Textile Exchange Annual Report 2025
© 2026 Textile Exchange. All rights reserved.
August 2026
Contents Setting the scene A year of strategic transition
Strategic progress in 2025 Advancing the Materials Matter Standard
3 4
7 8
Performance and trends
9
Land under certification
10
Shifting from engagement to action Performance and trends Strengthening insights and impact Performance and trends
12 14 16 16
Global fiber production trends
17
Climate+ Dashboard: Tracking progress toward 2030 goals
18
Materials Benchmark: Key findings
19
Spotlight: Strengthening integrity in Life Cycle Assessment
20
Research and reports
21
Reinforcing organizational foundations
22
Financial highlights
23
People and culture highlights
23
Looking ahead Accelerating collective action
25 26
Cover photo: Pierre Girardin
TEXTILE EXCHANGE ANNUAL REPORT 2025
2
Setting the scene
TEXTILE EXCHANGE ANNUAL REPORT 2025
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Setting the scene
A year of strategic transition 2025 marked the launch of Textile Exchange’s five-year strategy, an evolution designed to align the organization’s efforts with the scale and urgency of transformation required across the fashion, textile, and apparel industry. This shift comes at a critical moment. While the industry has made progress in recent years, it remains off track to meet the goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions from fiber and raw material production by 45% by 2030, in line with the Paris Agreement. At the same time, broader pressures, including economic uncertainty, continued growth in production volumes, and increasing regulatory complexity, are reshaping how sustainability is prioritized and delivered across the sector. Textile Exchange’s response has been to sharpen its focus: strengthening the connection between demand and supply by more directly linking brands, retailers, and producers; accelerating the adoption of preferred production systems; and addressing the economic and structural barriers that continue to limit progress at scale. This direction reflects a deliberate strategic transition that has been underway for several years, anticipating the industry’s growing need to move from ambition to implementation, measurable progress, and stronger alignment between sourcing decisions and production realities.
This strategic evolution builds on a strong foundation. Textile Exchange’s standards system now reaches more than 100,000 certified sites globally, its annual conference convenes over 1,700 stakeholders from across the supply system, and its data and reporting provide the most comprehensive view of material production and impact in the industry. Together, these capabilities position the organization to better connect standards and data-driven insights to production and sourcing decisions that drive meaningful change. Textile Exchange is evolving toward a more actionoriented, impact-driven approach that draws on its membership and engagement network to accelerate industry-wide change. By strengthening implementation, accountability, and measurable outcomes—and supporting these with robust data, research, and measurement frameworks—it aims to track progress over time and help turn commitments into action. This approach is designed to deliver both greater accountability and tangible business value. Through practical resources and insights, Textile Exchange will help companies and producers integrate preferred production principles into their strategies, decision-making, and operations. In doing so, it will support more resilient supply systems and enable producers to transition over the long term, with their efforts increasingly recognized and rewarded.
Photographer: Pierre Girardin
TEXTILE EXCHANGE ANNUAL REPORT 2025
4
Setting the scene
As Claire Bergkamp, CEO of Textile Exchange, noted:
This next phase of the strategy is anchored in three core pillars:
“Now is the moment to be more deliberate about where we put our energy. We are shifting from building the system to using it, with a stronger focus on connecting demand with what is happening on the ground.
Standards System: Transitioning to the Materials Matter system, connecting certification to measurable outcomes and enabling a more integrated, scalable approach to preferred production systems. Engagement and Partnership: Evolving toward a more action-oriented membership model that supports alignment, accountability, and collective progress across the industry.
That means bringing brands and producers into closer alignment, and making sure the realities of production are shaping the decisions we make as an industry. The foundations are there. The work now is to use them well, and to stay focused on the changes that will actually move practice at scale.”
Climate and Nature Impact: Strengthening data, research, and guidance to accelerate outcomes for climate, nature, people, and animals.
