts with Dutch municipalities. Additional income comes from B2B take-back and overstock programs for fashion brands and corporate clothing. Sympany's primary technology stack centers on textile sorting and circular processing infrastructure: an automated sorting belt at the Assen facility (operational since July 2021, processing over 3 million kg annually), the SORTED AI-and-robotics initiative (€14.9M Just Transition Fund subsidy, 2025) targeting up to 80% sorting efficiency gains, the Fabritell handscanner for material composition analysis, and chemical recycling partnerships including SaXcell (cotton-to-cellulose) and Vodde (recycled yarn). The organization is also co-shareholder in VRK/Métisse (denim insulation panels) and Khaloom (hand-woven social-enterprise fabrics in India).

Sympany is governed by a Supervisory Board and led by Directeur/Bestuurder Charles Graft. The foundation holds ISO 9001, ISO 14001, Partos 9001, and PSO Trede 3 certifications and has signaled a strategic pivot (since 2019) from supporting African textile projects to building a domestic Dutch circular textile chain. The organization reports operating at a loss in 2023–2025 due to declining prices for collected reusable textiles.

Name

Sympany

Legal name

Stichting Sympany

Website

https://sympany.nl

Company type

Private

Founded year

1987

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Stichting Sympany is a Dutch non-profit textile foundation, operating since 1987, that collects ~16.2 million kg of textiles annually via ~1,450 containers across ~70 municipalities and routes them to reuse or recycling through its own sorting facilities and recycling-partner network.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Textile Recycling and Circular Services

NAICS

Recyclable Material Merchant Wholesalers (42393)

SIC

Wholesale-Apparel, Piece Goods & Notions (5130), Textile Mill Products (2200)

akta.pro primary industry

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

akta.pro secondary industries

Chemical Recycling & Depolymerization (e.g., PET/Polyamide/Cellulosics) (IMAOAMAC), Textile & Apparel Sorting/Recovery Facilities (EUAIADAJ), Repair, Refurbishment & Upcycling Services (Industrial Scale) (IMAOAMAK), Donation, Resale & Textile Recycling Coordination (HSAFABAI)

Keywords

• Textile collection services
• Circular textile recycling
• Waste sorting services
• Secondhand clothing resale
• Textile recycling services

Headquarters

HQ city

Utrecht

HQ country

Netherlands

HQ region

Europe

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Sale of Reusable (herdraagbaar) Textiles: Sympany generates the majority of its operating revenue by selling collected textiles that are still wearable to secondhand shops in the Netherlands, across Europe, and in four African countries (Zambia, Malawi, DR Congo, Angola). This income funds the core collection, sorting, and logistics processes.
2. Recycling Material Sales: Non-reusable textiles are sold to recycling partners (e.g., SaXcell, VRK/Métisse, Vodde, Sympact) who process them into secondary raw materials such as insulation, acoustic panels, recycled yarn, and other circular products. Revenue from these sales is lower but supports the circular mission.
3. Municipal Service Contracts: Sympany operates under service contracts with ~70 Dutch municipalities, providing textile collection, processing, and reporting. Revenue from municipalities contributes to covering collection and sorting operational costs. As of 2025, Sympany reported operating at a loss due to declining prices for collected textiles.
4. Retail & Brand Partnership Programs: Through the Sympany Retail Program, the organization charges fashion brands and retailers for take-back and processing services related to their own textile waste streams, overstock, and corporate clothing. Revenue supports the broader circular textile chain mission.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels8 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Sympany collects used textiles across the Netherlands through approximately 1,450 containers and household collection routes for around 70 municipalities, then sorts the material at three facilities (Assen, Utrecht, Eindhoven) into reusable and recycling-quality streams. Reusable textiles (~68\u201370%) are sold to secondhand shops in the Netherlands, Europe, and four African countries, while non-reusable textiles are routed to recycling partners such as SaXcell, Vodde, VRK/M\u00e9tisse, Sympact, and Ducky Dons for fiber-to-fiber recycling, insulation, recycled yarn, and other circular products. The organization also operates a Retail Partnership Program for fashion brands and retailers needing UPV Textiel-compliant take-back and overstock solutions.

