Call for Participants: Fashion Adaptor Programme 2025

The Fashion Adaptor Programme is part of the Transformation Area that is a catalyst for reimagining the systems that shape their cultural and creative ecosystems and their role in society. Driven by the values shared by the New European Bauhaus (NEB) of inclusion, beauty and sustainability, and inspired by the ethos of experimentation, it forges pathways to a better future by challenging traditional structures and exploring radical new possibilities.

Building on its mission the EIT Culture & Creativity Transformation Area is launching a tailored programme to support SMEs in their journey to become more sustainable and introduce efficient circular processes and products in the Fashion Industry.

By combining strategic education with a powerful digital tool, the programme enables brands to measure their impact, identify areas for improvement, and take actionable steps toward systemic change. Through this programme, EIT Culture & Creativity is actively empowering ambitious SMEs, helping them develop sustainable and circular processes, products and strategies, expand into new markets, and establish long-term partnerships with the EIT CC ecosystem.

In 2025 the Fashion Adaptor Programme offers a training of 10 weeks to SMEs to empower them in developing circular solutions. Although the programme 2025 does not offer financial support in 2025, the travel costs will be covered to attend the final event.

Scope and Objectives

• The primary objective of this call for applications is to identify and support SMEs in the Fashion Industry to participate in EIT Culture & Creativity’s Fashion Adaptor programme.
• The programme is designed to enhance the capabilities of these companies, providing them with the necessary resources, extensive mentorship, coaching, peer to peer and strategic guidance to transition towards an ambitious and successful European circular Fashion SME.
• EIT Culture & Creativity’s Fashion Adaptor programme aims to:
  • Catalyse innovation and creativity within the fashion sector, by supporting SMEs tackling key challenges such as overproduction, resource waste, and lack of transparency.
  • Accelerate market readiness of transformative fashion solutions that contribute to a more resilient, circular industry—reducing carbon emissions, minimizing material waste, and enabling digital integration.
  • Support the development of forward-thinking business models that embed circular practices, regenerative design, and emerging digital tools to strengthen the fashion ecosystem.
  • Offer tailored mentorship and expert guidance through a robust network of universities, Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), and specialised partners in sustainable fashion, design, and innovation.
  • Improve investment-readiness of participating SMEs by providing strategic preparation for fundraising, investor engagement, and long-term financial sustainability.
  • Enable balanced growth and resilience by connecting participants with industry stakeholders, supply chain allies, and funding opportunities that align with their mission and values.
  • Empower social impact and just transformation by championing fair pay, equity and dignified working conditions along the full fashion value chain.

Programme Content

• The SME Fashion Adaptor 2025 is a structured programme built around four key pillars – Capital, Quality, Globality, and Material Innovation – providing practical frameworks, case studies, and interactive exercises. It will guide fashion brands through the transition from conventional production models and design processes to circular, resource-conscious operations, combining strategic mentoring and coaching, peer to peer collaborations and use of a digital circular tool which will be a central component of the programme. A maximum number of 30 SMEs will be admitted in 2025. Through hands-on exercises, the selected participants will input their real data into the tool to visualize their impact and set measurable improvement goals. The tool will provide the SMEs with insightful benchmarks, industry comparisons, and scenario planning, helping brands understand how small shifts in production, material choices, and supply chain strategies can lead to significant change. It will enable the SMEs to:
  • Track their production footprint, measure the scale of production, material sourcing, and supply chain emissions.
  • Assess durability and repairability, logging product lifespan, customer repair behaviors, and material degradation rates.
  • Quantify circularity efforts, monitoring the percentage of recycled or upcycled materials used, and analyzing waste reduction strategies.
  • Evaluate localization potential, mapping supply chain dependencies and exploring opportunities for regional sourcing and manufacturing.
• Upon completing the Fashion Adaptor 2025, participating SMEs will develop:
  • A clear strategy for circular transformation, respecting planetary boundaries that covers: Moving from a linear to a circular design process and business model o A structured approach to minimizing waste and overproduction
  • Tangible data-driven goals for recycled and regenerative materials and supply chain resilience
  • A roadmap for transitioning toward long-lasting, repairable products
  • The ability to communicate impact transparently, building trust with consumers and regulators
  • Showcase their social impact and for just transformation along the fashion value chain.

Programme Details

• Overview
  • The Fashion Adaptor Programme 2025 will run for 10 weeks followed by a Demo Day which will be scheduled at a later stage.
    • Fashion Adapter Kick-off
      • 1-day immersive event held online includes:
        • Introduction to the EIT CC network, key stakeholders, and industry experts.
        • Responsible Mindset in the fashion sector & foundational knowledge.
        • Sessions on fashion and circularity along the value chain and sustainable transitions.
        • Introduction to the Digital Circularity Tool for Real-Time Insights
        • Structured networking with peers, experts, and mentors.
    • Weekly Online Sessions & Workshops
      • Conducted over approx. 10 weeks, the programme covers key focus areas:
        • Responsible Strategy – Reducing waste and avoiding overproduction through thoughtful design and planning.
        • Data-Driven Targets – Setting measurable goals for improving materials and supply chain sustainability.
        • Transformation Roadmap – Planning for collections that prioritize circularity, durability, repairability, long-term use, social impact and just transformation.
        • Transparent Impact Communication – Building trust through clear, honest reporting of sustainability outcomes to consumers and regulators.
        • Peer learning session through collaborative discussions.
    • In person workshop
      • Mid-term in person meeting format through clusters in partnership with the CLCs.
    • Mentor Sessions
      • Participants will benefit from 10 mentor sessions, designed to provide:
        • Expert guidance from mentors with deep industry knowledge.
        • Personalised feedback on specific challenges and opportunities.
    • Demo Day
      • A Demo Day event where participants present their strategy for circular transformation and adapted business models to experts, investors, and potential partners
• Costs coverage for the Demo Day event
  • The participants will receive a compensation package per person:
    • 150 euros of allowance per day during the weekday, aiming to ensure their participation in the Demo Day
    • The travel costs including accommodation, flights/train, public transportation etc.

Eligibility Criteria

• This call for applicants is specifically designed for ambitious SMEs operating for a minimum of three years in the fashion sector located in an EU member state or a Horizon Europe-associated country, seeking to participate in EIT Culture & Creativity’s Fashion Adaptor Programme.
• Companies meeting the following criteria are welcome to submit their application:
  • Company Status: The applicant must be an SME that is registered for a minimum of 3 years.
  • Legal Entity: The applicant must be a legally established entity in an EU Member State or in a third country associated with Horizon Europe.
  • Circular Focus: The company should be developing circular solutions that align with the challenges identified by EIT Culture & Creativity.
  • Financial and operational stage of development: Retail availability through stockists or DTC (Direct to Customer), with a sound financial plan for 2026/2027.
  • Number of participants per applicant: A maximum of 2 people per SME are invited to join the different coaching, mentoring and peer-to-peer sessions.
  • Design: The company should have Lookbooks and Line sheets

For more information, visit EC.