Upcycling Fashion Show: How Ewha Womans University Students Transform Donated Clothes into Trendy Designs

Translation result.

Youngone Trading Group is teaming up with universities to cultivate fresh talent and push sustainable fashion forward through hands-on industry-academic collaborations.

On March 26, Youngone Trading Holdings announced it will stage an Upcycling Project fashion show with Sookmyung Women’s University on March 28. Students in Sookmyung’s Department of Clothing will debut upcycled pieces crafted from end-of-season garments donated by Youngone Trading Holdings.

Launched in 2022, the project is now in its fifth year. The program challenges students to rework company-donated garments into fresh, original designs that reflect sustainable practices and creative risk-taking.

In 2011, the company helped establish the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles’ Young Researcher Award to support early-career researchers in apparel studies. About 40 researchers have received scholarship support so far.

Youngone Trading Group also runs a global internship program with Sungshin Women’s University. Earlier this year, the company hosted a month-long internship at its production facilities in Vietnam for Sungshin students, giving them real-world experience in global manufacturing.

The group also supports Seoul National University’s Global Social Contribution Team. Student volunteer teams have been deployed to Bangladesh, Vietnam, and Uzbekistan—countries where Youngone operates production facilities—to take part in medical outreach, education initiatives, and cultural exchange programs.

“Training talent through industry-academia collaboration allows companies and society to grow together,” said Vice Chairman Sung Rae-eun of Youngone Trading Group. “We will continue partnering with educational institutions to help nurture the next generation of industry talent.”

Reporter Ma Seon-ju msjx0@tleaves.co.kr