Inside the ISPO Textrends Jury Meeting for Spring/Summer 2027: Trends, Talks & Takeaways

• Voices from the jury – what the experts say about the season
• Communication & education – where the industry still has room to grow
• Caution on “biodegradable” – misunderstandings around a buzzword
• Synthetics vs. Natural Fibers – misleading comparisons and real facts
• The call to action continues – why circularity isn’t a walk in the park

The ISPO Textrends jury met once again to judge and deliberate the applications submitted for Spring/Summer 2027. With much debate, shared knowledge, and new implications for the industry, the outcome was unanimous in selecting the Best Product and TOP 10 products in six different categories.

Key trends for the season were the emphasis on cool touch, UV+, wellbeing, lightweight performance, and a new level of technicity. Spring/Summer is never the most creative of seasons due to companies prioritizing the winter season, where more high level functions are required. However, this season’s meeting didn’t disappoint, as many applications stood out from the rest. 

The jury meeting, as always, was a combination of professional collaboration, camaraderie, listening and learning, and rapt discussion with laughter; everyone involved loves this industry and only wants the best for it. With the products selected, the winners will be announced in May. In this session, the jury sat to discuss improving the industry and taking it to the next level.

What makes the jury unique is the level of expertise from all sectors of the textile industry. We all take an honorary role in participating in the jury meeting, and with a combined average year of experience of 200 plus! They won't mind me sharing that. We all have something to offer to guide the textile industry in improving.

More Information on the ISPO Textrends Jury

Whilst we discussed the key trends and developments during the blind judging, which was conducted on individual iPads to clarify the results, it was the first time we all decided to sit down and discuss earnestly problems occurring in the textile industry and how we could overcome them. 

The initial problem of the lack of communication and understanding between the textile producers and the brand developers and designers kicked off the roundtable discussion. 

"What designers today are doing is a lack of general education; often, buyers don't know the difference between polyester and polyamide. They don't know. It's always just: what's the price? And that's coming back to the synthetic fibers. Everything is about price. You can talk about natural fibers until the cows come home," said David Shah.

It was clear at this jury meeting that applications aren't shouting out sustainability claims. This could be down to sustainability running throughout their production line or due to the new legislation coming through.

"Well, now it's the green claims under the EU Green Deal," explained Kutay Saritosun, director of brand services at bluesign. "The green claims are coming. You can't say eco-friendly. So, in certain words, you won't be able to use it. A third-party organization must back up any claim you make on the garment. You have to prove it. And then there are certain things you can't use," he said. 

The vision of the EU Green Deal ESPR is that by 2030, all textile products in the European market must be durable, repairable, recyclable, and produced respecting social rights and the environment alongside other requirements.

"The whole problem with sustainability is that there is too much talk and not enough worthy action. We need laws that are setting, hopefully, in a good way, because how to define by law sustainable, you know, I want to see. We must close the triangle. Industry, consumer, and regulation. Without regulation, we don't react," said Shah.

Biodegradable characteristics are becoming a popular self-explanatory term for both the industry and the consumer, but are they being interpreted correctly? 

"Take care about biodegradable. Biodegradable is not a performance. We don't want these kinds of materials. We want materials to be circular," said Braz Costa. "Let's clarify. What is the importance of biodegradability? Just for two things. The first one is for technical textiles applied in agriculture or fishing. Second, to ensure that microplastics or microparticles generated by the garment will not be a problem in the ocean," he said.

Sophie Bramel was keen to illustrate that the designers love the biodegradability story. "Everyone loves it. This is a bad story. We should be focusing on responsible end-of-life."

The jury agreed that the language has changed regarding sustainability, particularly biodegradable terms. 

Discussing the outcome of recent reports alleging that synthetic fibers are more sustainable than natural fibers because they use less water, less energy, fewer chemicals, and no potential arable land, the jury was unanimous in the misleading interpretation.

The reports integrate into the LCA land use for natural fibers, and fossil carbon extraction is not included in synthetic LCAs, so they're not comparable. If you want to integrate fossil fuel extraction in polyester, polyamide, and all the PUs we use, etc., then allocate them. One kilo of crude oil becomes half the medicine in the world, half the plastics, and three-quarters of the textiles. How do you allocate on each kilogram, how much is going to become your aspirin and how much is going to become your polyester running shorts? So they will never have that data.

The overall outcome of the meeting is that we as an industry should be moving towards circularity, but it isn't that easy. We are moving in the right direction, but much work still needs to be done. 

"There are many moving parts for circularity, so many components, and the infrastructure is not happening yet," Kutay Saritosun of bluesign.

Another key aspect is that the textile mills applying for ISPO Textrends are adapting to the new rules and regulations more than they did eight or ten years ago. It is clear that there is a harmonious approach globally in terms of technology, greater transparency, third-party certification, and cleaner textile manufacturing.

As far as sustainability goes, how do we qualify it? How long is a piece of string? Many textile mills opt for cleaner textile processing methods, recyclability, zero waste, renewable energy, and more. There is no clear winner.

While around the table, Braz Costa asked ChatGPT what the equivalent environmental impact of a cotton T-shirt was- the answer was 1,000 text messages. It makes you think. I asked the same question: A single cotton T-shirt generates about 4-7 kg of CO₂ emissions, equivalent to driving 10-20 miles. It isn't just the textile industry that is solely responsible. All sectors and consumers, too, have to take some responsibility. This has to improve.

Taking the opportunity to ask the jury one final question, "In an ideal world, we would want the consumers to pay more so that we can create better products." The reply came quickly, 'Are you living in cloud cuckoo land?' asked David Shah, with the rest of the jury members in hoots of laughter.  Here's hoping they may be wrong on that front!

Now is the time for the industry to unite and communicate clearly with consumers, many of whom regard brands viewing them as paychecks. Respect is required for the environment and human-to-human contact in engaging with consumers and giving them the confidence to buy better, more durable goods with responsible end-of-life.