By Somatish Banerji, Partner; Rahul Chatterjee, Manager, Intellecap (Circular Apparel Innovation Factory)
When the Textile Recovery Facility (TRF) in Bengaluru opened its doors a year ago under the Saamuhika Shakti initiative, in August 2024, it was built on a simple but ambitious vision: to create an inclusive, circular textile waste management business that generates livelihoods for waste picker communities while reducing the environmental burden of textile waste. The TRF was started by Indumathi, a waste picker turned waste entrepreneur, with support from Circular Apparel Innovation Factory (CAIF), an Intellecap initiative and its implementation partner, Hasiru Dala. This initiative is part of CAIF’s flagship Closing the Loop on Textile Waste (CTL) Program.
Today, looking back at twelve months of experimentation, agility, and determination, the TRF is not just a facility—it has grown into an ‘at-scale’ model of aggregating post-consumer textile waste, has built a brand for itself, and has become a testing ground for pathways toward economic viability.
The TRF’s first year was not without challenges. Building a circular textile waste model meant navigating uncharted waters—scaling collection, navigating unpredictable markets, and evolving partnerships. Yet, resilience has been the hallmark of this journey.
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Scaling Collection
Navigating Unpredictable Markets
While scaling collection channels, the TRF also simultaneously focused on creating market linkages. The TRF secured its first bulk sales of post-consumer polyester and blended textiles (~9 MT in January) to buyers from Coimbatore/Tiruppur who repurpose the waste into industrial applications such as filler materials and building materials. By February, shipments scaled to ~30 MT, reinforcing the facility’s role as a bridge between waste recovery and industrial demand. However, owing to certain externalities, the bulk orders started to dry down. The TRF remained agile, took a decision not to tamper with the collection momentum, and resorted to renting extra space to store the polyester/blended textile waste. Over time, the bulk orders started to re-emerge.
Another avenue explored is the ‘Skills-as-a-Service’ model, developed in collaboration with Sambhav Foundation. In this model, leading upcyclers source post-consumer textile waste from the TRF. The waste is then directed to Sambhav Foundation’s Livelihood Resource Centres (LRCs), where women from waste picker families, trained in tailoring and related skills, transform it into finished products based on the upcyclers’ work orders. This collaboration not only creates a new revenue stream for the TRF but also generates dignified livelihood opportunities for women from waste picker communities
The TRF explores every avenue to maximize revenue — channeling higher-quality textile waste into resale and thrift markets (B2C), while ensuring that lower-quality waste is repurposed into business solutions such as industrial wipes (B2B). This diversification has allowed the facility to adapt, improvise, and sustain operations even when bulk orders slowed down.
Evolving Partnerships
The TRF is actively building partnerships with diverse stakeholders to strengthen and diversify its collection channels. Recent collaborations include Bangalore Apartments’ Federation (BAF), which facilitated the collection of over 500 kg of high-quality, resale-worthy textile waste, and multiple educational institutions, further expanding sourcing opportunities. By engaging a wider network of partners, TRF is ensuring a steady inflow of materials across quality segments while deepening its reach in the community.
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Behind the facility’s operations is a growing symbol of leadership Indumathi, a waste picker turned entrepreneur, whose journey embodies the transformative spirit of the TRF. Today, Indumathi is more than an individual; she is becoming a transformative voice for dignity, inclusion, and innovation in circular fashion. In the last one year, Indumathi represented the TRF at Bharat Tex 2025 and had the opportunity to present about her work and journey to the honourable Prime Minister of India at the event. Indumathi has also been featured in podcasts, YouTube channels, and prominent media like The Hindu.
Through her leadership, Indumathi has mentored others in identifying fabrics, sorting waste, and building market-ready products. She has also engaged with young changemakers—hosting school students at the TRF to demonstrate how waste can be turned into value-added products.
Her presence and expertise have highlighted the human dimension of the TRF story, showing that circular economy solutions are not just about technology, but also about people and communities.
Over the last few years, I have seen a massive transformation in my own life, from being a waste picker to becoming an operator and entrepreneur. I speak as a single waste picker, but there are millions of us worldwide. We are part of this world and if we do not organise ourselves into strong collectives, we cannot bring change. I dream of a better future for us. Waste pickers should no longer be invisible to society. — Indumathi, a waste picker turned operator and entrepreneur; as featured in It Matters, H&M Foundation’s newsletter
These collaborations amplify the message that Indumathi—and, by extension, the TRF—is a credible partner for brands, industries, and consumers looking to support inclusive circular solutions.
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For any new model, sustainability is as much about economics as it is about setting up processes. Over the past year, the TRF has systematically tested different waters to chart its pathway to viability and sustainability.
Achieving break-even has been the north star for the TRF. The revenue being earned is being fully injected into the business as operational expenses.