Photographer: Luisa Bravo
TEXTILE EXCHANGE ANNUAL REPORT 2025
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Setting the scene
TEXTILE EXCHANGE ANNUAL REPORT 2025
Photographer: Luisa Bravo
6
Strategic progress in 2025
TEXTILE EXCHANGE ANNUAL REPORT 2025
7
Strategic progress in 2025
Advancing the Materials Matter Standard The publication of a new standard was an important milestone in 2025 and marked the beginning of a fundamental transition—from a portfolio of individual standards to an integrated system designed to support the adoption of preferred production systems at scale. This milestone builds on more than two decades of standards development and a mature global system that now spans over 100,000 certified sites. The Materials Matter Standard was developed through a multi-year process of consultation, piloting, and refinement, alongside the continued operation and growth of the existing standards system. This ensured continuity for certified organizations while enabling a structured transition toward a more integrated future. The Materials Matter Standard represents an important evolution in how certification can support industry transformation. Moving beyond material-specific approaches, it introduces a holistic, science-aligned framework for best practices in raw material production and primary processing. In doing so, it seeks to strengthen the connection between on-the-ground practices and outcomes across climate, nature, people, and animals, while recognizing that outcomes depend on implementation and context. Its development was grounded in close collaboration with stakeholders across the supply system, including producers, brands, retailers, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and technical experts—ensuring both scientific rigor and practical applicability.
TEXTILE EXCHANGE ANNUAL REPORT 2025
Alongside the publication of the standard, Textile Exchange strengthened the systems required to support implementation at scale. Greater coordination between standards, supply system tracking, and data functions has improved visibility across certification processes and strengthened understanding of system interdependencies, reflecting a more integrated approach to how the system operates in practice, from farm or production site to final product. Digital infrastructure also advanced significantly. The launch of a certification body interface improved data exchange across the assurance ecosystem, while the introduction of the Material Ledger established a centralized approach to reconciling certified volumes at the organizational level—laying the groundwork for a more scalable and transparent certification system. Updates to the Reclaimed Materials Declaration Form (RMDF) reinforced Textile Exchange’s broader efforts to improve transparency across recycled material supply systems. This enhancement improves how recycled material inputs are classified and tracked—including distinguishing between textile-based feedstocks and other recycled sources—enabling greater transparency on feedstock origins and supporting the transition to more interoperable, system-wide traceability under the Materials Matter Standard.
Ashley Gill, Chief Standards and Strategy Officer, reinforced the importance of a systems-level approach:
“We’re focused on maximizing the impact of our role in driving systems change. This matters because the transformation we want to see—toward climate resilience, thriving biodiversity, and a less extractive approach to producing and sourcing materials—depends on recognizing how much these issues are interconnected. None can be addressed in isolation. We have a responsibility to steer both our efforts and those of the industry toward what we know will make a difference: transforming the way we produce and use materials and creating the enabling conditions that make that transformation possible.”
Together, these developments reflect a broader shift toward a more integrated standards system that strengthens alignment across the entire supply system and accelerates the adoption of preferred production systems.
8
Strategic progress in 2025
Performance and trends • Certification volumes continued to grow across Textile Exchange standards in 2025, reflecting sustained industry commitment. • Trends in both natural and recycled material systems highlight continued progress, alongside persistent challenges such as limited textileto-textile recycling and the need for improved traceability across supply systems. Disclaimer: This is the current best estimate and may be updated as new information becomes available.
60,000
50,000
40,000
Key takeaway A robust and credible foundation is now in place. As the industry transitions to the Materials Matter Standard, future progress will depend on: ensuring that certification continues to deliver value, improving supply system tracking, and enabling clear, scalable pathways for adoption.
30,000
20,000
10,000
0
2021
TEXTILE EXCHANGE ANNUAL REPORT 2025
2022
2023
2024
2025
9
Strategic progress in 2025
Land under certification In addition to tracking the number of sites certified to its standards, Textile Exchange also monitors a broader set of indicators. For the animal fiber standards, this includes the amount of land under certification that is used to produce certified material. For the Responsible Wool Standard, there are 30,000,000 ha under certification—double the area certified in 2020.
