Inside Circularity:
What Really Matters

With the Trend Forum in March, the heart of PERFORMANCE DAYS, placing the new Focus Topic center stage, the industry’s perspective on circularity takes a decisive step upstream. Building on October’s exploration of recyclers, this season shifts the spotlight to where textile-to-textile truly begins - collectors and sorters.

As the gatekeepers of the circular systems, they determine whether used textiles re-enter the value chain or are lost as waste. Without efficient collection, precise sorting, and scalable infrastructure, even the most advanced recycling technologies cannot fulfill their potential.

The curated fabrics presented here translate this systemic challenge into tangible material innovation, showcasing how design, material choices, and recyclability must already align at the very beginning of a product’s lifecycle.

Material Section

This Material Story highlights the critical role of materials in enabling true textile-to-textile circularity. As the industry shifts focus to collectors and sorters, material design becomes a key factor in ensuring efficient sorting, purity, and recyclability. From mono-material concepts to traceable and low-impact constructions, these developments show how materials themselves are shaping the future of scalable circular systems.

Textile-to-Textile: Where Circularity Really Begins

With its latest Focus Topic, PERFORMANCE DAYS shifts the conversation upstream, from recycling technologies to the very starting point of circularity: collectors and sorters.

As the true gatekeepers of textile-to-textile systems, they determine whether used materials become valuable resources or are lost as waste. Without efficient collection, precise sorting, and scalable infrastructure, circularity remains out of reach.

Building on October’s focus on recyclers, the spring edition highlights the urgent need to strengthen the front end of the value chain, from material flows and sorting logic to new regulatory frameworks and cross-industry collaboration.

Want to dive deeper? Discover the full Focus Topic and insights on the PERFORMANCE DAYS website here!

Focus Topic Panel: Making Textile-to-Textile Work

Textile-to-textile recycling is more than a sustainability goal, it’s a multi-billion-euro opportunity. But what does it really take to make circularity work at scale?

At the Expert Talks Stage in March 2026, industry leaders discussed the critical role of collectors and sorters, highlighting the challenges, infrastructure needs, and business potential behind turning waste into valuable raw materials. Featuring insights from Andreas Dorner (ReHubs), Evan Wiener (Re&Up), and Gianluca Pandolfo (Reju), the panel explored what must happen next to unlock true circular systems.

Listen to the panel here.

Behind the Seams: Circularity Starts with Design

For those looking to dive deeper into this season’s Focus Topic, the PERFORMANCE DAYS magazine Behind the Seams offers exclusive background stories and expert insights.

One highlight: “Circular by Design”, where Peak Performance rethinks the down jacket together with partners like ALLIED Feather + Down, Resortecs, NetPlus and PERTEX.

The story shows how circularity doesn’t start in recycling, but in design: from mono-material thinking and design-for-disassembly to innovative solutions like dissolvable seams. It’s a powerful example of how collaboration across the value chain can turn complex products into future resources.

Discover the full story and more in Behind the Seams on the PERFORMANCE DAYS website here.

Circular by Design

How Peak Performance rethought a down jacket together with its partners

If collectors and sorters determine whether used textiles become a resource at the start of the value chain, product design determines whether that resource is accessible at all. With the R&D Helium Loop Anorak, Peak Performance shows how Textile-to-Textile circularity starts in the design phase, not in the recycling process.

Read more here.