HeiQ names second strategic partner for AeoniQ
Apparel brand Hugo Boss has emerged as the second of two strategic investors in HeiQ AeoniQ, a subsidiary that materials innovation specialist HeiQ set up towards the end of last year.
HeiQ presented AeoniQ as a cellulosic yarn derived from renewable raw materials and attracted high levels of attention when it said the new yarn had the potential to replace polyester and nylon in the global apparel market.
It said it wanted to work on “very deep innovation partnership and go-to-market strategies” with two strategic AeoniQ partners and presented The Lycra Company as the first of the two. A little more than three months on, it has now presented Hugo Boss as the second.
Hugo Boss is making an initial investment of $5 million in equity in HeiQ AeoniQ and has said a further $4 million will follow if the partnership achieves certain performance milestones and agreed goals.
The apparel brand has said that using AeoniQ will help it meet ambitious sustainability targets that it has set itself, including its aim of achieving climate neutrality. It wants to reach this within its own area of responsibility by 2030 and throughout its entire value chain by 2045. In addition, the company aims to establish an end-to-end circular business model.
It has said specifically that, in the medium to long term, it sees the potential of using AeoniQ first to complement the polyester and nylon fibres it puts into its clothing at the moment, and then to replace them.
Chief executive of Hugo Boss, Daniel Grieder, has described the “exciting partnership” with HeiQ to help scale up the production of AeoniQ as game-changing. He said it would drive “measurable impact for the environment and society alike”.
