Libeco Fabrics

PRO­DUC­TI­ON LOCATIONS 

• Bel­gi­um 

WOR­KING CON­DI­TI­ONS & LIVING WAGES 

Libe­co sta­tes that they main­ta­in a clo­se con­nec­ti­on with the full sup­ply cha­in, from agri­cul­tu­re to fini­shing. They also invi­te you to under­stand this pro­cess, as it is deta­iled step-by-step on the­ir website. 

They sta­te that they work with dif­fe­rent spin­ning mil­ls to select the hig­hest quality yarn, and that more than 90% of the­ir yarn is pur­c­ha­sed in Euro­pe­an spin­ning mil­ls. Libe­co have the­ir own weaving mill, loca­ted in Meule­be­ke, Belgium. 

Libe­co car­ri­es the Bel­gi­an Linen quality label, which cer­ti­fi­es that the­ir linen is woven in Bel­gi­um from at least 85% Euro­pe­an flax fibres. They are also cer­ti­fi­ed by the Mas­ters of Linen, which ensu­res that the linen was enti­rely made in Euro­pe, with a guaran­tee of tran­s­pa­rent pro­duc­ti­on pro­ce­sses and tra­ce­abi­lity. 

MATE­RI­ALS 

• Linen
   

Libe­co sta­tes that they work exclu­si­vely with Wes­tern Euro­pe­an flax and high-quality yarn, which is almost enti­rely sour­ced from Euro­pe. They expla­in that the flax plant grows best in the nor­th of Fran­ce, in Bel­gi­um, and in the Net­her­lan­ds, due to the region’s rich soil and mild Nor­th Sea climate. 

Libe­co sta­tes that flax is one of the most sus­ta­ina­ble raw mate­ri­als in the wor­ld. You can find out more abo­ut the sus­ta­ina­bi­lity of linen here. Libe­co also aims for a ​‘no was­te policy’. The­ir was­te pro­duc­ts from linen har­ves­ting- was­te sel­ved­ge and she­aring dust- are both recy­cled into insu­la­ti­on mate­ri­als or paper. 

What’s more, the­ir weaving mill has been cer­ti­fi­ed car­bon-neutral sin­ce 2014. Libe­co sta­te that they use renewa­ble ener­gy, solar panels, and more, and the­ir rema­ining CO2 balan­ce is off­set annu­al­ly by sup­por­ting recog­ni­sed envi­ron­men­tal projects. 

PAC­KA­GING 

Libe­co does not dis­clo­se what pac­ka­ging mate­ri­als are used on the­ir website. 

WATER USA­GE & CHEMICALS 

Libe­co sta­tes that during growth, the flax plant rece­ives no addi­ti­onal irri­ga­ti­on: rainwa­ter is suf­fi­ci­ent. Also, in com­pa­ri­son to other crops, far fewer pes­ti­ci­des and fer­ti­li­zers are used with flax. The fibres are sepa­ra­ted from the stem during a natu­ral pro­cess cal­led dew retting. 

Sin­ce 2017, all Libe­co pro­duc­ts have been Oeko-Tex cer­ti­fi­ed. This ensu­res that they are free from har­m­ful che­mi­cals. Libe­co also offers a col­lec­ti­on of GOTS-cer­ti­fi­ed orga­nic linen, which ensu­res that it was pro­du­ced wit­ho­ut che­mi­cals or pesticides. 

CIR­CU­LAR PRO­DUCT DESIGN 

Libe­co sta­tes that the­ir inte­ri­or fabrics are pure flax, but they also sup­ply blen­ds using dif­fe­rent fibres. Mate­ri­al blen­ds are har­der to be recy­cled, so are the­re­fo­re more likely to gene­ra­te was­te at the end of the­ir lifespan. 

CIR­CU­LAR BUSI­NESS MODELS 

Libe­co does not sha­re any cir­cu­lar busi­ness models on the­ir website. 

DIS­TAN­CE & COM­PLEXITY OF THE SUP­PLY CHAIN

Pro­duc­ti­on locations:

• Bel­gi­um 

Libe­co aims for a short sup­ply cha­in. They sour­ce the majo­rity of the­ir raw mate­ri­al from spin­ning mil­ls in Euro­pe, and weave the­ir fabrics at the­ir mill in Belgium.

Libe­co headqu­ar­ters are loca­ted in Bel­gi­um. They export the­ir fabrics worldwide. 

TRAN­S­POR­TA­TI­ON 

As Libe­co stri­ves to sour­ce the­ir raw mate­ri­als enti­rely from Euro­pe, tran­s­por­ta­ti­on rela­ted emi­ssi­ons in the­ir sup­ply cha­in are redu­ced. In 2024, the­ir vehi­cle fle­et was elec­tri­fi­ed. 

Libe­co does not use any ani­mal-rela­ted mate­ri­als in the­ir products. 

PRO­DUCT DESIGN 

Libe­co has the title of War­ran­ted Pur­veyor to the Court of Bel­gi­um, which is a tes­ti­mony to the quality of the­ir linen. They also sta­te that they moni­tor the per­for­man­ce of the­ir fabrics in an on-site lab to ensu­re that they meet the ben­c­h­mark for wear resis­tan­ce and lig­h­t­fas­t­ness. 

SLOW FASHI­ON PROCESSES 

Libe­co sta­tes that they add new inte­ri­or fabrics to the­ir exis­ting col­lec­ti­on on a regu­lar basis, and tren­ds and colo­urs from the inte­ri­or and fashi­on wor­ld are a major sour­ce of ins­pi­ra­ti­on. This may com­pro­mi­se the slow-fashi­on natu­re of the brand. Howe­ver, Libeco’s col­lec­ti­on also con­ta­ins cla­ssic and time­less looks. 

TRAN­S­PA­REN­CY ON PRODUCT 

As all Libe­co fabric are manu­fac­tu­red at the­ir weaving mill in Bel­gi­um, you’re always guaran­te­ed to know whe­re your spe­ci­fic pur­c­ha­se was pro­du­ced. 

TRAN­S­PA­REN­CY ON PROCESSES 

Alt­ho­ugh Libe­co doesn’t publish an annu­al report on the soci­al or envi­ron­men­tal aspec­ts of the­ir brand, they do pro­vi­de deta­iled infor­ma­ti­on abo­ut the­ir pro­duc­ti­on pro­ce­sses on the­ir web­si­te. They also expla­in what measu­res they’ve taken to impro­ve the­ir sus­ta­ina­bi­lity over the years, and which cer­ti­fi­ca­ti­ons they hold.