Lindström invests in the circular economy company Rester and becomes the company’s second largest owner
The Lindström Group has participated in the funding round of Rester Oy, which offers textile recycling solutions, held in March 2022, and will become a significant minority shareholder in the company. With the participation, Lindström’s and Rester’s cooperation to process Lindström’s Finnish and Baltic waste textiles for industrial reuse, which began in early 2021, will deepen and expand internationally. Lindström’s strategic goal is to recycle 100% of its textile waste globally by 2025.
The investment supports Lindström’s strategic goal to build environmentally friendly, circular economy-based textile services in cooperation with its partners. Rester is a well-known pioneer in its field, with a solid business foundation and scalable technology. The recycled fibre processed by Rester is used, for example, in the textile industry to produce fabrics or technical textiles, and in the construction industry for the production of insulation and composite materials and acoustic panels.
“The Rester collaboration was a strategic partnership for us from the beginning. We are a pioneer in our industry, and we want to accelerate the systemic change of the entire textile industry. Demand for sustainable textile services is growing in all of our markets, and we strongly believe that lower-emission recycled fibres will increasingly replace virgin fibres in a variety of textiles. Closer cooperation with Rester completes our circular economy operating model and supports the closed-loop product development of textiles, where end-of-life textiles are recycled as fibre back into fabric manufacturing,” explains Juha Laurio, President and CEO of the Lindström Group.
Rester’s CEO Outi Luukko emphasises that the goal of the cooperation has always been to develop the circular economy of textiles. With the EU’s textile strategy also emphasising the reuse and recyclability of textiles, this goal has proved to be extremely timely.
“Lindström has been involved in Rester’s operations almost from the very beginning and has thrown itself in with us to solve the challenges of textile recycling, and I see the participation as a very natural step in deepening our cooperation. Our common goal is to expand Rester’s operations into the international market in the future. Lindström has operations in more than 20 markets and a strategic goal to solve the recycling of waste textiles in all its operating countries. Strong cooperation enables a real win-win situation and the environment also thanks us,” shares Luukko.
Taaleri Sijoitus Oy and Besodos Investors Oy also became owners of Rester during the financing round. Besodos is a family-owned investment company founded in 1995 that invests primarily in sustainable development companies. Taaleri, on the other hand, is a Nordic private equity fund with a vision to be a Nordic pioneer in alternative investments focused on sustainable development.
“Besodos Investors and Taaleri both represent responsible investing and focus on companies that promote a green transition. It is really valuable for an SME that is at the forefront of an evolving circular economy market like Rester to get information and experience from these stakeholders to solve the challenges of sustainable development and thereby support growth,” says Luukko, satisfied. The Value Group acted as Rester’s financial advisor during the financing round.
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