COM/VERGE - The Business & Art of Fashion Upcycling

COM/VERGE by RIVED
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Fashion upcycling is a global social, economic and cultural force. This podcast is made for and with the people driving it forward. Mariángeles Aguirre, founder of tHERAPY Recycle and Exorcise, speaks with upcycling entrepreneurs, designers and creators about their journeys, decisions, business models and challenges. Together with RIVED co-founder and co-host AnaMaria Quijano and expert guests, we explore strategy, operations, regulation, technology and culture. Brought to you by RIVED — Empowering upcyclers. Contact us: comverge@rived.community

Episodes

  1. 5d ago

    EP05 | How Sustainable is Fashion Upcycling - with Dr. Luca Coscieme

    Culture & Society | Upcycling carries a quiet assumption: that using what already exists is automatically "sustainable by design." In this episode, Angie sits down with Dr. Luca Coscieme, Programme Lead for Sustainable Lifestyles at the Hot or Cool Institute, to see what the actual research says — also in light of the EU's incoming Green Claims Directive. They talk about what "impact" really means beyond a single number or technical jargon — its systemic nature, the role advertising and social norms play, the myth of "consumer choice," and what a fair, honest way to measure an upcycler's own impact could actually look like. Less compliance checklist. More: are we actually moving in the direction we meant to? TOPICS DISCUSSED 01:54 — The intro: from measuring entire economies to measuring what's in someone's closet 04:23 – What "impact" actually means today, and why sustainability can't be reduced to one number 10:50 – The uncomfortable data on who really overconsumes, and why fast fashion "democratizing" style doesn't hold up 15:05 — The question every upcycler should ask is not "is upcycling good," 16:52 – Measuring impact from an upcycler´s perspective 19:05 – Wellbeing as the missing piece 27:06 — The EU's incoming greenwashing directive, and what it signals for small upcycling businesses 29:50 — Closing: What would you upcycle? Hot or Cool - Research Fashion Publications  https://hotorcool.org/publications?categories%5B%5D=fashion Report: Towards a Circular Wellbeing Economy: An Integrative Framework for Europe https://hotorcool.org/publications/towards-a-circular-wellbeing-economy-an-integrative-framework-for-europe/ Hosted by: Angie Aguirre, Founder, tHERAPY Recycle & Exorcise, BerlinGuest: Dr. Luca Coscieme, Programme Lead for Sustainable Lifestyles, Hot or Cool InstituteProduced by: RIVED — Empowering Upcyclers

  2. Aug 13

    EP04 | Regulation Gold Rush. What to Know - with Katarina Biloglav

    The Hard Stuff - Business Skills for Upcyclers | The European Union is rebuilding how fashion is designed, sold, and disposed of — and for a one-person studio, keeping up with the pace of these changes can feel impossible.  In this episode of COM/VERGE, Angie sits down with Katarina Biloglav, Public Affairs Manager at The Policy Hub, to make sense of what's actually happening in Brussels, and what it means — both the opportunities and the challenges — for upcyclers.  Katarina walks us through what matters most from an independent designer's perspective, what's still being negotiated versus already decided, whether upcycling should count as art or commerce in the eyes of the law, and how enforcement actually works.  The conversation also opens a bigger question: upcyclers are still underrepresented in Brussels — but a louder, unified voice could be what turns these rules into something that works for us, not just around us. Would you join a group of upcyclers advocating together on EU policy? TOPICS DISCUSSED 00:00 — Katarina's role: translating EU legislation for the fashion industry 02:26 — What The Policy Hub does, and its 700+ stakeholders 06:02 — Where upcyclers fit in Brussels advocacy — and the current gap 08:23 — The "consultants at the door" phenomenon 09:29 — The big picture: fashion's shift toward full-lifecycle regulation 11:16 — ESPR (Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation) 13:29 — The legal line between reselling, repairing, and remanufacturing 14:29 — Micro-enterprise timelines and exemptions 15:12 — Incoming green claims / greenwashing regulation 16:22 — What the Digital Product Passport actually is, and isn't yet 18:16 — The robustness score, and the "Nutri-Score for fashion" comparison 21:35 — Why comparing different materials on one scale is complicated 24:11 — How the DPP could help upcyclers working with unknown materials 26:01 — Enforcement: who checks compliance, and the risk-based approach 28:39 — Non-EU imports, market surveillance gaps, and competitiveness 30:57 — Waste systems and the market for low-quality material 31:40 — Upcycling as craft vs. commerce, and the push toward digitalization 33:01 — Why a single set of rules can't fit every business size 34:03 — Upcycling's missing voice in Brussels, and the timeline ahead 35:45 — Does more visibility mean more regulation? 38:23 — Why grassroots knowledge matters as much as policy expertise 39:18 — Closing question: what Katarina would upcycle (conference banners and lanyards from Brussels events) Host: Angie Aguirre, Founder, tHERAPY Recycle & Exorcise, Berlin Guest: Katarina Biloglav, The Policy Hub Produced by: RIVED — Empowering Upcyclers

