Circular fashion startup Yune has raised an undisclosed amount in a Pre-Series A funding round, with participation from existing investors MY Social Company (MYSC) and Korea Investment Accelerator.

Founded in 2021, Yune specializes in circular fashion, a model that focuses on repairing clothes to extend their lifecycle and recycling discarded garments into new products, aiming to conserve resources and protect the environment. This approach addresses the fashion industry’s long-standing environmental issues and has been gaining traction in the EU and the U.S.

Yune offers comprehensive solutions and services for the entire circular fashion process. One of their key offerings is the digital care label solution ‘CARE ID’, which digitizes individual garments to track their journey from production to disposal. ‘CARE ID’ is designed for the EU’s Digital Product Passport (DPP) market, expected to cover approximately 65 billion garments by 2030. Yune has partnered with over 150 fashion brands, surpassing 1 billion KRW in annual revenue in 2023.

Yune anticipates that the circular fashion market will grow significantly around DPP, expanding beyond labels and solutions into areas like resale. Yune plans to continuously monitor EU regulations and streamline DPP integration with features like a variable QR system and digital signature security. The company aims to provide insights on carbon emission reductions and consumer behavior, with the goal of capturing market share both domestically and globally.

With the new funding, Yune plans to enhance its solutions and expand its services across the circular fashion landscape. In the third quarter, Yune will launch an upgraded version of ‘CARE ID’ and introduce ‘CIRCLE’, an open-source fashion-carbon footprint calculator developed in-house. Leveraging partnerships with various brands, Yune also aims to diversify its revenue streams with subscription services and clothing resale.

Yune’s CEO, Roh Himchan, stated, “Our deep understanding of the circular fashion market allowed us to develop unique solutions and successfully secure funding based on our revenue growth. We will continue to lead the way in addressing the evolving demands of the fashion industry.”