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From the raw materials it sources to the waste in its stores, Primark is striving to responsibly manage the natural resources it relies on.
Cardboard hangers on Primark's babywear range
Primark continues to take an increasingly circular approach to fashion – one that aims to keep products and materials in use for longer and reduces waste over time. This includes embedding circular design principles into how products are created, expanding access to reuse and repair options for customers, and strengthening the systems needed to support change at scale.
At the same time, Primark continues to incorporate recycled and more sustainably sourced materials into its clothing and strengthen their durability. While there is no single solution, these efforts reflect the business’s ambition to help give clothes a longer life. Primark is continuously reviewing and developing its approach to ensure that efforts are aligned with industry best practice.
For Primark, ‘circular by design’ means designing products that can stay in use longer, be reused and ultimately be recycled back into new garments. Primark is focused on expanding the number of products that are circular by design in certain categories, creating specific product guidelines and engaging and training colleagues and suppliers on circular design principles. In other product categories, it is focused on testing, trialling and learning to overcome significant and inherent challenges. Some types of products and materials are much harder than others to move to a circular design.
There are many challenges. For example, not all product types can be circular by design based on current recycling technologies.
Although there is no single agreed industry-level definition of what constitutes ‘recyclable’ clothing, there are several key criteria that are universally recognised as supporting improved recyclability of clothing at scale, including:
Primark has worked with the Ellen MacArthur Foundation since 2018 and sits on its Advisory Board for Fashion. In 2024, Primark joined the Foundation’s The Fashion ReModel to help the industry unlock the barriers to scaling circular business models.
As of July 2025, 5% of all of Primark’s clothing unit sales are circular by design, meeting the ‘Foundational’ criteria set out by our Circular Product Standard. Within its focus categories, 20% of all jersey and 8% of all denim clothing unit sales are now circular by design.
Denim designed to meet Primark's Circular Product Standard
Primark’s Circular Product Standard (CPS) is a framework for how it intends to design products now and in the future. The CPS was launched in 2023 after a two-year project with three partners; the non-governmental organisation WRAP (Waste and Resources Action Programme), the circularity think tank Circle Economy and the non-profit sustainability educator Sustainable Fashion Academy. The framework is built on the vision of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, for a circular economy for fashion.
The CPS sets out that a circular product must meet three fundamental criteria and be designed:
Primark’s Circular Product Standard is a starting point towards meeting its commitment that more of its clothes will be recyclable by design by 2027.
Primark has a Circular Design training programme, co-developed by Circle Economy and the Sustainable Fashion Academy. In 2024, Primark advanced its circularity training programme in collaboration with the Circular Textiles Foundation (CTF). The programme supports teams across buying, design and quality, as well as key suppliers, to apply circular design principles to more clothing categories such as knitwear and shirts.
The CTF works with product teams and suppliers to put principles like ‘designing for recyclability’ into practice with real life examples of Primark’s current products and adapt these to the various needs and nuances of each individual product category (for example Nightwear and Leisurewear). As part of this programme, Primark product colleagues also co-author and co-create specific ‘Circular Design Guidelines’ for individual product categories.
Primark supports suppliers with making the necessary changes to support its circularity aims. Support and engagement practices include briefings, training sessions and webinars on specific product guidelines, technical and design standards, and the data they need to provide for its validation processes. Primark also uses some of these sessions to discuss design techniques and strategies that support its ambitions for more recyclable and durable clothing.
As one of its main sources of non-clothing waste, product packaging is a priority focus area for Primark and the business has established a dedicated packaging team to drive innovation.
Despite increased packaging volumes due to business expansion, Primark has achieved a reduction in plastic content in 2025. These improvements reflect targeted initiatives across hangers and other types of packaging. Clothes hangers are estimated to account for around two thirds of total single-use plastic volumes used within Primark. The business is aiming to move to recycled materials for hangers over time.
While technical constraints remain, Primark continues to make measurable progress in reducing single-use plastics and eliminating unnecessary packaging through department-specific projects led by in-house packaging technologists. For example, rigid plastic packaging for bottles and tubes containing liquids and creams are necessary to ensure hygiene, usability and compliance with safety standards. Flexible plastic packaging used for items like wet wipes and face sheet masks are needed to maintain moisture and scent integrity.
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Primark identified plastic hangers as a major focus in its ambition to reduce single-use plastic in its business. Primark has transitioned most of its babywear range from single-use plastic hangers to fully recyclable, fibre-based cardboard alternatives, a project which was initiated in 2023.
Primark partnered with nominated packaging suppliers to ensure consistency, streamline sourcing, and deliver a solution that is more environmentally responsible and operationally efficient.
Key design innovations, such as colour-coded sizing printed directly on the hangers, have enhanced in-store presentation and improved the customer experience. The project also rationalised the hanger range, contributing to supply chain efficiency.
By early 2024, the new hangers were rolled out across 17 international markets. This scalable solution sets a vision for future packaging transformation for the business. The project reflects Primark’s continued focus on sustainable packaging innovation.
Primark's cardboard clothes hangers
