Coins in the Couch Cushions: What's Already Working While T2T Figures Itself Out
Jul 14, 2026 | 2:30 PM - 3:15 PMTalk Area
Jul 14, 2026 | 2:30 PM - 3:15 PM
Talk Area
Textile-to-textile recycling remains the industry's long-term bet, yet adoption has held near 1% for years. This talk turns attention to what's already delivering value today - open loop systems, resale, and Digital Product Passports - drawing on firsthand industry insight to show where the money is actually flowing.
Liz Alessi, Founder - Liz Alessi Consulting
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Liz Alessi spent 18 years as a senior leader at Tapestry, the global luxury house behind Coach, Kate Spade, and Stuart Weitzman, where she rose to VP of Sourcing and oversaw global materials strategy from concept through production. During her tenure, she helped launch Coach ReLoved — a pioneering program that transformed repairs and obsolete inventory into revenue and set a new standard for brand-owned circularity — and served as a founding leader of Coachtopia, guiding material selection and closed-loop design strategies from the ground up. Prior to Tapestry, she held senior roles at Limited Brands and Marc Jacobs.
In 2021, Liz founded her consultancy to bring that same supply-chain rigor to the broader challenge of circular fashion. She advises brands, startups, and investors on designing for longevity, building scalable recovery systems, and commercializing sustainable technologies — working across R&D, business development, and cross-border manufacturing strategy.
She is also the founder of The Crisis of Stuff, a speaking platform and brand dedicated to untangling the economics of circularity across industries. A classically trained bassoonist, she studied at the Eastman School of Music with continued study at Cambridge University, and performs with the Camerata Notturna orchestra in Manhattan. She lives in Brooklyn with her teenage daughter.