Ronen Samuel on sustainability
From FESPA 2024 | Exclusive Interview | Ronen Samuel, CEO | KORNIT DIGITAL · · TheTextileMagazine
“Our vision is really to transform the textile market from the way it's being produced today in large quantities — it's the second most polluted industry — to an industry that is more relevant to consumers and brands by producing only what you need and moving production onshore.”
On , Ronen Samuel, CEO at Kornit Digital, spoke about sustainability during FESPA 2024 | Exclusive Interview | Ronen Samuel, CEO | KORNIT DIGITAL on TheTextileMagazine.
About Ronen Samuel
Ronen Samuel, CEO of Kornit Digital, has stated that the company's vision is to transform the textile industry by moving production onshore and producing only what is needed, which he described as a shift from the current model of large-scale offshore production. In a 2024 interview at FESPA, Samuel discussed the company's latest products, including the Atlas Max Plus and the commercially available Apollo system, and highlighted growth in emerging markets such as India, China, and Latin America. He attributed interest in India to government mandates for sustainable textile production and noted that pigment-based printing is seen as a solution to water scarcity and pollution. In earlier 2022 interviews, Samuel described the traditional textile supply chain as "broken" and argued that on-demand production reduces inventory waste and environmental impact. He stated that the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated a shift of production to the United States and Europe. Samuel also discussed the company's exploration of linking digital assets, such as NFTs, to physical production, allowing consumers to produce physical versions of digital items. He characterized sustainability as a "mega trend" in the industry, citing regulation and the environmental cost of excess production.