Macron and RadiciGroup team up for sustainability

Macron, a Bologna-based global brand leader in the sportswear industry has collaborated with RadiciGroup, a Bergamo-based Italian chemical manufacturer to create and manufacture technical sportswear that is both high-performing and environmentally friendly.

Renycle®, a yarn made from recycled nylon 6 by the Bergamo-based brand, is a high-value material with outstanding resistance, dyeing properties, softness, and versatility. This is one notable result of this partnership.

Production wastes are recovered, recycled, and reconverted into polymers at RadiciGroup, and then spun into yarn with mechanical properties equivalent to yarn manufactured from fossil-source materials, yet with much superior environmental performance.

In particular, the above-mentioned new yarn range cuts CO2 emissions by nearly 90%, as well as energy and water savings of more than 8%  and 90%, respectively.

Macron and RadiciGroup have been on a sustainability course for a long time, including their entire supply chain and introducing campaigns and supporting solutions aimed at environmental protection while also making targeted investments in renewable technologies.

Macron, headquartered in Bologna, has initiated the Macron 4 the Planet project, which includes the development of a new fully environmentally friendly headquarters, the manufacture of sports jerseys made entirely of 100% recycled polyester from PET bottles, and the use of 100% recycled packaging.

RadiciGroup has followed a circular economy business model, focusing all of its resources on optimizing raw material, energy, and resource usage, perfecting processes, eliminating scraps, and encouraging designed-in end-of-life recycling of the products it manufactures. The group’s mission is to reduce the environmental footprint of its daily operations by assessing them transparently and critically.

Both companies have adopted corporate wellness plans that encourage the introduction of educational programs that emphasize their workers’ health, safety, and well-being. Both of the above policies and actions help them achieve their key goal: to win the battle for the future.

CEO of Macron, Gianluca Pavanello, said RadiciGroup is an important ally of Macron’s green initiative. Sustainability and environmental conservation need a common mission and plan. Macron’s goal is to design innovative professional sportswear for athletes of all ages, and their aim is to research and improve fabrics that are becoming more eco-friendly.

He adds that finding businesses like RadiciGroup, a global pioneer in its field with which they share values such as sustainability, corporate welfare, recycling, use of renewable sources, and care for local communities, helps them to improve their product portfolio and achieve brand acceptance from people who participate in sports at all levels. They hope that their collaboration will continue to grow over time.

President of RadiciGroup, Angelo Radici, said it is impossible to accomplish a circular economy by behaving alone. As upstream players in the supply chain, they’ve always wanted to share their content expertise and offer products that are both higher performing and environmentally friendly. It’s also important to identify clients who are as concerned about these problems as they are, and who can become strategic allies in the creation of creative and long-term solutions. They collaborated with Macron to develop winning sports socks, which are made from recycled fabrics and all-Italian technology, and are the products of a zero-kilometer, measured, and traceable production and supply chain.