What NATHANS WASTE SAVERS LIMITED does

NATHANS WASTE SAVERS LIMITED, trading under the heritage name Nathans Wastesavers and the NWS SCOT brand, is one of the UK's oldest and largest textile recycling companies, founded in 1903 and headquartered in Denny, Scotland (with a secondary site in Bilston, West Midlands operating as Textile Recycling International). The company operates a purpose-built processing facility equipped with modern grading equipment, employing over 300 people to sort, grade, and process more than 600 tonnes of textile material every week. Output is graded into categories for reuse (NWS SCOT bales of 45–55 kg), cream products (25–125 kg packs), industrial wiping cloths (Wipers), and a curated vintage clothing line. The business runs thousands of textile banks across the UK under contract to local authorities and waste management companies, diverting material from landfill and supporting municipal reuse and recycling targets.

The company's revenue model is a B2B unit-pricing structure across four primary streams: (1) textile recycling and reuse — selling graded used clothing exports to buyers in Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Far East and Japan; (2) vintage clothing sales — by piece and per kg to UK, European and Japanese vintage wholesalers and online retailers; (3) industrial wiping cloths — supplied to UK businesses; and (4) textile bank network operations — contracted collection services for local authorities and waste companies. A secondary community-engagement channel, the Rag Bag scheme, pays UK schools per kg of textiles recycled and has raised over £7,000,000 for schools and local causes over many years.

Customer segments span UK local authorities and waste management companies (primary vertical, procurement via textile banks), national and local charities (primary vertical, regular collections from thousands of charity shops), schools and educational institutions (primary vertical, via Rag Bag and Eco-Schools), vintage retailers and wholesalers (horizontal, UK/Europe/Asia), and industrial/manufacturing businesses (horizontal, UK wipers). Go-to-market is sales-led and relationship-driven with channel partners, with no consumer-facing retail or digital channel of scale. The company is privately held with no disclosed institutional investors, no public listing, and no disclosed funding rounds.

Name

NATHANS WASTE SAVERS LIMITED

Legal name

Textile Recycling International

Website

https://nathanswastesavers.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1903

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

NATHANS WASTE SAVERS LIMITED, founded in 1903 and headquartered in Denny, Scotland, is one of the UK's largest textile recyclers. It operates thousands of UK textile banks, processes 600+ tonnes weekly, and exports graded used clothing, vintage apparel, and industrial wipers globally.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Textile Recycling Services

NAICS

Industrial Launderers (812332), Apparel Manufacturing (315)

SIC

Apparel & Other Finishd Prods Of Fabrics & Similar Matl (2300), 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), Industrial Laundry & Textile Waste Services (Non-hazardous) (EUAIAGAI), Recycled Textile Compounding & Nonwoven Reprocessing (Insulation/Felts/Geotextiles) (IMAOAMAH), Sustainable & Certified Materials (Organic, Recycled, Traceable) (CRAAAMAK)

Keywords

• Textile recycling services
• Used clothing export
• Industrial wiping cloths
• Textile bank collection
• Vintage clothing wholesale

Headquarters

HQ city

Denny

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Textile Recycling and Reuse: Sorting, grading and exporting clothing and textile products for reuse to Africa, Asia and Eastern Europe. Core revenue stream from processing over 600 tonnes of textiles weekly.
2. Vintage Clothing Sales: Sale of authentic vintage clothing, shoes and accessories to UK, European and Japanese markets. Products sold by piece and per kg to vintage shops, online retailers and wholesalers.
3. Industrial Wipers: Transformation of textiles not suitable for re-wear into industrial wiping cloths, supplying businesses across the UK with products tailored to specific needs.
4. Textile Bank Network Operations: Operation of textile banks contracting to local authorities and waste companies throughout the UK for textile collection services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Nathans Wastesavers collects, sorts, and grades used textiles in the UK, then exports graded secondhand clothing under the NWS SCOT brand and via cream-grade packs to wholesale markets in Africa, Asia, and Eastern Europe. Textiles unsuitable for re-wear are converted into industrial wiping cloths for UK businesses, while vintage clothing is curated and sold to UK, European, and Japanese retailers. The company also operates a network of textile banks on contract with local authorities and waste management companies.