Product overview

Sympany is a Dutch non-profit foundation and one of the largest textile collectors in the Netherlands, operating since 1987. Its core offering consists of textile collection via ~1,450 containers and door-to-door campaigns, textile sorting at three facilities (Assen, Utrecht, Eindhoven), and sale/recycling of sorted textiles. The core service portfolio is organized around a 'Stof tot Grondstof' (cloth to raw material) model: reusable textiles are resold to second-hand markets; non-reusable textiles are processed through a network of specialized recycling brands — SaXcell (cotton-to-cellulose fiber recycling), Sympact (non-reusable textile processing), Vodde (recycled yarn production), and Métisse (denim insulation/acoustic panels). Additional offerings include a Retail Partnership Program for brands, Municipality Services, Duvet & Feather Recycling (Ducky Dons), and the Benjamins second-hand store. The flagship innovation initiative is SORTED — a multi-year AI and robotics-driven automated sorting system receiving €15M in EU Just Transition Fund support, with three prototypes (Singulator, Bag Opener, Textile Analyser) already operational. Notable programs include the DenimDeal (circular denim jeans), CIRTEX 2.0 (material-specific sorting optimization), and the Nat Textiel Certification Program for dry textile containers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• SaXcell: Chemical recycling technology that converts cotton textile into new cellulose fibers for textile production
• Sympact
• SORTED

Products and services

• Textielinzameling (Textile Collection Service) Municipal textile collection service covering approximately 1,450 above-ground containers across ~70 Dutch municipalities plus household collection routes (via partner Climpex), processing millions of kilograms of textiles annually for municipal clients.
• Textiel Sortering (Textile Sorting Service) Sorting service at three Dutch facilities (Assen, Utrecht, Eindhoven) classifying collected textiles into reusable (~68\u201370%), recycling-quality (~23%), and waste (~7%) streams for downstream resale and recycling partners.
• Gemeenten Ontzorgen (Municipality Service Contract) End-to-end municipal support covering collection, processing, and sales of collected textiles for ~70 Dutch municipalities, including a Communication Toolkit for residents, professional collection, and transparent reporting that prepares clients for UPV Textiel obligations.
• Sympany Retail Partnership Program Service programme for retailers, fashion brands, and producers covering textile take-back, overstock and sample processing, corporate clothing collection, UPV Textiel compliance support, and joint awareness campaigns. Validated with Bever (43 stores since 2019), De Bijenkorf, Kuyichi, CrossHatch, Garcia/Denim Deal, and The Swapshop.
• SORTED (AI-Powered Automated Textile Sorting Line) AI- and robotics-driven automated textile processing and sorting line covering intake to destination routing, with three prototype modules (Singulator for garment separation, Bag Opener for robotic bag handling, Textile Analyser using cameras, sensors, and AI), expected to improve sorting efficiency by up to 80%.
• SaXcell (Chemical Cotton Recycling Service) Closed-loop chemical recycling service that converts post-consumer cotton textiles supplied by Sympany into new high-quality cellulose fibres (SaXcell) and pulp via an environmentally friendly solvent-based process with over 99% solvent recovery; fibres are spun into yarn and woven in Turkey for new clothing production.
• Sympact (Non-Reusable Textile Processing) Processing service for non-reusable textiles that creates raw materials and new products from textile waste streams that cannot be reused or recycled through other channels.
• Benjamins (Second-Hand Clothing Store) Physical second-hand clothing boutique in Utrecht city centre operated by Jyoti Daalmans, supplied with sorted clothing by Sympany, offering repaired and refurbished items, an on-site repair atelier, and a swap model to local consumers.
• Duvet & Feather Recycling Service (with Ducky Dons) Collection and recycling service for down and feather duvets via designated blue containers at municipal waste yards, with Ducky Dons washing, drying, and sterilising the materials into new duvets and pillows meeting European standards.
• Nat Textiel Program (Dry Textile Container Certification) Certification programme for underground textile containers that demonstrably keep collected textiles dry; awards certificates to qualifying container manufacturers to reduce wet textile losses in municipal collection.

Quantifiable outcome

• 9.72 kg CO2 emissions saved per kg of textile collected (LCA verified by FFact)
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability5 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

