ZÜRICH, Feb. 14, 2022 /PRNewswire/
-- HUGO BOSS became a
front-runner in the race to adopt HeiQ AeoniQ yarns by putting
a US$5M equity investment in HeiQ AeoniQ LLC and additional
contingent US$4M based on performance
milestone arrangements. The LYCRA Company has also become the
exclusive distributor for HeiQ AeoniQ yarn by making a significant,
undisclosed investment and by committing to develop the technology
for broad application in textiles.
As part of its 'CLAIM 5' growth strategy, HUGO BOSS (MDAX:
BOSS) – one of the leading companies in the global premium apparel
market – executed its first sustainability-linked investment for a
US$5M shareholding in HeiQ AeoniQ
LLC, a fully owned subsidiary of London listed HeiQ Plc (LSE: HEIQ).
HUGO BOSS is the first company that
has joined the race to adopt HeiQ AeoniQ and to have secured its
stake in HeiQ AeoniQ equity. The investment is supplemented by an
additional US$4M arrangement, which
is subject to the achievement of agreed goals. The strategic
partnership will help HUGO BOSS meet
its ambitious sustainability targets which include the aim for
climate neutrality within its own area of responsibility by 2030,
and throughout the entire value chain by 2045. In addition, the
company puts particular emphasis on establishing an end-to-end
circular business model. The investment therefore perfectly fits in
with HUGO BOSS' goal to strongly
increase the proportion of more sustainable materials over the
coming years. Over the mid to long term, HUGO BOSS is focused on the potential to
materially complement and substitute the currently used polyester
and nylon fibers with the cellulosic HeiQ AeoniQ fibers.
"Our exciting partnership with HeiQ on HeiQ
AeoniQ represents yet another important milestone on our journey
towards becoming the leading premium tech-driven fashion platform
worldwide. Consistent with our bold mission statement 'We Love
Fashion, We Change Fashion', this game-changing collaboration with
HeiQ enables us to further push innovation and sustainability
across our brands' offerings, thereby driving measurable impact for
environment and society alike," says Daniel Grieder, CEO of HUGO BOSS.
Prior to HUGO BOSS' equity
investment, The LYCRA Company agreed to be the exclusive
distributor for HeiQ AeoniQ yarn through payment of a
milestone-driven technology fee and a commitment to leverage its
deep textiles knowledge and market channel access to prepare this
new technology for broad use in apparel applications.
"Sustainability continues to be a core tenet of The LYCRA
Company's strategy as we are focused on providing value-added
technologies to help our customers create and develop exceptional
fabric and garment offerings while reducing the environmental
footprint, without sacrificing comfort or performance,"
said Julien Born, CEO at The
LYCRA Company. "Through our close collaboration with HeiQ,
we are working together to fast-track the commercialization of
HeiQ's AeoniQ yarn and are excited by the impact this
ground-breaking innovation will have on the apparel
industry."
"The financial commitments by such prestigious companies as
HUGO BOSS and The LYCRA Company are
strong endorsements of HeiQ AeoniQ's game-changing potential. This
also demonstrates our ability to commercialize our HeiQ AeoniQ IP,
now valued at US$200M. HeiQ AeoniQ
yarn is a versatile alternative to polyester and nylon and its
climate positive qualities create a very exciting market
opportunity for HeiQ, as fashion brands and retailers come under
increasing pressure to do their part in decarbonizing their
products and reduce their environmental footprints," says
Carlo Centonze, co-founder &
Group CEO of HeiQ.
The primary use of the raised proceeds would be to scale up and
commercialize this disruptive technology. In this context, HeiQ
AeoniQ LLC will build its first commercial giga factory in
Central Europe by end of 2024, and
is currently scaling-up its pilot commercialization plant for fiber
production, scheduled for Q2 2022.
HeiQ AeoniQ cellulosic yarn made of climate positive raw
materials
HeiQ AeoniQ (Aeon: striving for eternal circularity) – a
continuous cellulosic filament yarn with the potential to compete
with polyester and nylon fibers – constitutes a revolutionary,
first-to-market and scalable proprietary apparel technology, which
will allow the manufacturing of a sustainable, cellulosic yarn
designed for circularity and closed-loop recycling that could
ultimately substitute oil-based fibers.
HeiQ AeoniQ yarns are made out of cellulosic biopolymers that
during growth bind carbon from the atmosphere. HeiQ AeoniQ yarn is
designed to substitute existing oil-based filament yarns, such as
environmentally persistent polyester and nylon, which constitute
over 60% of global annual textile output of 111 M metric tons. The global polyester and nylon
fiber market is worth an estimated US$135
billion USD with a CAGR of >3.5% over the next decade
(Statista). For every ton of polyester & nylon substituted by
HeiQ AeoniQ, potentially up to 5 tons of CO2 can be reduced.
When compared to conventional polyester, nylon, cotton and
conventional regenerated cellulosic products, the production of
HeiQ AeoniQ yarns has the potential to transform the environmental
impact of fiber production, as it is designed to be circular, uses
100% renewable energy for manufacturing, features a closed-loop
recycling of more than 99.5% of productive factors, uses no toxic
chemicals, and does not draw on arable land, pesticides or
fertilizers for its feedstock.
About HeiQ
Founded in 2005 as a spin-off from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich (ETH)
and listed on the London Stock Exchange Main Market (LSE: HEIQ),
HeiQ is a disruptive innovator with a strong IP portfolio. A leader
in textile and materials innovation, HeiQ has created some of the
most effective, durable and high-performance technologies on the
market today. HeiQ strives to improve the lives of billions of
people through pioneering textiles and materials innovation.
Combining three areas of expertise – scientific research, specialty
materials manufacturing and consumer ingredient branding – HeiQ is
the ideal innovation partner to create differentiating and
sustainable products and capture the added value at the point of
sale. With its 14 offices, 7 manufacturing sites and 7 R&D
hubs, HeiQ today employs 240 professionals. It has a total capacity
of 45,000 tons of specialty chemicals per year and serves over
1,000 industrial customers in over 60 countries. Today, HeiQ's
consumer goods and medical devices can be found in 56 countries.
For more information, visit www.heiq.com
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CONTACTS:
HeiQ Materials AG
Ruetistrasse 12
8952 Schlieren (Zurich)
Switzerland
www.heiq.com
info@heiq.com
+41 56 250 68 50
Media contact for interview or high-res image:
Loraine Stantzos
VP Marketing Communications
loraine.stantzos@heiq.com
+41 56 250 68 50