Dear Friend,
On March 29th Balanced Fashion hosted another successful monthly Balanced Fashion event that focused on essentials-based sustainable fashion brands. The strong panel featured the founders of Grammar, ADAY, Thursday Finest, moderated by Allison Vicenzi of Vicenzi. Sustainability is a very loaded term, so we've talked what does it mean for each of the panellists. Veronika Harbick said that zero-waste and on-demand production is the core sustainability aspects of her company, Thursday Finest, which produces 3D knitted accessories and wardrobe basics. Althea Simons of Grammar wishes to avoid the word "sustainability" as an emphasis on the content of fashion. She grew up in a family where they engaged in an organic, natural lifestyle and conscious consumption, so her core belief is that every fashion brand needs to be intrinsically sustainable and focus on selling a great product, not the idea of sustainability. Her vision of Grammar is to create items that are essential and that every single person would need to own in the course of their lifetime. Nina Faulhaber of ADAY also believes that sustainability should is not the main selling point of her brand, but the practical, beautiful design is something that attracts the customers. As soon as a consumer starts understanding the impact they bring to the planet and the human consciousness, they start making changes in their consumptions patterns and make choices towards brands that place sustainability as a core of their business and create a beautiful, timeless product that lasts as long as possible. And that was just the first panel question - you can watch the full panel discussion on my Balanced Fashion Youtube Channel.
Thank you to everyone who attended and contributed to making this event possible, while I'm away! đź’–
Don't miss the upcoming April's event is on April 26th at Freehold Brooklyn! I am organizing it in collaboration with Get The People Agency as a part of the Global Fashion Revolution Week. The panel will be discussing how branding and storytelling are able to reshape the future of sustainable fashion. It is going to be an immersive evening of networking, conscious fashion, compelling conversation, all-star panelists, cocktails, pop-ups, community building and an after party. Hope to see you there! ( - virtually, I'll still be in Europe then)
News Digest:
Sustainability
- Fashion’s 7 priorities to achieve sustainability - Business of Fashion
- Resale is expected to be bigger than fast fashion within 10 years - Fashionista
- Comment: Achieving a sustainability-centric retail model - Supply Chain
Technology
- Retail’s Adapt-Or-Die Moment: How Artificial Intelligence Is Reshaping Commerce - CBInsights
- Forces Shaping Fashion in 2018 | Getting Personal - Business of Fashion
- Retailers Race Against Amazon to Automate Stores - The New York Times
- 10 retailers leading the way in augmented reality - RetailDive
- These 25 companies are revolutionizing retail - Business Insider
- Tencent shows off their vision for the future of retail - JingDaily
- 7 takeaways from Shoptalk 2018 - RetailDive
- Designer brands are joining the direct-to-consumer fray - Digiday
- Everything that’s wrong with Amazon - Digiday
- With new digital campaign, eBay Fashion aims to reposition in the face of competition - R/GA
Events
Tuesday, April 10th
5:30 - 7:30pm Chasing Consciousness - Quantum Computing, AIs & Us
Want to know what quantum computing really is? Could a quantum computer actually outstrip all known digital computers and build a better AI? Can a quantum computer become conscious? Who knows how to write algorithms for a quantum machine? What is quantum mechanics anyway and why is it such a beautiful headache? Price: $15 Location: Caveat, 21 A Clinton Street
5:45pm - 8:30pm Design Driven
Monthly event for with TED-talk style lectures on design. This month's speakers: Sarah Adler, Founder/CTO at Spoon University (now part of Discovery), Zack Davenport, Lead Brand Designer at Vimeo, Tyler Davidson, Head of Product Design at Goldman Sachs, Monica Parra, Design Director at JW Player Price: Free Location: BuzzFeed, 111 E 18th St
