Prada to phase out virgin nylon

Luxury Italian fashion brand Prada has launched six bags made from regenerated nylon, as the first stage in a plan to phase out virgin nylon during the next two years.

In a project dubbed ReNylon, Prada will replace virgin nylon in its collections by using regenerated nylon yarn called Econyl.

The first products made with Econyl are a belt bag, shoulder bag, tote bag, a duffle and two backpacks.

The company will replace all the virgin nylon it currently uses with Econyl recycled nylon in the next two years.

“Our ultimate goal will be to convert all Prada virgin nylon into ReNylon by the end of 2021,” said head of communications at Prada, Lorenzo Bertelli.

Prada has collaborated with Italian textile yarn producer Aquafil on the project, a manufacturer with more than 50 years experience in producing synthetic textiles.

The resulting material, Econyl, is produced through a process of depolymerisation. It can be recycled an indefinite number of times with no loss of material quality.