Land under RWS certification (ha) by key region 35,000,000
30,000,000
25,000,000
20,000,000
15,000,000
10,000,000
5,000,000
0
2017
2018
2019
2020
America
TEXTILE EXCHANGE ANNUAL REPORT 2025
2021
Africa
2022
2023
2024
2025
Oceania
10
Strategic progress in 2025
TEXTILE EXCHANGE ANNUAL REPORT 2025
11
Strategic progress in 2025
Shifting from engagement to action In 2025, Textile Exchange redesigned its membership structure to better support organizations as they move from engagement to action. This shift reflects a broader recognition that while engagement across the sector remains strong, the next phase of industry transition requires clearer pathways for implementation, stronger alignment around progress measurement, and a more robust framework for accountability and collective action. Following extensive consultation across its global community, Textile Exchange introduced a new membership structure designed to better support and guide organizations across the value chain, enabling more strategic opportunities for engagement. The updated membership structure introduces two distinct cohorts: • The Community Cohort, designed for organizations that engage with Textile Exchange through knowledgesharing, learning, and broader system alignment. • The Action Cohort, designed for brands, retailers, and raw material producers actively engaged in sourcing and production. Through a phased approach, members gain the tools, support, and guidance needed to track progress, strengthen credibility, and drive meaningful change.
TEXTILE EXCHANGE ANNUAL REPORT 2025
For Action Cohort members, this represents a clearer journey of engagement: 1. Reporting on progress to strengthen transparency, build shared understanding, and track progress over time. 2. Verified practice, increasing the proportion of materials sourced from certified and independently verified production systems. 3. Leading, working with peers to collectively address systemic barriers and to invest in scaling solutions that cannot be achieved individually. This approach builds on and strengthens existing reporting systems, including the annual Textile Exchange Materials Benchmark, and introduces a more consistent structure for aligning participation with measurable outcomes. It also reflects a broader shift toward integrating accountability and comparability into how industry progress is defined and supported while more directly connecting engagement with supply and demand. Textile Exchange also began formalizing its approach to collective action by developing early frameworks to address systemic barriers, such as financing constraints, traceability challenges, and supply system fragmentation. While still at an early stage, this work was designed to lay the foundation for more structured, cross-industry collaboration. It will help inform the collective action opportunities that will be embedded in the updated membership model, enabling greater progress at scale.
What did attendees gain from the 2025 Textile Exchange Conference A better understanding of key industry challenges and opportunities
79% New contacts and/or networking opportunities
78% 12
Strategic progress in 2025
2025 Textile Exchange Conference attendance The organization also continued to convene the industry through a global program of events and initiatives. The 2025 Textile Exchange Conference brought together more than 1,700 stakeholders from across the supply system, including brands, retailers, suppliers, recyclers, farmers, NGOs, and academics. Alongside plenaries and breakout sessions, the conference increasingly focused on practical implementation, shared learning, and collective problem-solving.
1,481
83%
17%
During London Climate Week, Textile Exchange expanded its engagement by convening stakeholders across sectors to foster dialogue and collaboration toward more sustainable and resilient fiber and material production systems. Textile Exchange also co-hosted the Climate and Nature Studio during Climate Week NYC alongside a coalition of leading fashion, textile, and apparel sustainability organizations. This created a dedicated forum for industry leaders, brands, policymakers, academics, and civil society to discuss collective action opportunities.
(78% in 2024)
(22% in 2024)
in person and
301
online
In-person
Online
Attendee organization type
28%
This was complemented by regional summits, targeted policy engagement—including Textile Exchange’s first policy-focused member meeting in Brussels—and technical training for certification bodies. Across all convenings, there was a clear emphasis on moving from dialogue to action, and from individual initiatives to coordinated system change.
