Le Relais collection strike: why the textile recycling sector is in crisis

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A week after ceasing operations and dumping tons of items in front of several Kiabi, Okaïdo, and Decathlon stores, the cooperative will resume collection this Thursday after receiving a €49 million grant from the Ministry of Ecological Transition.

Employees sort clothes received at the "Le Relais" recycling center in Acigné, a suburb of Rennes, on July 21, 2025. (Damien Meyer/AFP)

The clothing recycling industry is facing an unprecedented crisis, denounced by Le Relais, a cooperative company that currently has 22,000 containers across the country. While the French are buying ever more clothing—3.5 billion new items were purchased in France in 2024 , or 10 million per day, according to Refashion, the eco-organization tasked by the government with managing the sector's recycling—the flood of new products, often of poor quality, and the economic slowdown in 2024 have had a significant impact on this organization, founded in 1984, which employs 2,000 people in reintegration in France and 1,000 on the African continent.

The leading player in the sector, Le Relais collects 120,000 tonnes of clothing per year ( out of 300,000 tonnes in