West Swedish companies are equipped for the future
As part of the regional development strategy, the Västra Götaland region is investing in making West Swedish companies the world's best in circular business. The strategy sets the direction for making Västra Götaland a role model for the transition to a sustainable society. Part of the work is the Circular Design & New Business challenge, in which Wargön Innovation is participating.
The work within the regional development strategy is a joint effort that brings together the county's 49 municipalities, four municipal associations, business, academia and research, civil society, the county administrative board and government authorities. By everyone contributing their expertise, the conditions are created for strengthening innovation in the region and creating a circular society. The strategy contains four areas of focus - electrification, digitalization, completed studies and circular business models.
Circular business models are the future
Transitioning from a linear to a circular economy is not only about long-term competitiveness for businesses, but also about making choices that reduce environmental and climate impacts. Already extracted materials need to retain their value over time and new products need to be designed for a circular cycle. New business models and innovations are needed to create profitability and long-term economic sustainability in a circular society. Västra Götaland wants to be at the forefront of creating a fundamental transformation of the economy.
With the Circular Design & New Business Challenge, Region Västra Götaland wants to future-proof West Swedish companies, get them to rethink, retool and start thinking circularly. The focus of the challenge is to shift focus from reactive to proactive work, to see new solutions instead of focusing on managing waste, and to explore how circular business ideas can create value for both companies and customers.
The companies involved in the challenge are offered expert support from RISE and are part of a network of almost 100 innovation coaches linked to the challenge. One of the innovation coaches involved in the challenge is Caroline Düberg Martinsson, Innovation Manager at Wargön Innovation.
- We need to find ways to move towards a more resource-efficient economy where we move away from waste and manage available resources as valuable products or raw materials that can be put on the market again and again. This is not easy for our current economic system and traditional value chains are not built for this type of product and material flow," says Caroline.
At Wargön Innovation, work is underway to lay the foundation for a textile circular value chain. In the textile business, it is often cheaper to buy new than to utilize what is already produced. So what does it take to create commercial circular value chains? That is the focus of Wargön Innovation linked to this challenge, Caroline says and continues:
- In the challenge, we work with concrete business cases, which is very inspiring. We see a strong commitment from companies to move forward and future-proof their business models. It's not always easy, but the time is right for new thinking. Legislation that rewards resource efficiency and circular textile product and material flows is on the horizon, so business as usual is out of this world. In November 2024, the challenge will be completed. Good examples of circular business models and circularity will then be highlighted to show how companies can work in a circular economy.