25 partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• 10×10×10 Convenant (Noord-Nederland)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 December 2025Sympany signed the 10×10×10 convenant in December 2025, joining 20 Northern Dutch companies committing to invest at least €1B in green biochemical innovations over 10 years, targeting at least 10 new showcase factories. The initiative is led by companies in circular plastics, biobased raw materials, and CO2 reuse. Sympany participates to advance chemical recycling of polyester textiles.
• VConsystminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Sympany's 'Nat Textiel-programma' awarded VConsyst a Sympany certificate for the Metro M61 TextileSafe underground container, after a practical test of over 1.5 years showed excellent protection against rain and weather conditions.
• SULO (container manufacturer)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Sympany's 'Nat Textiel-programma' (Wet Textile programme) started in 2024 to improve container designs to keep textiles dry. SULO received Sympany certification for its Zoetermeer underground container model, which demonstrably produces dry textiles in practice. Certificate awarded in 2024.
• TTC (container manufacturer)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Sympany's 'Nat Textiel-programma' awarded TTC a Sympany certificate for an improved underground textile container that, after extensive practical testing, meets quality requirements for dry textile collection.
• Benjamins (Utrecht boutique)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 June 2022Benjamins is a fashion-forward secondhand boutique in Utrecht city centre, opened June 2022. Sympany supplies sorted clothing to the store. Operator Jyoti Daalmans runs the boutique, offering clothing sales, repairs, and a deposit-and-swap model.
• The Swapshop (Rotterdam & Amsterdam)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 May 2022The Swapshop is a circular startup with two physical stores in Rotterdam and Amsterdam. Sympany supports The Swapshop's logistics for clothing collection. Items not suitable for swapping are passed to Sympany for reuse or recycling. Swapshop saves credits for customers who deposit items, redeemable against swapped clothing.
• Clean Climber / Monk Rotterdam / Stultiens / StockzminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Clean Climber initiated the largest worn climbing shoe collection in the Netherlands (and possibly the world) with Monk Rotterdam, Sympany, shoemaker Stultiens, and sport mat producer Stockz. Sympany processes the non-repairable climbing shoes. The first sport mat from recycled climbing shoe rubber was unveiled at Monk Rotterdam in April 2022.
• Blue LOOP Originals (Recycle Roadshow Amsterdam)minorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2021Joint campaign in Amsterdam, May-June 2021, collecting worn jeans at special containers at Jodenbreestraat, Haarlemmerplein, and partner stores. The collected jeans were processed into a unique Amsterdam Recycle Roadshow Sweater.
• SaXcell B.V.coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 April 2020SaXcell is a circular textile recycling consortium co-founded by Sympany, Saxion Hogeschool, five inventors, WeVoTex, and three Turkish textile companies (Ugurlular, Modeko, Selin Tekstil). Sympany supplies cotton textiles which are processed in SaXcell's Goor pilot plant into new cellulose fibres. SaXcell's solvent-based process recovers over 99% of the solvent. All partners are co-owners of SaXcell B.V. Sympany's role: supplying raw material; SaXcell's role: chemical recycling to new yarn.
• BevercoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Bever, an outdoor retailer with 43 Dutch stores, has placed Sympany collection units in all stores since 2019. All collected textiles are processed by Sympany for reuse or recycling. Bever is also the initiator of the Circulair Samenwerkingsverband Outdoorindustrie (CSO), signed by eight companies to reduce textile waste. Old sleeping bags are donated to Sheltersuit; non-reusable denim and wool go to Blue LOOP for recycling.
• De BijenkorfminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2018De Bijenkorf ran a Fashion Exchange campaign in 2018. Customers could drop off at least 6 items of clothing at any Bijenkorf store; collected textiles went to Sympany for sorting. Participants received €20 off a sustainable wardrobe. The campaign raised awareness about textile circularity.
• KuyichiminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018Sympany and sustainable denim brand Kuyichi co-produced 1,600 'By Sympany By Kuyichi' jeans containing 20% recovered denim fibres from collected jeans (10% from Sympany-supplied fibres). 10% of proceeds funded Sympany's mobile truck project in Malawi. The jeans were co-produced with Recover (fibre recycling), Tejidos Royo (certified denim weaving), and SARP (manufacturing).
• VRK Akoestiek en Isolatie (Métisse)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVRK Akoestiek en Isolatie was co-founded by Sympany, Vernooy Textile Recyclers, and Le Relais to produce high-quality insulation and acoustic panels (Métisse) from non-reusable denim. Sympany is a co-shareholder. The factory in Le Relais (France) produces Métisse panels (90% recycled cotton fibres), sold at Gamma DIY stores.
• VoddecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVodde and Sympany partner to transform collected Dutch textiles into recycled yarns for the fashion industry. Sympany collects and sorts; Vodde processes non-reusable textiles into recycled yarns (certified, produced within Europe). Vodde provides fashion brands with a complete circular solution for their post-consumer textile waste. Per 1 kg of yarn: saves 7.762 kg CO2, 11.9L water, 0.59 kg chemicals, and 1,038 m2 land.
• Sympact SolutionscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSympact Solutions is a processing partner for non-reusable textiles, creating solutions for recycling-quality streams. Sympany and Sympact collaborate to give non-reusable textiles a new purpose, supporting the circular textile chain.
• Ducky DonsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDucky Dons operates a modern factory in Ermelo for processing down and feather bedding. Sympany collects used down/feather duvets via designated blue containers at municipal waste yards and supplies them to Ducky Dons for washing, sterilising, and recycling into new duvets and pillows (NEXTLIFE certified).
