C&A teams up with circular bioeconomy start-up traceless materials to replace plastic hooks

December 8, 2022

C&A and traceless materials join forces to reduce plastics in packaging.
Start-up develops advanced biodegradable plastic alternatives from agricultural waste products.
During a pilot phase over the upcoming months, C&A will introduce the hooks made by traceless to its store in Hamburg Altona.

Dusseldorf/Hamburg, 8 December 2022 – From today, European retailer C&A and circular bioeconomy start-up traceless materials are joining forces to reduce the use of conventional plastics in fashion packaging. During a pilot phase, single-use hooks in C&A’s store in Hamburg Altona will be replaced by hooks produced from traceless^®. These hooks are an advanced biodegradable plastic alternative derived from agricultural plant waste and designed for the biological cycle.

Every year, around 8-10 billion plastic clothes hangers are produced globally. Due to their small size, single-use plastic hooks that are usually used for socks and underwear pose challenges for recycling. This is exactly where traceless materials’ bio-circular solution comes in. Even though traceless^® looks and feels like plastic, it is made entirely from plant residues and is plastic-free. It is naturally compostable and saves up to 95% of the carbon emissions that would otherwise be generated by the production and disposal of conventional plastics. By attaching the traceless^®hooks to C&A’s portfolio, both companies are set to make a lasting impact on the industry.

The pilot phase with traceless materials fits in with C&A’s recent circularity initiatives, including Cradle to Cradle Certified^® product innovations and collaboration with material sciences company Recover™. With these projects, C&A is underpinning its role as a leading innovative player in the textile sector and is taking a significant step in meeting the goals of its 2028 Global Sustainability Strategy through the far-reaching reduction of single-use plastics. To uphold its responsibility, C&A is raising awareness of the environmentally harmful impact of single-use plastic by positioning the launch of the cooperation with the utmost prominence, for example on a specific project website and on railcards in the store.

‘’Our collaboration with traceless is an important step on our way to reaching our ambitious goal of replacing consumer facing single-used plastics in our stores with sustainable alternatives by 2028,” said Aleix Busquets Gonzalez, Head of Global Sustainability at C&A.

“For us at traceless, this small hook means a big step forward: it is the first pilot product to hit the shelves made from our bio-circular material innovation! After many months of development time, our whole team is incredibly proud of this achievement,” says Anne Lamp, CEO & Co-Founder at traceless materials.

Further information is provided on a dedicated landing page.

Download the press release.

About C&A

With over 1,300 stores in 17 European countries and more than 25,000 employees, C&A is one of Europe’s leading fashion retailers. Every day, C&A welcomes millions of visitors to its stores in Europe and to its online shop. C&A offers quality and long-lasting fashion at affordable prices for all. For further information, please visit our website.

Press contact

Betty Kieß, Head of Corporate Communications C&A Europe
Wanheimer Straße 70 I 40468 Düsseldorf

press(at)canda.com

About traceless
The circular bioeconomy startup traceless materials has developed the technology to turn plant leftovers into a novel, holistically sustainable plastic alternative. Founded 2020 in Hamburg, the team is currently working on first pilot products made from their material innovation traceless^®, and in parallel is scaling up their production capacities. For further information about the award-winning company, please visit our website www.traceless.eu

Press contact
traceless materials GmbH | Brook 5| 20457 Hamburg| Germany
Isabel Thoma | Design & Communications, traceless
isabel(at)traceless.eu