6:30pm Winning Women - Investing In Women
New York Women Social Entrepreneurs (NYWSE), an international nonprofit supporting the next generation of women change-makers presents Winning Women a monthly community event featuring stories by women-led startups, female entrepreneurs, Founders, CEO, Managers that use social missions to drive growth. At Winning Women, women share their lessons learned to an audience that ranges from 20-60s year old female and males who are eager to learn how to become better leaders, start a business, or juggle their passion project and day job. Price: $50 Location: The Farm SoHo, 447 Broadway, 2nd Fl
Wednesday, April 11th
6:00pm - 8:30pm Retail X Series - Building Your Retail Advisory Board
Join us to learn how to build your retail advisory board in preparation for a seed round. Can a strong Advisory Board help me raise money? How? How do I think about who I need on my Advisory Board? How do I compensate and formalize Advisory relationships? How do I utilize my Advisory Board? What pitfalls do I need to avoid? Price: $20 Location: Davis & Gilbert, 1740 Broadway
6:00pm Jet Tech - AI, Blockchain & Ecommerce
Blockchain Workshop: Use Strato to quickly create a blockchain app AI. Workshop: Walk through building a Computer Vision Model with Convolutional Neural Networks first with open source tools & then build a model using the Clarifai API. Required: Basic programming ability & a laptop Price: $10 Location: Jet HQ, 221 River St, 8th Fl, Hoboken
Thursday, April 12th
6:00 - 9:00pm BK Speaks: "Genderless Fashion"
Join us for a panel discussion on trends in genderless fashion. "BK Speaks: Genderless Fashion" will feature a fashion presentation by Anarchy People and will be moderated by Brian Balthazar and hosted by Brad Welling. Price: Free Location: SAP Leonardo Center, 10 Hudson Yard, 48th Flr
Friday, April 13th
6:00pm - 9:00pm Sustainable Fashion Silent Auction & Clothing Swap
The NYC Fair Trade Coalition x Harlem Undressed invites you to bring your positive vibes (and lightly used clothes) and help us grow the SUSTAINABLE FASHION MOVEMENT! We’re auctioning off one of a kind items from designers committed to; the SDG's, pushing their ethics forward and supporting fair trade both near and far. *10% of sales will be donated to the NYC Fair Trade Coalition. Price: $25-$50 Location: La Maison d'Art 259 West 132nd Street
Saturday, April 14th
4:00pm - 8:00pm Esa's spring cleaning do + brew
do + brew is a DIY (do-it-yourself) party that inspires us to give new life to old or unwanted items. Join us and learn how to transform your old clothing into something new and unique while sipping on brews and listening to tunes! Sounds like our kind of Saturday night, and we can't wait to see you there! Price: Free Location: Camp David, 237 36th Street, Brooklyn
Sunday, April 15th
11:30am Brunchwork w/ SoulCycle
You're invited to an unforgettable brunch with SoulCycle's SVP Strategy and Growth Abby Levy. Enjoy a fireside chat with Abby, curated connections, a business challenge and pitch off...over a seasonal, locally-sourced meal. Price: $45 Location: Galvanize, 303 Spring St
11:00am - 1:00pm Sustenance Sundays
This manifestation of Sustenance Sunday includes :: + Guided mindfulness meditation practice by EFF THIS! Meditation + Authentic communication exercise led by Ashley Dinges, Director of Marketing for Kalapa Media + Awakened social posting exercise led by Georgia Pettit and Anna Neidermeyer of The Luminary Agency + Mindful tech activity by Liza Kindred of Mindful Technology. Price: $39 Location: PRIVATE HOME in Cobble Hill, Brooklyn (address will be disclosed upon ticket purchase)
Thursday, April 19th
8:00am - 12:00pm XRC Labs Cohort 5 Demo Day
For 14 weeks, XRC's Cohort 5 companies have attended workshops, classes, 1-on-1 consultations, meetings with mentors & have received introductions to retailers & brands. We have challenged their assumptions, identified new business opportunities, & worked to maximize their potential partnerships. You are invited to see the impressive progress our Cohort 5 companies have made in this short time, as they disrupt the retail & consumer goods sectors. Price: Free Location: Tishman Auditorium, 63 5th Ave
