San Francisco & Ahmedabad, India — November 9, 2026- B Corp-certified fashion technology company unspun and Arvind Limited, one of India’s foremost textile-to-retail conglomerates, have announced a strategic partnership aimed at bringing yarn-to-garment 3D weaving into industrial-scale apparel manufacturing. The collaboration marks Arvind’s first deployment of unspun’s OneWeave™ technology and represents the first time the 3D weaving platform will move beyond unspun’s own microfactory into the production environment of a global Tier-1 manufacturer.
A Long-Overdue Shift in How Apparel Gets Made
The fashion industry has long operated on a model built around forecasting demand months ahead, committing to bulk orders, and managing the inevitable shortfall through markdowns, deadstock, and disposal. The scale of that problem is considerable. McKinsey has reported that U.S. retailers alone were sitting on approximately $740 billion in unsold goods in 2023. Adding regulatory weight to what has traditionally been treated as a business inefficiency, new European Union rules effective from July 19, 2026, prohibit large companies from destroying unsold clothing, accessories, and footwear — making overproduction not just a sustainability concern, but a compliance and commercial risk.
Conventional cut-and-sew production compounds the issue further. Before a garment ever reaches a consumer, standard manufacturing processes generate significant fabric offcuts, making waste, excess inventory, and extended lead times structural features of the industry rather than exceptions.
OneWeave™ Technology Enters Industrial Production
Under the terms of the partnership, Arvind will deploy two OneWeave™ machines at its facility in Ahmedabad, India, with operations expected to begin by December 2026. The phased agreement includes a pathway to more than 30 additional machines across India and North America between 2027 and 2028, scaling in step with demand from global apparel brands.
unspun will be responsible for installation, commissioning, operator training, software provision, and ongoing service and support. Brands seeking to produce using the technology will contract directly with Arvind.
Demand for the new capacity is already taking shape, with a pipeline of leading global apparel brands preparing programs ahead of the initial rollout. Given that production capacity in the early phase is limited to the first two machines, slots will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis.
How OneWeave™ Works
OneWeave™ weaves yarn directly into three-dimensional garment forms, bypassing conventional two-dimensional fabric production and eliminating most cutting and sewing steps. A pant leg, for example, is woven in approximately 10 minutes, and a single machine is capable of producing roughly 20,000 pants per year — establishing a new foundation for faster and more flexible apparel manufacturing.
What the Partnership Means for Apparel Brands
The move from unspun’s microfactory into a Tier-1 industrial manufacturing environment, combined with the roadmap for expanded capacity across India and the United States, brings the industry closer to a model in which brands can replenish inventory closer to actual demand, manufacture nearer to end markets, and reduce their reliance on long-range forecasting and bulk ordering.
Unsold inventory remains one of the most persistent financial and sustainability challenges in fashion. Overproduction — a direct consequence of long lead times and bulk-order commitments — typically results in markdowns, deadstock, and eventual landfill disposal. Responsive on-demand production capacity offers brands a route to smaller, more precise inventory commitments, real in-season reactions to consumer demand, reduced overstock, lower markdown exposure, and a gradual transition toward a true on-demand production model.
Voices from the Partnership
Arne Arens, CEO of unspun, described Arvind’s consistent willingness to invest in forward-looking technologies as central to the partnership: “For decades, Arvind has helped define what scaled, high-quality apparel manufacturing can look like, and they have consistently been willing to invest in the technologies that move the industry forward. That makes them exactly the right partner for this next chapter. This partnership is about more than installing machines; it is about scaling our technology around the world with a world-class manufacturing partner, building the capacity to bring production closer to major markets in the U.S. and Europe, and helping solve some of the apparel industry’s biggest problems in the process. Bringing OneWeave™ into an industrial Tier-1 manufacturing environment is a critical step toward the responsive, demand-led manufacturing model our technology is designed to unlock: one where brands can respond to demand in weeks instead of months, reduce waste and markdown exposure, and move closer to making only what is needed.”
Karan Ojha, CEO of Wovens Business and Centre of Excellence at Arvind Limited, spoke to the company’s confidence in the technology and its potential impact: “Innovation has always been central to Arvind’s growth journey, and our decision to deploy OneWeave™ reflects our conviction that the future of apparel manufacturing will be more automated, responsive and sustainable. This technology has the potential to significantly reduce manufacturing complexity, improve material utilisation and enable faster replenishment cycles for global apparel brands. As customer expectations continue to evolve, brands are seeking shorter lead times and greater flexibility without compromising quality or sustainability. Through this partnership with unspun, we are building capabilities that can help address these needs while strengthening our leadership in advanced textile manufacturing. We believe this is an important step towards a more demand-driven and resource-efficient apparel ecosystem.”
Building Toward On-Demand Production
By establishing 3D weaving manufacturing capacity within a globally recognized Tier-1 production environment and charting a course toward broader deployment across two continents, the unspun–Arvind partnership directly addresses the structural inefficiencies that have long defined the apparel industry. The integration of OneWeave technology into industrial-scale operations signals a concrete move toward the kind of responsive, lower-waste, on-demand production model that both brands and regulators are increasingly calling for.
