Every day, the textile industry produces large quantities of scraps when cutting fabric. Much of this is disposed of at a cost or incinerated. Two female founders from Chemnitz want to change that. They aim to turn textile waste back into high-quality materials for new home textiles.
From waste to new material
Anne Richter and Kristin Nebauer founded the startup pre•matter. From April 2025 to March 2026, they developed new materials from textile scraps at the Chair of Textile Technologies at Chemnitz University of Technology. This was made possible by an EXIST startup grant, funded by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy and co-financed by the European Social Fund Plus.
The focus is on textile waste made of wool and other high-quality residues from textile production. The founders investigated how these residual materials can be processed so that they can be turned back into materials for new textiles. Through technical experiments, they tested how the fibers can be reused in textile manufacturing. The goal is to keep valuable raw materials in the cycle as much as possible, rather than disposing of or incinerating them.
The two textile designers are supported in this endeavor by the startup network SAXEED and the Saxon Textile Research Institute. “We’re convinced that much of what is considered waste holds untapped potential,” says Anne Richter. What is often regarded as worthless today should be the starting point for new products tomorrow.
