The investor lineup shows that the technology is moving from lab validation toward industrial demonstration.
French deep tech company Syntetica has closed a $30 million (€26.1 million) Series A. The round brings together a public investment bank, two global apparel names and a manufacturing group around one bet: that mixed nylon waste, long seen as too complex to recycle economically, can be processed at industrial scale. The company now aims to prove that capability through a first commercial demonstration plant.
Investors behind the round
France’s public investment bank Bpifrance, through its Ecotechnologies 2 fund, led the raise. Lululemon and apparel manufacturer MAS Holdings joined as strategic investors, alongside existing backers EQT Ventures, SWEN Capital Partners and family offices tied to Peugeot, Etam and Indorama Ventures’ largest shareholder. The European Innovation Council (EIC) added a mix of equity and grant support. The round follows a €4.2 million seed raise in 2024.
Why mixed nylon is hard to recycle
Nylon 6 and Nylon 6,6 can look identical once woven into the same garment, but they behave differently in many recycling processes. That is why recyclers have typically needed a separate sorting step before processing. The extra step adds cost and has kept volumes low.
Syntetica says its process can handle both grades together without that separation step, producing pellets that the company says can match virgin quality nylon. The company is not making fabric itself. The pellets go to manufacturers that spin them into yarn.
Recycled nylon still accounts for roughly 2 percent of the global nylon market, and more than 80 percent of household discarded textiles are incinerated, landfilled or left in the environment, according to the funding announcement. CEO Marco Bertone said recent volatility in oil linked nylon markets has created pricing uncertainty for brands dependent on virgin synthetics.
From lab to production
The funding will build Syntetica’s first commercial demonstration plant in France, developed in partnership with Michelin’s Centre for Sustainable Materials in Clermont Ferrand. The plant is expected to process several hundred tonnes of textile waste a year.
That a tire manufacturer is the industrial partner, rather than a textile company, reflects how circular materials infrastructure is increasingly being built across traditional industry lines.
The apparel partners
Lululemon’s involvement follows roughly two years of collaboration with Syntetica before it converted to an equity stake. Syntetica is also working with Victoria’s Secret and Etam on recycling initiatives that could reach the market as soon as next year. MAS Holdings, one of the world’s largest apparel manufacturers, brings scale up manufacturing expertise to the partnership.