• SORTED Consortium (14 partners)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSORTED is a four-year €14.9M innovation project (JTF subsidy) led by Sympany with 14 consortium partners: Demcon, Code for Good, CELLiCON, CiorC, CuRe Technology, Recell Group, Textile4Ever, BioFashionTech, Greenwise Campus, Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, Hanze Hogeschool, DCTerra, MUD Jeans, Ecoras, Gemeente Groningen, and Gemeente Emmen. The project develops AI-powered automated textile sorting (Sympany's role) and chemical recycling of polyester and cellulose from post-consumer textiles.
• Cirtex (Circulair Textielcentrum Rivierenland)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSympany collaborates with Cirtex (Tiel) in the Cirtex 2.0 project, optimising its sorting process to meet stricter material criteria for consortium partners developing innovative products (interior solutions, furniture, acoustic panels, construction materials) from textile waste streams. Funded by EFRO Oost.
• Nederlandse Rode Kruis (Dutch Red Cross)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDutch Red Cross branches host Sympany textile containers on their premises. Textiles collected go to Sympany; the Red Cross receives a fee from Sympany for the collection service, which funds its humanitarian activities.
• ClimpexminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorClimpex is Sympany's partner for door-to-door (huis-aan-huis) textile collection services across the Netherlands.
• CrossHatchminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCrossHatch (jeans/workwear brand) and Sympany collaborated to produce circular work jeans made from 23% post-consumer recycled denim sourced from Sympany's collected textiles. The jeans (Willow, Willow C1, Willow C5 models) are sold through municipality workwear procurement. Environmental savings are tracked via REMOKEY QR labels.
• Blue LOOP OriginalsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBlue LOOP Originals and Sympany partnered on the Recycle Roadshow (Amsterdam, 2021), collecting 10,000 worn jeans to produce a circular Amsterdam Sweater. Blue LOOP processes the denim into recycled fibres for new garments. Also, Blue LOOP processes non-reusable denim and wool from Bever stores into new clothing as part of the Bever CSO partnership.
• KhaloomminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerKhaloom is a social enterprise in Bangalore, India, co-founded by Enviu and Sympany in 2015. It produces hand-woven fabrics from recycled and organic yarns, providing fair wages (2-3x minimum), fixed contracts, and gender equality for 18 artisans. Sympany holds co-ownership. The hand-weaving process uses zero energy and CO2.
• Denim DealcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSympany is a participant in the Denim Deal, a multi-stakeholder initiative for circular denim. Sympany contributed sorted post-consumer denim to the production of 800 circular Garcia jeans — the first closed-loop recycled denim jeans made from Dutch collected textiles.
• DAPP MalawiminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDAPP (Development Aid from People to People) in Malawi has been Sympany's partner in Angola since 1987 for the sale of sorted reusable textiles. DAPP distributes affordable secondhand clothing in Malawi, Zambia, DR Congo, and Angola.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Le Relais: Le Relais is a French social enterprise textile collector and recycler, co-owner of VRK (Sympany's Métisse insulation JV). Directly comparable business model combining collection, sorting, social mission, and recycling into insulation products.
• Humana Belgium: Humana is a leading European textile collector operating container networks and second-hand retail across Belgium and beyond, with comparable sorting infrastructure and similar circular textile business model to Sympany.
• Texaid: Texaid is a Swiss-based textile collection and sorting company operating across multiple European countries. Comparable in scale and service offering (collection, sorting, resale to second-hand markets and recyclers).
• Het Goed: Het Goed is a major Dutch thrift chain that collects and resells used textiles, with comparable container networks and municipal relationships. Directly competes for second-hand textile volumes and sorting contracts in the Netherlands.
• ReShare (Leger des Heils ReShare): ReShare is the textile collection arm of the Dutch Salvation Army, directly competing with Sympany for municipal textile collection contracts across the Netherlands. Operates similar container networks and resale channels.
• I:CO (I:Collect): I:CO provides global textile collection and sorting infrastructure for fashion brands and retailers, including take-back programs. Comparable to Sympany's Retail Program and operates the same circular textile value chain model.
• Recover Brands: Recover is a Spanish textile recycler producing recycled cotton fibers from post-consumer textiles, a partner of Sympany in the Kuyichi co-branded jeans. Competes in the same textile-to-fiber recycling space as SaXcell.
• Boer Group (Boer Recycling): Boer Group is a German-based textile recycler offering collection, sorting, and recycling services across Europe. Comparable end-to-end textile circular chain operations and serves similar municipal and brand clients.

Others

• Circle Economy: Circle Economy is a Dutch circular economy impact organization publishing the Circular Textile Program and benchmarking reports. Adjacent ecosystem player shaping the policy and reporting environment Sympany operates in.

Emerging players

• Vodde: Vodde is a Dutch textile-to-yarn recycler that partners with Sympany on collection but also sources independently. Comparable in the recycled yarn production stage of the circular textile chain.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/sympany_nl
• Facebookfacebook.com/SympanyNL
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/stichting-sympany

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles21 records

Subsidiaries3 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 →

Frequently asked questions about Sympany