30% 24% 19%
Brand and retailer
Supplier and manufacturer
NGO and non-profit
Other*
* Includes consultants, certification bodies, farmers, academia, and government
TEXTILE EXCHANGE ANNUAL REPORT 2025
13
Strategic progress in 2025
Performance and trends
Sarah Needham, Chief Engagement and Partnerships Officer, said:
• During the transition to the new membership structure, Textile Exchange maintained strong engagement across advisory groups, consultations, and working sessions, reflecting continued demand for alignment, guidance, and collaboration.
“Membership has always been central to Textile Exchange’s work and impact. We have built a global community of over 700 members spanning the tiers of the fashion, textile, and apparel industry, and supported them with resources, data, connection, events, and expertise. But as the gap between ambition and reality has widened, it has become clear that guidance alone is no longer enough.
• The scale and diversity of participation in Textile Exchange’s events reinforced its role as a central platform for industry alignment and collective action.
Textile Exchange’s evolved membership structure empowers organizations to collectively go further, no matter where they are on their sustainability journey. The shift to a more action-oriented membership structure reflects the need for deeper engagement and greater accountability. We want to support members to contribute to coordinated system change by committing to tangible steps— from reporting their progress to sourcing or producing through systems that verify practices—that will deliver beneficial outcomes for climate, nature, people, and animals.
Key takeaway Textile Exchange has introduced a more action-oriented membership structure, supporting the industry to move from intention to implementation through alignment, accountability, and collective action.
Total members year-on-year 800 700
The two-cohort structure reflects the distinct needs and goals of different types of organizations working within the industry, while creating clear, structured pathways for collaboration.”
600 500 400 300 200 100 0
2005
2010
2015
2020
2025
Photographer: Diana Tinoco
TEXTILE EXCHANGE ANNUAL REPORT 2025
14
Strategic progress in 2025
TEXTILE EXCHANGE ANNUAL REPORT 2025
Photographer: Luisa Bravo
15
Strategic progress in 2025
Strengthening insights and impact In 2025, Textile Exchange continued to strengthen its role as a leading source of credible data, insights, and guidance, helping the industry better understand its impacts and accelerate progress toward its climate and nature goals. Through its core reporting systems, including the Materials Market Report, Materials Benchmark, and Climate+ Dashboard, the organization provides a comprehensive view of both industry-wide trends and the performance of companies actively engaging with Textile Exchange. The latest data points to an increasing divergence. At an industry level, global fiber production continues to rise, with associated greenhouse gas emissions increasing as a result. This trajectory remains misaligned with climate and nature goals. In contrast, companies participating in Textile Exchange’s annual Materials Benchmark survey are demonstrating measurable progress. This includes increased uptake of certified and preferred materials, reduced reliance on virgin fossil-based inputs, and stronger adoption of climate targets. This distinction is important. It shows that progress is possible where there is focus, accountability, and engagement, providing a clear foundation to build from in the years ahead. Textile Exchange also strengthened the data that brands, producers, and other stakeholders rely on to inform sourcing and investment decisions by advancing a series of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) studies. These studies address critical data gaps, improve understanding of impacts, and support collective action across key materials.
TEXTILE EXCHANGE ANNUAL REPORT 2025
Alongside this, the organization published guidance on the responsible use of LCA data, promoting greater transparency, methodological consistency, and more responsible application, while encouraging a broader LCA+ approach that incorporates biodiversity, soil health, animal welfare, and social considerations. Additional tools—including updated Material Summaries, guidance on credible regenerative agriculture claims, and refinements to the Regenerative Agriculture Outcome Framework—further support organizations in translating data into informed sourcing decisions and credible communication.
Performance and trends • Participation in Textile Exchange’s benchmarking and reporting frameworks reached record levels, reflecting growing industry commitment to transparency and accountability. • At the same time, industry-wide data continues to show a widening gap between current progress and 2030 climate targets, reinforcing the need to accelerate adoption of preferred production systems and scale collective action.
