Unleashing the input–output exchange opportunities within the fashion ecosystem

Industrial Symbiosis (IS) has emerged as a key strategy to enhance sustainability and circularity by repurposing industrial waste as inputs for other sectors, creating positive externalities. The fashion industry, including textile and leather goods, generates vast amounts of waste that often go unrecovered, making it a strong candidate for IS adoption. However, existing research mainly focuses on specific resource exchanges or structural characteristics of IS networks, without clearly mapping potential matches. Despite its potential, IS adoption remains limited due to challenges in identifying optimal partnerships. This study addresses this gap by exploring IS opportunities within the fashion sector, identifying input–output exchanges between fashion and other industries. To achieve this, a systematic literature review was conducted to analyse and summarize shared materials and waste flows, clarifying possible synergies. The findings were further investigated through case studies and semi-structured interviews, which confirmed some existing exchanges, revealed previously unknown flows, and uncovered new synergies beyond those documented in the literature. From a theoretical standpoint, this study maps key synergies across value chains in the fashion industry, moving beyond linear exchanges to highlight alternative resource substitutions for new product creation. From a practical perspective, it provides managers with actionable insights to develop effective IS exchanges, enhance waste valorisation, and support a circular economy. Furthermore, this approach is scalable to other industries, such as food, construction, and electronics, where IS networks could optimize resource use, reduce waste generation, and minimize dependence on critical raw materials, supporting broader circular economy strategies.