Finisterre partners to create stream for recycled neoprene
UK wetsuit brand Finisterre has unveiled its first product made from recycled wetsuits - a dual-purpose changing mat and bag.
Through Finisterre’s wetsuit take-back programme, over 1,000 wetsuits were collected and deconstructed by Circular Flow to recover usable materials.
Circular Flow founder Georgi Marinov operates a wetsuit and neoprene manufacturing company, Runawave Sport, and wanted to provide a solution for their recycling. He partnered The University of Chemical Technology and Metallurgy in Bulgaria, securing extra funding from the Innovation Norway fund.
Each suit is manually disassembled to remove zips and non-neoprene parts, which are sorted into appropriate recycling streams. The remaining neoprene is then processed into new material sheets.
The result is the From Wetsuits Changing Mat – a robust, flexible gear carrier crafted from 80% recycled neoprene and 20% recycled polyester. The first run of mats has already repurposed 339 wetsuits.
Once the mat reaches the end of its life, customers can return it via Finisterre’s partnership with Reskinned, ensuring it goes back to Circular Flow for further recycling – a process that can be repeated up to seven times before final repurposing into industrial materials like insulation.
Tom Kay, founder at Finisterre, said: “We are incredibly proud of all the work the crew put into making the From Wetsuits changing mat happen. We’ve always believed in protecting what we love, and this project is about taking responsibility for the products we create – and re-creating them again and again.”
After launching with Finisterre as the lead partner, Circular Flow will extend the neoprene recovery service to other retailers and brands.