6:00pm FAUBOURG x Celsious Earth Month Celebration
To celebrate Earth Month, FAUBOURG & Celsious are collaborating to raise awareness for sustainability and the diversity that makes our planet so beautiful. We'll be unveiling a moving installation of conscious ready-to-wear curated by FAUBOURG, featuring emerging performance artists. Sustainability meets performance art in a first-of-its-kind initiative. Price: Free Location: Celsious 115 North 7th Street , Brooklyn
Saturday, April 21st
9:00am - 5:00pm Iwd Nyc 2018 - Building A New Horizon
The Google Developer Group is proud to be hosting IWD NYC 2018 - our annual International Women's Day celebration conference. We hope to highlight the stories of our growing female community of designers, developers, and technology entrepreneurs! Plus hands-on workshops, activities, food and drink! Price: Free Location: General Assembly, 902 Broadway, 4th Floor
Monday, April 23rd
In Intro to Social Entrepreneurship, Marcos Salazar, CEO of Be Social Change + Career Coach, will provide you with a comprehensive overview of the social entrepreneurship space and share insights on the fundamentals for creating a successful social venture (for profit and nonprofit). Price: Free Location: Centre for Social Innovation, 601 West 26th Street, #325
Tuesday, April 24th
7:30pm WorkLife w/ Malcolm Gladwell
With Malcolm Gladwell (Author, The Tipping Point & Outliers) & Adam Grant (Prof. Mgmt & Psychology, Wharton). Join the two bestselling authors and podcast hosts for a wide-ranging conversation about work, spanning questions of how to deal with narcissism at work, what it takes to build effective teams and strong relationships, and why we’re so often wrong about our colleagues’ personalities (and our own). Price: $35 Location: Kaufmann Concert Hall, 1395 Lexington Ave
6:30pm Philanthropic Fashion Media - A Truly Meaningful Disrupter
Live podcast recording by MouthMedia. Request access here. Price: TBD Location: TBD
Wednesday, April 25th
6:30 - 7:30pm Exclusive: Digital Giving with Natalia Vodianova
Join one of the world’s most successful supermodels, Natalia Vodianova, in a session dedicated to the power of giving back to the community. The fashion celebrity and philanthropist will talk about what inspires her to promote fundraising that is engaging, fun, and easy for everyone. She’ll share the Elbi app she created to connect people, brands, and charities through compelling video stories. Price: Free Location: Apple Store SoHo, 103 Prince Street
6:30 - 9:00pm Be Social Change Event: New York Sustainability Connector
Join Be Social Change, EcoCult, Fair Trade Coalition, Impact Travel Alliance, International Society of Sustainability Professionals-NYC, Slow Money NYC and Braceletote for the New York Sustainability Connector, a facilitated networking event focused on connecting NYC’s sustainability community to create new collaborations and grow each other’s networks. Price: $25 Location: Prime Produce 424 W 54th St (between 9th and 10th ave)
6:00pm - 9:00pm Fashion Revolution Week - DIY Indigo Bandhani Scarf Dyeing
Thursday, April 26th
6:00 - 9:00pm How badass brand storytelling can reshape the future of sustainable fashion.
Get The People + Balanced Fashion Present: A Fashion Revolution Week event. An immersive evening of networking, conscious fashion, compelling conversation, all-star panelists, cocktails, pop-ups, community building and an after party. Price: $20 Location: Freehold, 45 S 3rd St, Brooklyn
Monday, April 30th
You'll learn from the innovative market research and data analytics work being done by these and many other brands and see what's over the horizon and heading your way at NEXT. Price: $1,699 Location: New York Hilton Midtown. 1335 Avenue of the Americas
Cool Finds:
- Natasha Franck Of Eon-Id – Fashion Birth Certificate - Fashion is Your Business Podcast
- Stitch Fix: Katrina Lake - How I Built This Podcast
- Nomad List 3.0 - Find the best place to live, work, and play
Stay Inspired,
Nataliya