  3. Jul 31

    EP03 | Upcycling for Impact, Not Product - with Michael Pfeifer

    The Business Behind the Brand | Michael Pfeifer didn't come to upcycling from fashion, but from a belief in business as a force for good. He studied business administration, worked corporate and startup jobs, and co-founded MOOT with Nils Neubauer, a trained fashion designer who'd seen fashion's waste problem up close. MOOT started with 20 T-shirts made from bed sheets, launched during the lockdown. Today they work with some of Germany's largest corporates, transforming many different types of discarded material — textile and beyond — into a wide range of new products. They deliberately partner with companies that have nothing to do with sustainability, because that's where they see the biggest potential to shift culture. They've also found a formula where the waste source is also responsible for, and makes revenue from, its own waste — MOOT provides upcycling as a service. Angie and Michael talk through what it took to get there: closing two Berlin stores, moving from B2C to B2B, and the shift from design-led to volume-led — what creativity looks like once the goal is impact, not the single best piece. Michael makes the case that one upcycled product, carrying its own story, changes how people think about consumption more than sustainability messaging ever could. And he tells us what, in the whole world, he'd love to upcycle. Host: Angie Aguirre, Founder, tHERAPY Recycle & Exorcise, Berlin Guest: Michael Pfeifer, CEO & Co-Founder of MOOT  Produced by: RIVED — Empowering Upcyclers Links :  https://www.moot.eco/ Introduction story - cooperation with the German Football Association  https://www.instagram.com/p/DPoQ49VkeZy/ Angie Aguirre https://angie-aguirre.com/en RIVED https://rived.community/ Photo: © FUNKE Foto Services | Sergej Glanze

  4. Jul 17

    EP02 | Reinventing Fashion and Herself - with Josefina Coll

    The Business Behind the Brand | Josefina Coll, founder of Josefina Studio Berlin, joins Angie Aguirre to trace how she built a services-based upcycling studio instead of a traditional fashion label. Starting from a childhood spent altering her own clothes in Uruguay, she arrived in Berlin during COVID with no job and no money, bartered sewing skills on a "Swap Your Skills" Facebook group, and turned that into a studio now serving 600+ students, corporate clients like Adidas, New Balance, and Zalando, and a growing teacher-training program. It's a direct answer to the growth question Episode 1 raised: Josefina scales by staying close to the community, and to herself — growing her impact not via products but with services. from custom sewing to teaching to training other designers. The conversation covers burnout, the economics of teaching versus custom orders, how brands really engage (or don't) with upcycling, and her belief that reinvention — not a fixed business model — is the actual product. Topics covered: Origin story — how rebellion led to sewing, and her first businessThe move to Berlin and the job that didn't exist — landing on self-employment as necessity, not planWhy services instead of a product brand — the reasoning behind skipping collections, stock, and sizingGrowth through burnout and correction — scaling into custom orders, hitting a wall, redesigning around teachingThe teaching business today — courses, workshops, and training other designers to teachWorking with corporate brands — what real engagement with upcycling looks like versus surface-level interestUpcycling as mindset, not technique — creativity, perfectionism, and who actually shows up to learnAnnual reinvention as business philosophy — why nothing about the studio is meant to be permanentClosing question: what she'd upcycle — the case for making upcycling businesses themselves more sustainable Host: Angie Aguirre, Founder, tHERAPY Recycle & Exorcise, Berlin Guest: Josefina Coll, Founder of Josefina Studio  Produced by: RIVED — Empowering Upcyclers Links https://www.josefina-studioberlin.com/ https://angie-aguirre.com/en https://www.rived.community/

  5. Trailer

    EP00 | Introducing COM/VERGE

    COM/VERGE–The Business & Art of Fashion Upcycling is a podcast by RIVED, the platform for the global fashion upcycling community. The name COM/VERGE holds two ideas: community + convergence. Making the global fashion upcycling movement visible. If you are building something in the upcycling space, or if you're interested in the future of fashion and what role upcycling plays in that future, this show is for you.

  6. Jul 1

    EP01 | Waste is Privilege - with Angie Aguirre

    The Business Behind the Brand | Episode 01 introduces COM/VERGE's host, Mariángeles "Angie" Aguirre, founder of tHERAPY Recycle and Exorcise. Co-host AnaMaria walks her through ten years of running an upcycling brand across two continents. They start with "Waste is Privilege", tHERAPY's iconic show at SO36 Berlin, and work back through Angie's path: from journalism in Argentina, to immigrating to Berlin, to founding tHERAPY in 2012. The conversation surfaces some of the key questions that will drive this podcast: can — or should — upcycling scale, and how do you stay critical of the fashion system while working inside of it. A grounded, honest start built on collaboration over gatekeeping. Topics covered: ​Why "Waste is Privilege" — and what that collection says about tHERAPY's direction and this podcast​Starting tHERAPY without a fashion background, or the intention to build a "fashion brand"​Running one upcycling brand across two continents​Berlin's fashion scene, Fashion Week, and the space (or lack of it) for upcycling within it​The open question: does upcycling have to scale to be a real business?​Why collaboration and shared knowledge matter more than gatekeeping​Angie's closing answer: what she'd like to upcycle next​Coming up in Episode 2 Host: Mariángeles Aguirre, Founder, tHERAPY Recycle & Exorcise, Berlin Guest host : AnaMaria, Quijano.-W. Co-Producer & Co-Founder, RIVED Produced by: RIVED — Empowering Upcyclers Links https://angie-aguirre.com/en https://www.rived.community/ Waste is Privilege Show: https://www.therapy-berlin.com/watch-the-complete-fashion-show-video-waste-is-privilege-now-live?srsltid=AfmBOor8cfeM_y7qwhzp7uoB9ImpZve1R7NHPwRQOU8RIcAKcsv0RAY1

Trailer

About

Fashion upcycling is a global social, economic and cultural force. This podcast is made for and with the people driving it forward. Mariángeles Aguirre, founder of tHERAPY Recycle and Exorcise, speaks with upcycling entrepreneurs, designers and creators about their journeys, decisions, business models and challenges. Together with RIVED co-founder and co-host AnaMaria Quijano and expert guests, we explore strategy, operations, regulation, technology and culture. Brought to you by RIVED — Empowering upcyclers. Contact us: comverge@rived.community

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