Beth Jensen, Chief Impact Officer, said:
“From an impact perspective, 2025 marked an important year for Textile Exchange and the industry in the run-up to 2030— a moment to reflect on the formational years of target-setting and project piloting, and set a course of urgent, scaled action over the next five years and beyond. Textile Exchange’s reports, research, data, and guidance products are designed to support both producers and brands in the acceleration of the transition to preferred production systems that achieve beneficial outcomes for climate, nature, people, and animals while also enabling business and supply system resilience.”
Key takeaway Textile Exchange is strengthening its ability to inform and guide industry action through more robust reporting, practical guidance, and improved impact data. This supports progress-tracking and decision making across the supply system.
16
Strategic progress in 2025
Global fiber production trends
Global fiber production trends (million tonnes)
Textile Exchange’s Materials Market Report continues to serve as a leading source of data on global fiber and material production, tracking volumes across apparel, home textiles, footwear, and other applications over the past decade.
160
The latest findings highlight both the scale of the industry and the urgent need to accelerate its transformation. In 2024, global fiber production reached a record 132 million tonnes, an increase of approximately 34 million tonnes since 2015. This growth now equates to around four tonnes of fiber being produced every second.
135
109
98
This expansion continues to be driven largely by fossil fuel-based synthetics. Polyester remains the most widely produced fiber, accounting for 59% of total global output, of which 88% is derived from virgin fossil sources. Where progress is being made, it is being outpaced by overall growth. Recycled polyester volumes increased in 2024, but its overall market share declined slightly due to the faster rise in virgin fossil-based polyester production. Today, recycled polyester is still predominantly sourced from plastic bottles rather than textile waste.
79 72
58 49
47
1985
1990
50
38 34
For natural fibers, cotton remains the second most widely produced fiber globally, although its market share declined slightly to 19%. Across all material types, circularity remains limited. Textile-to-textile recycling continues to account for less than 1% of global fiber production, underscoring the scale of change required to transition toward more circular systems.
1975
1980
Silk
1995
Animal, other
2000 Wool
Synthetics, other
2005
2010
Plant-based, other Polyamide (Nylon)
2015 Cotton
2020
2025
2030
MMCF
Polyester
Source: Textile Exchange based on data from CIRFS, FAO, ICAC, IVC, IWTO, Maia Research, and its own modeling
TEXTILE EXCHANGE ANNUAL REPORT 2025
17
Strategic progress in 2025
Climate+ Dashboard: Tracking progress toward 2030 goals Textile Exchange’s Climate+ Dashboard provides a datadriven view of industry progress toward its target of reducing greenhouse gas (GHGs) emissions from raw material production by 45% by 2030, compared to a 2019 baseline, in line with the Paris Agreement. The latest data highlights the growing gap between ambition and the current trajectory. Greenhouse gas emissions associated with material production for the apparel, home textiles, and footwear sector increased by approximately 6% between 2023 and 2024 and are now 20% higher than the 2019 baseline. This trend is largely driven by the continued growth in polyester production. Polyester remains the largest contributor to emissions, accounting for approximately 43% of the total impact related to material production, due to the high volumes produced. These findings reinforce the urgency of accelerating the transition to preferred production systems for raw materials and fibers, and scaling solutions that can deliver measurable emissions reductions across the sector.