Product overview

Nathans Wastesavers is a textile recycling company offering a circular sorting and reuse clothing service. The core offering consists of exporting high-quality used clothing (NWS SCOT brand) in 45 kg and 55 kg bales, including children's wear, adult clothing, accessories, vintage/retro clothing, fabric, and textiles. The company grades products into cream products (25-125 kg packs with mixed, seasonal, and category-specific grades) and transforms unsuitable textiles into industrial wiping cloths (Wipers). Additional services include a network of textile banks for local authorities and waste companies, plus the Rag Bag school fundraising program. The company has been exporting used clothing since 1990 and is a trusted partner with national and local charities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Rag Bag: A free school fundraising scheme that pays schools for every kg of textiles recycled, raising awareness about textile recycling while generating funds.
• NWS SCOT

Products and services

• NWS SCOT Grade Used Clothing Branded secondhand clothing line, supplying 45 kg and 55 kg wholesale bales to international markets including children's wear, adult clothing, accessories, and textiles, with full packing lists available on request.
• Cream Grade Clothing Packs Well-known cream products throughout Europe, packed in 25-125 kg packs, including mixed, summer, and winter grades, outerwear, knitwear, and sportswear.
• Industrial Wiping Cloths (Wipers) Industrial wiping cloths manufactured from textiles not suitable for re-wear, supplied to UK businesses with products tailored to specific operational cleaning needs.
• Vintage Clothing Line Authentic vintage clothing, shoes, and accessories including retro leisurewear, leathers, fleeces, denim, preloved country and outdoor wear, and one-off true vintage pieces, sold by piece and per kg to vintage shops, online retailers, and wholesalers in the UK, Europe, and Japan.
• Textile Bank Network Service Operates thousands of textile banks on contract with local authorities and waste companies throughout the UK, providing textile collection services that divert material from landfills and help authorities meet reuse and recycling targets.
• Rag Bag School Fundraising Scheme Free textile recycling scheme for UK schools, nurseries, clubs, and organisations that pays them for every kilogram collected, combining school fundraising with environmental education.

Quantifiable outcome

• For every tonne of garments reused rather than sent to landfill, greenhouse gas emissions are reduced by around seven tonnes of CO₂ equivalent
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Textiles 2030 (WRAP)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 April 2021Partners of Textiles 2030, WRAP's ground-breaking initiative accelerating the fashion and textiles industry's move towards circularity. The voluntary agreement builds on Sustainable Action Plan (SCAP 2020) learning and engages UK fashion and textiles organisations in collaborative climate action.
• Eco-SchoolscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Eco-Schools, the largest sustainable schools programme in the world designed to encourage whole-school community action on Learning for Sustainability.
• Rag BagcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerJoint Rag Bag school fundraising scheme providing regular fundraising for schools in the UK through textile recycling. Schools are paid for every kg collected.
• National and Local Charity OrganisationscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorTrusted partnerships with many national and local charities for over 3 decades, servicing thousands of charity shops all over the UK with guaranteed regular reliable collections.
• UK Local AuthoritiescoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartnership with local authorities across the UK through textile bank network, helping authorities meet reuse and recycling targets.
• UK Waste Management CompaniescoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorWorking with waste management companies across the UK for textile collection and diversion from landfill services.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Texaid: European textile collector and sorter operating charity donation bins and selling sorted second-hand clothing wholesale. Comparable sorting facility model and bale export operations to global reuse markets.
• I:CO (I:Collect): Global textile collection and sorting company serving retail brands and consumers with take-back schemes. Comparable collection, sorting and grading infrastructure with global reuse channel access.
• Helpsy: US-based textile recycling company collecting, sorting and reselling used clothing. Comparable business model across collection network, sorting, reuse and recycling streams.
• Bank & Vogue Group: Global second-hand textile wholesaler sorting and exporting used clothing bales worldwide. Direct peer given overlapping bale-based export model, charity partnerships and vintage wholesale operations.
• Traid (Textile Recycling for Aid and International Development): UK charity operating textile recycling banks, sorting clothing for reuse export and domestic resale. Directly comparable textile collection and grading operations serving similar UK charity and local authority partners.

Emerging players

• Worn Again Technologies: UK-based polymer recycling company turning textile waste into virgin-equivalent fibres. Adjacent peer operating in textile-to-textile recycling that Nathans could supply or partner with to upgrade lower-grade textile fractions.
• Circ (Circular Systems): Textile recycling technology company recovering polyester and cellulose from old clothes. Adjacent peer representing the next-stage fibre-to-fibre processing Nathans could vertically integrate towards.
• Beyond Retro: Vintage clothing retailer sourcing and curating second-hand apparel from textile sorters like Nathans. Comparable on the vintage curation side of the business and shows the downstream retail potential for graded vintage inventory.

Regional players

• Mary’s Living & Giving (Save the Children retail): UK charity shop chain selling donated clothing with associated textile collection infrastructure. Comparable as both a charity partner and downstream retail channel for sorted vintage and rewear stock.

Others

• Excess Materials Exchange: Online marketplace connecting industrial material surpluses with reusers. Adjacent enabling platform relevant to the industrial wipers business line and broader textile waste diversion strategy.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/nathans-waste-savers-limited

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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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