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Can selling deadstock solve fashion’s waste problem? It’s complicated

A new platform will make it easier for designers to buy unused fabric. But turning deadstock into a business could exacerbate overproduction issues.
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Joe Schmelzer

Deadstock has long been an ugly but open secret for fashion, with massive amounts of excess fabric sitting in factories and unsold merchandise sent to a landfill or burned. Today, it’s a trending sourcing strategy for brands focused on sustainability, and a new platform is launching that will enable brands to access it easily and efficiently.

SupplyCompass, which bills itself as a sustainable production software company, is launching a library for deadstock fabrics, in partnership with online marketplace Queen of Raw, so that brands can browse and choose deadstock options when designing a garment just as if they were going to choose organic cotton or recycled polyester.