The overall GHG impact of the apparel, home textile, and footwear sector has increased year over year since the pandemic 400 350
~310 MT CO2e
~305 MT CO2e
~325 MT CO2e
~315 MT CO2e
GHG impact of the apparel, home textiles and footwear sector by fiber and material type
~370 MT CO2e
~350 MT CO2e
~370 MT CO2e
400 350
300
300
250
250
Polyester
32 0
Cotton
7 38
Leather
39
Wool
34
200 150
MMCF
16
200 Slight decrease as a result of the pandemic
Nylon
44
Increase as markets recover from the pandemic
Growth in the volume and impact of materials is in line or above business-as-usual levels
150
100
100
50
50
Rubber Down
156
2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
Other 2024
2024
Percentage share of impact by fiber and material type 400 350
~310 MT CO2e
~325 MT CO2e
~315 MT CO2e
~305 MT CO2e
32
250
30
29
34
30
34
33
33
15
15
16
46
47
44
114
112
119
125
2019
2020
2021
2022
200 150
30
31 6
6 32 35
32 32 7
37 35 34 16
16 44
Cotton
39
Leather
34 16 44
45
Wool MMCF Nylon Rubber
100 50
Polyester
38
36
33
34
7 7
31
300
7
~370 MT CO2e
~350 MT CO2e
142
156
Down Other
TEXTILE EXCHANGE ANNUAL REPORT 2025
2023
2024
18
Strategic progress in 2025
Overall raw material usage by the reporting companies increased slightly: Materials Benchmark: Key findings The Materials Benchmark tracks the raw materials and fibers sourced by brands and retailers annually, as well as how they are addressing impacts such as climate, nature, and circularity.
2.2
2.3
million tonnes in 2023
million tonnes in 2024
Key findings from 2024 include: • A record number of brands and retailers are reporting to Textile Exchange, up from 57 when it started in 2015 to 423 in 2025. Among the subsets of brands that reported data on specific fibers and materials for both 2023 and 2024:
However, the use of virgin fossil-based synthetic fibers decreased among reporting brands:
• The share of raw materials certified under sustainability programs increased from 58% in 2023 to 67% in 2024. • Virgin fossil-based polyester use decreased from 637,388 tonnes in 2023 to 560,029 tonnes in 2024. • The share of brands that implemented measures to reduce impacts on climate and nature during raw materials production increased from 77% in 2023 to 81% in 2024.
Polyamide
2024
167,867 tonnes Polyester
Polyamide
560,029 tonnes
165,412 tonnes
2023 Polyester
637,388 tonnes
• The percentage of brands with formal climate targets rose from 85% in 2023 to 88% in 2024. These trends demonstrate growing accountability and measurable progress within Textile Exchange’s reporting community.
0
50k
100k
150k
200k
250k
300k
550k
600k 650k
Tonnes The usage of virgin fossil-based polyamide (nylon) reported by the brands increased slightly from 165,412 tonnes in 2023 to 167,867 tonnes in 2024.
TEXTILE EXCHANGE ANNUAL REPORT 2025
350k 400k 450k 500k
The usage of virgin fossil-based polyester shared by the reporting brands decreased from 637,388 tonnes in 2023 to 560,029 tonnes in 2024 in contrast to the increase seen in its overall production.
19
Strategic progress in 2025
Spotlight: Strengthening integrity in Life Cycle Assessment
The paper also sets out key recommendations to strengthen integrity across the industry, including:
Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is widely used across the textile industry to measure the environmental impact of products—from raw material production through manufacturing, transportation, and end-of-life. As its use has grown, so too has the need for greater consistency, transparency, and responsible application.
• Ensuring full transparency around assumptions, methodologies, limitations, and underlying datasets.
In 2025, Textile Exchange published Ensuring Integrity in the Use of Life Cycle Assessment Data, providing practical guidance on how LCA data should be used and, importantly, how it should not be used. The paper is designed to support brands and other stakeholders who rely on LCA for impact modeling, decision-making, and progress tracking. A central message of the guidance is that a holistic view of impact requires moving beyond conventional LCA boundaries. Textile Exchange advocates for an LCA+ approach that expands the lens to include broader impact areas such as biodiversity, soil health, animal welfare, and livelihoods. This supports a more holistic understanding of production systems.
• Avoiding inappropriate comparisons between materials, geographies, studies, or databases where methodologies differ. • Using LCA data only where there is a clear understanding of its appropriate use and limitations. Alongside these recommendations, the guidance provides a practical foundation for understanding LCA, including its applications, challenges, and limitations within the textile sector. By promoting more responsible and consistent use of LCA data, Textile Exchange is helping to build a stronger, more credible foundation for understanding and measuring impacts, supporting better decision-making and more effective progress toward climate and nature goals.