A key learning has been that forward integration and venturing into the secondary material business are going to be key to maximising revenue. The TRF is piloting the production of industrial wipes from post-consumer textiles, targeting sectors like automotive, paints, and pharmaceuticals. It also showcased samples at Toyota’s Green Exhibition and explored partnerships for scaling wipes production. Parallelly, visits from global players like Decathlon and Syre highlighted the TRF’s potential to become part of the global supply chains of the textile industry. Lastly, the TRF is establishing a ‘Textile Processing Unit’ to shred polyester/blended textile waste to increase its acceptance to allied industries like the mattress-making industry and textile-board making industry.
On the B2C front, pop-up thrift stores have been rolled out, starting with the Hasiru Habba festival, where pre-loved garments found eager buyers and generated revenue.
The model was scaled up as Navajeevana Thrift Pop-Up Store at the Lalbagh Flower Festival marking the first public-facing initiative of this kind. Over 12 days, the pop-up sold 115 kg of quality pre-loved clothing diverted from landfills, generating over Rs 26,000 in revenues. On average, each piece of pre-loved clothing generated three times more revenue compared to selling it to resellers. This pilot established the fact that Thrifting is going to be an important avenue to reach the economic viability of the TRF.
These thrift experiments are helping assess demand, refine product curation, and expand the consumer-facing side of the circular model.
These steps underline that viability is not just about one revenue stream but about creating an ecosystem where multiple pathways—bulk sales, B2B products, thrift markets, upcycled goods—are integrated to stabilize and grow the model.
Over the past year, the TRF in Bengaluru has demonstrated that community-led circular models are not only possible but also powerful. Through strategic collaborations with Saamuhika Shakti partners BBC Media Action, Hasiru Dala, and Sambhav Foundation as well as with community and educational institutions, the TRF has expanded its collection channels, diversified revenue streams, and laid the foundation of a system that is resilient, adaptable, and rooted in dignity for waste pickers.
As the TRF enters its second year, the focus is on strengthening economic viability by scaling tested models, expanding partnerships with brands and industries to integrate textile recovery into mainstream supply chains, and deepening grassroots ownership so that more waste pickers see this work not merely as survival, but as opportunity. The TRF’s story so far is one of resilience, collaboration, and economic experimentation, and its future promises consolidation, scale, and systemic impact—turning Bengaluru’s textile waste challenge into a model of circular innovation for the country and beyond.
By Somatish Banerji, Partner; Rahul Chatterjee, Manager, Intellecap (Circular Apparel Innovation Factory)
When the Textile Recovery Facility (TRF) in Bengaluru opened its doors a year ago under the Saamuhika Shakti initiative, in August 2024, it was built on a simple but ambitious vision: to create an inclusive, circular textile waste management business that generates livelihoods for waste picker communities while reducing the environmental burden of textile waste. The TRF was started by Indumathi, a waste picker turned waste entrepreneur, with support from Circular Apparel Innovation Factory (CAIF), an Intellecap initiative and its implementation partner, Hasiru Dala. This initiative is part of CAIF’s flagship Closing the Loop on Textile Waste (CTL) Program.
Today, looking back at twelve months of experimentation, agility, and determination, the TRF is not just a facility—it has grown into an ‘at-scale’ model of aggregating post-consumer textile waste, has built a brand for itself, and has become a testing ground for pathways toward economic viability.
The TRF’s first year was not without challenges. Building a circular textile waste model meant navigating uncharted waters—scaling collection, navigating unpredictable markets, and evolving partnerships. Yet, resilience has been the hallmark of this journey.
Scaling Collection
Navigating Unpredictable Markets
While scaling collection channels, the TRF also simultaneously focused on creating market linkages. The TRF secured its first bulk sales of post-consumer polyester and blended textiles (~9 MT in January) to buyers from Coimbatore/Tiruppur who repurpose the waste into industrial applications such as filler materials and building materials. By February, shipments scaled to ~30 MT, reinforcing the facility’s role as a bridge between waste recovery and industrial demand. However, owing to certain externalities, the bulk orders started to dry down. The TRF remained agile, took a decision not to tamper with the collection momentum, and resorted to renting extra space to store the polyester/blended textile waste. Over time, the bulk orders started to re-emerge.
Another avenue explored is the ‘Skills-as-a-Service’ model, developed in collaboration with Sambhav Foundation. In this model, leading upcyclers source post-consumer textile waste from the TRF. The waste is then directed to Sambhav Foundation’s Livelihood Resource Centres (LRCs), where women from waste picker families, trained in tailoring and related skills, transform it into finished products based on the upcyclers’ work orders. This collaboration not only creates a new revenue stream for the TRF but also generates dignified livelihood opportunities for women from waste picker communities
The TRF explores every avenue to maximize revenue — channeling higher-quality textile waste into resale and thrift markets (B2C), while ensuring that lower-quality waste is repurposed into business solutions such as industrial wipes (B2B). This diversification has allowed the facility to adapt, improvise, and sustain operations even when bulk orders slowed down.
