Project description:

Challenge: The textile industry generates significant fabric waste and struggles with gender inequality in employment. Women in the disadvantaged Karapınar district of Bursa, where Yeşim’s main factory (Almaxtex Textile) is located, face limited economic opportunities. Yeşim Group, in collaboration with Uludağ Soroptimist Club, addressed the dual challenge of reducing textile waste and empowering women, aiming to create a replicable model of circular economy and social inclusion aligned with a total of 9 UN Sustainable Development Goals via the “Ecollectiv” project.

Solution: Ecollectiv established a local, circular production cycle. Fabric scraps generated during the production process at Yeşim Group were transformed by the Karapınar Women’s Cooperative into a wide variety of handmade products such as bags, cat beds, keychains, and pillows. Yeşim coordinated partners, provided funding and logistics, and supplied production equipment to Karapınar’s women, and Uludağ Soroptimist Club offered training and awareness programs. Yeşim’s volunteers, including students,  supported waste sorting and product preparation, ensuring minimal carbon footprint and broad community engagement.

Result: Within the first year (2024-2025), women of the Karapınar Cooperative produced 5,000 upcycled, Ecollectiv-labeled, handcrafted items, generated TRY 220,250 in income for the cooperative, and this project employed 100 women. The project cut transportation-related emissions through fully local production, won a national award — Awareness Award by Women Friendly Brands Platform — and international awards — Just Style Excellence Awards 2025: three different categories, and became a best-practice model linking environmental sustainability with women’s empowerment and youth volunteerism, inspiring replication across the textile industry.

Partners:

Yeşim Group (Almaxtex Textile), Uludağ Soroptimist Club, Karapınar Women’s Cooperative, Afra Textile, ANL Creative Agency, Aykut Güngör Video Production, Hedef Patent.

Category: Social Change

Company: Yeşim Group – Almaxtex Textile Industry and Trade Inc.

About the company: 

Rooted in 1956, Yeşim Group holds a leading position in the textile industry as a strategic and indispensable manufacturing partner for global brands. As one of the world’s most prominent integrated facilities, Yeşim Group carries out all processes of the apparel industry in-house, from yarn to finished product.  Through its innovative corporate culture, Yeşim Group continuously renews itself, closely follows industry trends, and adapts proactively. Its R&D center — certified by the Ministry of Industry and Technology — has pioneered numerous breakthroughs in smart, organic, recycled, and innovative fabrics, reinforcing its leadership in textile innovation.