Re-weaving threads for a circular economy: Spatio-temporal dynamics of the textile and clothing sector in Rotterdam

The ambition of achieving a circular economy (CE) brings with it renewed challenges in implementing systemic change in a context reluctant to abandon ‘business as usual’, but in which the urgency to transform linear production patterns into circular ones grows ever stronger. Taking a holistic ecosystem approach to circularising economies, re-localising key supply chain activities offers opportunities, while also challenging the system. This article maps the businesses active in the textile and clothing (T&C) sector in Rotterdam (the Netherlands) between 1996 and 2022 to uncover the geography of the circular T&C supply chain in and around Rotterdam and to find potential hotspots for localised resource flows. The T&C sector offers insights into the potential re-territorialisation of manufacturing supply chains and the spatial distribution of CE in Rotterdam.