Photographer: Johnny Man
TEXTILE EXCHANGE ANNUAL REPORT 2025
20
Strategic progress in 2025
Research and reports Updated Regenerative Outcome Framework
Material Summaries
This updated framework aims to help the fashion, textile, and apparel industry align on outcomes for assessing the holistic impacts of regenerative agriculture. It is designed to respect the inherent place-based nature of these systems while shifting the industry’s focus from avoiding negative outcomes to achieving measurable, positive ones.
The refreshed series of Material Summaries offer a streamlined look at key characteristics and sustainability considerations of bovine leather, cotton, manmade cellulosic fibers, nylon, polyester, and wool. The summaries have been redesigned to improve how information is organized and presented, so users can quickly examine key aspects of the different fibers and materials. They are available to Textile Exchange members through its online community, The Hub.
A Guide to Credible Regenerative Agriculture Claims This guide is designed to help brands, producers, and other stakeholders make effective and credible claims about their work supporting regenerative agriculture. It includes sections on the different types of regenerative agriculture claims, how they should be managed and reported, and how to avoid issues such as greenwashing and greenhushing. Materials Market Report This comprehensive, annual publication has been the leading source of data and insights into global fiber and raw material production for the last decade. It helps inform the textile industry’s efforts to reduce emissions associated with raw material production in line with a 1.5°C temperature rise pathway. Guidance on Science-Based Targets for Nature This guide helps translate the science-based targets for nature (SBTN) methods, supporting the uptake of nature-related targets. It’s designed to help brands and retailers implement primarily Step 3 of the SBTN framework, relating to raw material production.
TEXTILE EXCHANGE ANNUAL REPORT 2025
Materials Benchmark Insights and Trends This report presents aggregated data and trends from brands and retailers participating in the Materials Benchmark, Textile Exchange’s annual reporting system. The benchmark collects data on the raw materials companies use, along with key information on sourcing practices. It tracks the uptake of fibers and raw materials from recognized programs, as well as how companies are addressing areas like circularity, biodiversity, land, freshwater, and forests. Ensuring Integrity in the Use of LCA Data This position paper outlines best practice for the responsible use of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) data in the fashion, textile, and apparel industry. It provides guidance on how to use LCA data, and—equally importantly—how it should not be used. It is intended for anyone looking to develop a greater understanding of the use of LCA studies and LCA data in the textile industry, particularly for brands using LCA data directly or those who rely on it for their impact modeling or progress tracking.
21
Strategic progress in 2025
Reinforcing organizational foundations To increase its impact, Textile Exchange also strengthened its own foundations. Delivering greater value to the industry required more than new standards and partnerships. It also required the people, systems, governance, and capabilities needed to support implementation at scale.
Performance and trends
During 2025, the organization finalized its five-year strategy, including a Theory of Change and a Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) framework to improve how progress and impact are measured over time. It also continued to invest in its operational capabilities, governance, technology, and delivery functions, ensuring the organization is better equipped to coordinate increasingly interconnected work across standards, engagement, climate and nature impact, and operations.
• As the MEL framework matures, it will enable more consistent integration of quantitative performance data into future reporting, strengthening the link between strategy, delivery, and impact.
These investments were made with a clear purpose: to strengthen Textile Exchange’s ability to deliver its strategy, respond to a rapidly evolving industry landscape, and provide greater value to stakeholders as the organization shifts from building systems to supporting their implementation.
• Organizational systems are now more structured and integrated, providing greater visibility on performance, improved coordination across teams, and a stronger foundation for managing growth.
Key takeaway Textile Exchange is operationally stronger and better positioned to deliver its strategy— providing the systems, governance, and capacity needed to scale impact in the years ahead.