Evolving Partnerships
The TRF is actively building partnerships with diverse stakeholders to strengthen and diversify its collection channels. Recent collaborations include Bangalore Apartments’ Federation (BAF), which facilitated the collection of over 500 kg of high-quality, resale-worthy textile waste, and multiple educational institutions, further expanding sourcing opportunities. By engaging a wider network of partners, TRF is ensuring a steady inflow of materials across quality segments while deepening its reach in the community.
Behind the facility’s operations is a growing symbol of leadership Indumathi, a waste picker turned entrepreneur, whose journey embodies the transformative spirit of the TRF. Today, Indumathi is more than an individual; she is becoming a transformative voice for dignity, inclusion, and innovation in circular fashion. In the last one year, Indumathi represented the TRF at Bharat Tex 2025 and had the opportunity to present about her work and journey to the honourable Prime Minister of India at the event. Indumathi has also been featured in podcasts, YouTube channels, and prominent media like The Hindu.
Through her leadership, Indumathi has mentored others in identifying fabrics, sorting waste, and building market-ready products. She has also engaged with young changemakers—hosting school students at the TRF to demonstrate how waste can be turned into value-added products.
Her presence and expertise have highlighted the human dimension of the TRF story, showing that circular economy solutions are not just about technology, but also about people and communities.
Over the last few years, I have seen a massive transformation in my own life, from being a waste picker to becoming an operator and entrepreneur. I speak as a single waste picker, but there are millions of us worldwide. We are part of this world and if we do not organise ourselves into strong collectives, we cannot bring change. I dream of a better future for us. Waste pickers should no longer be invisible to society. — Indumathi, a waste picker turned operator and entrepreneur; as featured in It Matters, H&M Foundation’s newsletter
These collaborations amplify the message that Indumathi—and, by extension, the TRF—is a credible partner for brands, industries, and consumers looking to support inclusive circular solutions.
For any new model, sustainability is as much about economics as it is about setting up processes. Over the past year, the TRF has systematically tested different waters to chart its pathway to viability and sustainability.
Achieving break-even has been the north star for the TRF. The revenue being earned is being fully injected into the business as operational expenses.
A key learning has been that forward integration and venturing into the secondary material business are going to be key to maximising revenue. The TRF is piloting the production of industrial wipes from post-consumer textiles, targeting sectors like automotive, paints, and pharmaceuticals. It also showcased samples at Toyota’s Green Exhibition and explored partnerships for scaling wipes production. Parallelly, visits from global players like Decathlon and Syre highlighted the TRF’s potential to become part of the global supply chains of the textile industry. Lastly, the TRF is establishing a ‘Textile Processing Unit’ to shred polyester/blended textile waste to increase its acceptance to allied industries like the mattress-making industry and textile-board making industry.
On the B2C front, pop-up thrift stores have been rolled out, starting with the Hasiru Habba festival, where pre-loved garments found eager buyers and generated revenue.
The model was scaled up as Navajeevana Thrift Pop-Up Store at the Lalbagh Flower Festival marking the first public-facing initiative of this kind. Over 12 days, the pop-up sold 115 kg of quality pre-loved clothing diverted from landfills, generating over Rs 26,000 in revenues. On average, each piece of pre-loved clothing generated three times more revenue compared to selling it to resellers. This pilot established the fact that Thrifting is going to be an important avenue to reach the economic viability of the TRF.
These thrift experiments are helping assess demand, refine product curation, and expand the consumer-facing side of the circular model.
These steps underline that viability is not just about one revenue stream but about creating an ecosystem where multiple pathways—bulk sales, B2B products, thrift markets, upcycled goods—are integrated to stabilize and grow the model.
Over the past year, the TRF in Bengaluru has demonstrated that community-led circular models are not only possible but also powerful. Through strategic collaborations with Saamuhika Shakti partners BBC Media Action, Hasiru Dala, and Sambhav Foundation as well as with community and educational institutions, the TRF has expanded its collection channels, diversified revenue streams, and laid the foundation of a system that is resilient, adaptable, and rooted in dignity for waste pickers.
As the TRF enters its second year, the focus is on strengthening economic viability by scaling tested models, expanding partnerships with brands and industries to integrate textile recovery into mainstream supply chains, and deepening grassroots ownership so that more waste pickers see this work not merely as survival, but as opportunity. The TRF’s story so far is one of resilience, collaboration, and economic experimentation, and its future promises consolidation, scale, and systemic impact—turning Bengaluru’s textile waste challenge into a model of circular innovation for the country and beyond.
