Water-Free Textile Dyeing Solution Innovator Raises $10.5mn Funding

Xefco, an Australian sustainable manufacturing technology company has raised AUD $10.5 million to commercialise produce its patented water-free textile finishing and dyeing solution, Ausora.

The funding is led by Australian deep tech fund Main Sequence and other new backers like Breakthrough Victoria and Virescent Ventures, investing on behalf of Clean Energy Finance Corporation.

Other existing shareholders, Investible and Voyagers Climate-Tech Fund also participated in the funding round.

“The existing wet processes used to put colour and other functional properties on fabrics have the biggest environmental footprint of the entire fashion supply chain,” Xefco founder Tom Hussey said.

“These outdated, resource-intensive operations have not changed in centuries. It’s destroying our waterways and planet. We are determined to create a greener supply chain for the fashion industry,” he added

Co-founded in 2018 by Tom Hussey and Brian Conolly, Xefco has spent the past six years advancing innovative textile solutions.

Its first product XReflex, which increases the thermal efficiency of insulated clothing, is already used by some of the world’s leading apparel and fashion brands including Zara and The North Face.

With its latest innovation, Ausora, Xefco has discovered a way of dyeing and finishing textiles without water.

Using its unique shower plasma process, Ausora produces the same look, feel and performance properties without the environmental footprint.

Ausora’s process can be used on any textiles including natural and synthetic materials.

Xefco already has a number of pilot projects underway with some of the largest sportswear, outdoor and fashion brands using its Ausora system to colour and finish apparel.

“Our Ausora systems have been designed to plug and play into existing supply chains to help brands and manufacturers easily transition to a cleaner textile process,” Hussey informed.

“Whereas, compared to conventional wet dyeing and finishing, our process eliminates the use of water and cuts energy, chemical consumption and cost,” he stated.

“Our technology has the potential to stop millions of tons of waste entering our waterways and CO2 from entering our planet,” Hussey noted.

With its latest capital injection, Xefco also plans to nearly double its headcount in 2024 and scale its manufacturing process.