Photographer: Abhishek Khedekar
TEXTILE EXCHANGE ANNUAL REPORT 2025
22
Strategic progress in 2025
Team global coverage
Financial highlights In 2025, Textile Exchange maintained a strong financial position while continuing to invest in the capabilities needed to deliver its five-year strategy. Total revenue across all programs was USD 30.6 million, compared with USD 33.5 million in 2024. Operating expenses were USD 30.5 million, with non-operating income of USD 0.5 million, resulting in an increase in net assets of USD 0.6 million. As in previous years, Textile Exchange continues to invest in infrastructure to catch up to its scale. At the same time, its balance sheet continues to be asset-heavy and “liability-light”. These savings will support future investment needs related to the continued growth of the organization, as well as help hedge inflation and any negative macroeconomic trends that may arise in the coming years.
People and culture highlights Textile Exchange continued to strengthen its global team in 2025, increasing headcount from 138 to 159 employees across 24 countries. This growth reflects continued investment in the expertise and regional presence needed to support implementation of the organization’s strategy and better serve a diverse global community.
Team distribution by country 70 60
37%
50 40 20% 30
3%
2%
2%
2%
2%
1%
1%
1%
<1%
<1%
<1%
<1%
<1%
<1%
<1%
<1%
<1%
<1%
Sweden
Guatemala
Netherlands
South Africa
Brazil
China
Costa Rica
Denmark
Hong Kong
Japan
Pakistan
Philippines
Portugal
Türkiye
5%
Peru
6%
France
6%
Spain
6%
10
Malaysia
20
TEXTILE EXCHANGE ANNUAL REPORT 2025
India
Italy
Germany
Canada
UK
USA
0
23
Strategic progress in 2025
TEXTILE EXCHANGE ANNUAL REPORT 2025
Photographer: Alejandra Orosco
24
Looking ahead
TEXTILE EXCHANGE ANNUAL REPORT 2025
25
Looking ahead
Accelerating collective action The progress made in 2025 marks an important step in Textile Exchange’s transition from building the foundations of change to enabling its delivery at scale. Across standards, engagement, climate and nature impact, and organizational systems, the organization is increasingly positioned to support the industry in moving from ambition to measurable impact. At the same time, the data makes clear that the pace of change must accelerate significantly to meet climate and nature goals. The coming years will require deeper alignment across the supply system, improved incentives to support adoption, and greater investment in the systems and partnerships needed to enable transformation, particularly at the raw material level. This means strengthening the connection between sourcing decisions and production realities, ensuring that demand creates meaningful incentives for producers to adopt preferred production systems. Textile Exchange’s role within this landscape continues to evolve. As a standards owner, convener, and provider of data and guidance, the organization is uniquely positioned to help align stakeholders around a shared direction of travel, while connecting standards, traceability, and data to enable more coordinated and practical implementation across supply systems.
Looking ahead, three priorities will shape this next phase of work: • Scaling adoption of preferred production systems through the implementation of the Materials Matter Standard, strengthened certification pathways, and deeper partnerships with supply system actors to accelerate uptake. • Driving measurable progress by embedding robust reporting, target-setting, and verification into industry practice. • Enabling collective action to overcome barriers that no single organization can solve alone, including financing, traceability, and supply system coordination. Central to this effort is the recognition that transformation requires coordinated action across brands, producers, suppliers, policymakers, and financial institutions. This needs to be supported by credible systems, shared data, and aligned incentives. As the industry navigates a period of increasing complexity and constraint, the need for clarity, collaboration, and accountability has never been greater—not only to achieve beneficial outcomes, but also to strengthen business and supply system resilience. Textile Exchange remains committed to working with its global community to accelerate this transition, supporting an industry that not only reduces its impact but actively contributes to a world where materials have a lasting value, leading to thriving landscapes and communities. The next five years will not be defined by what the industry knows, but by what it chooses to implement.
Photographer: Alejandra Orosco
TEXTILE EXCHANGE ANNUAL REPORT 2025
26