The purpose of FabPatch is to offer consumers a viable option when it came to extending the life of their clothing and other gear.

Written by Megan Dyring – Founder

FabPatch™ is the modern way of repairing textiles. They are a highly customisable rub-on textile repair patch. It’s a cost effective, simple solution to prolong product life while diverting it from landfill. We began the business in 2023 to import FabPatch.

History of the business

FabPatch is the innovation of 2 Finnish mothers, who faced an abundance of damaged clothing, wanted a quick, easy and stylish way of repairing. Their company was born in 2017 with the first patches coming on to the market in 2019, since then selling over 1 million patches.

My sister and I started our business as a way of bringing FabPatch to Australia. She had bought the patches while travelling in Finland to repair some pants. When she returned to Australia she wanted to buy more as she was so impressed by the quality of the product. Unfortunately they weren’t available here, so we reached out to the manufacturer and formed a partnership. We got our first delivery in December 2023.

Product highlights 

We are highlighting our fabric repair patches, called FabPatch. We are importers and sales agents for FabPatch. They are a highly customisable, rub-on repair patch, with the current range made from secondary purpose polyester, which is made using recycled plastic bottles, approximately 1 bottle goes into one patch.

They are extremely soft and flexible and being rub-on can be used on all manner of materials and products, we have had people fix shoes, beanbags, raincoats, wetsuits etc.

They are unique in the ability to customise all aspects of the patch. From the packaging, design & material allowing brand partners to develop their own unique patches. This can be used for advertising, merchandising, or to be sold alongside their products like you would a spare button.

They were launched in Finland in 2019 And have won a number of awards

•   Sustainability Act of the Year 2022, Chamber of Commerce and The Planet Company
•   Circular Economy Award for Textiles and Fashion 2022, The Finnish Fair Foundation
•   Design Deed of the Year 2022, Association for Finnish Work

Sustainable and ethical considerations

Our current collection is made from soft and stretchy 100 % recycled polyester. The current production process sees recycled polyester produced using PET bottle waste in China (turned in pellets and then thread). The thread is spun in Türkiye and then the fabric is produced in Finland by a responsible operator. The material is certified under the Global Recycle Standard (GRS). While the current supply chain is not ideal, Finland is working on establishing local suppliers which would create a market for closed fibre circulation in the textile industry in Finland. Our goal is to develop localised manufacturing once the product is established in the Southern hemisphere.

Our patterns are printed in Finland using digital printing. The production process is much more environmentally friendly than traditional textile printing methods. The method consumes less water and energy, thus benefiting the environment significantly.

The adhesive used in the FabPatch patches meets the requirements of European chemicals legislation (REACH), and it does not contain any substances that are harmful to human health or the environment.

Animal testing has not been used during the development of the adhesive used in our products, nor does it contain any animal based materials, which means that it is 100% vegan. We aim to minimize the use of chemicals in our production. The adhesive used in FabPatch patches does not contain solvents, which means that it is more environmentally friendly than many other textile patches.

At the end of its lifecycle, a FabPatch patch does not interfere with the appropriate recycling of the mended product.

The plastic used for the FabPatch bags is made in Finland from sugar cane, which is a 100% renewable natural resource.

The FabPatch patch can be considered a carbon handprint product, which allows the user of the product to reduce their personal carbon footprint by mending products that are already in use.

In the circular economy, products are kept in use for as long as possible through repairs, maintenance, and reuse. Extending the usage time of textiles by mending is an important part of the circular economy.

The majority of greenhouse gas emissions produced by the textile and fashion industry is caused by the production of fibers and materials. The next most significant source of emissions is the use phase. By doubling the usage time of products, we can reduce emissions by approximately 44%. (Ellen MacArthur Foundation, 2017)

Global significance

The purpose of our company was to offer consumers a viable option when it came to extending the life of their clothing and other gear.

The average person today buys 60% more fashion items than they did in 2000. Australian’s are the second highest consumers of textile and fashion items in the World buying 27kgs each year, twice the global average. 90% of this is thrown away within 12 months, with 6000 kg of clothing and textiles dumped in landfill every 10 minutes. These statistics are staggering, we are hoping to inspire people to think twice before making the decision to throw their textile products away by providing them the opportunity to repair them. But it is not only the waste, huge amounts of water, power and resources go into the production of this material. Extending the life of clothing by 9 months would reduce the carbon, water and waste footprint by 20-30%.

Demand for products in the healthy, organic, and natural retail space

I think consumers are becoming more aware of the social and environmental impact of textile waste and with the current cost of living crisis mending is becoming more popular. Unfortunately, many people don’t have the skills for sewing and current repair patches have left a lot to be desired.

FabPatch is both stylish and sustainable and can be used on all manner of textile products from tents to shoes and most importantly it lasts. Sophie’s pants patches are still going strong after 2 years.