Dear Friend,
Last week I attended Berlin's fashion week and its trade shows and conferences, including NEONYT, SEEK and Fashion Tech Berlin. Berlin is a true mecca for synthesizing variety fo movements and creatively expressing them all at the same time. At the end of the Week, my company, Balanced Fashion and an ethical fashion brand and our client, Allpamamas hosted our own invitation-only think-tank event for industry leaders, focused on finding ways to create honest and open communications in the New Fashion Industry. I will speak about this event in a separate newsletter - as it was very impactful and the results are really powerful. For now, I would like to focus on the perceived fragmentation of our industry, as the New Fashion Movement is being developed.
Inspired by last week's events, I wrote an article that article summarizes my perspective on how fashion has a very fragmented approach to sustainability and abuses the global shift towards doing good for our Planet and turns it into greenwashing — using the concept of sustainability solely for marketing efforts, rather than building a company from a ground up that doesn’t play in the same field as the traditional fashion. By creating a New Fashion Industry, it is important to acknowledge that anything is possible once we let go of our fear-filled attachments to growing revenues, privacy, secrecy and other symptoms of the scarcity mentality.
I enjoyed further unfolding this idea - click here to read the full article and let me know if you have any questions or comments! I am curious to hear your perspective on this fascinating topic, very relevant across all the aspects of our lives at the times of change like this.
TOP NEWS:
High Consciousness: Where our industry is heading?
- There's only one way for fashion to be sustainable, and that's for us all to stop buying new clothes - The Telegraph
- Stockholm cancels fashion week to pursue more sustainable options - Dazed
- The world is a mess. We need fully automated luxury communism - NY Times
- Net-a-Porter has started telling customers which brands are sustainable - The Independent
- "It isn't that hard" to design clothes sustainably, says Mother of Pearl creative director - Dezeen
- Can Rented Clothes Save the Fashion Industry (and the Planet)? - Highsnobiety
- The future of marketing is bespoke everything - The Atlantic
- Ralph Lauren unveils new sustainability goals - WWD
- 5 Main Barriers to Sustainable Living and How to Overcome Them - Eco Warrior Princess
- As drag goes mainstream, queer fashion designers reap business benefits - Fashionista
- It’s long overdue for fashion to think about people with disabilities - Hypebeast
- Streetwear’s big opportunity: women - Business of Fashion
What do we need to know to prepare for the shift?
- No trade show in any business will solve everyone‘s in the industry involved challenges - Sportswear International
- UK ministers reject plans for 1p per garment levy to tackle fast fashion - The Guardian
- Training a single AI model can emit as much carbon as five cars in their lifetimes - Technology Review
- Topshop owner’s fall is fastest in UK high street memory - Vogue Business
- Norway challenges H&M on its sustainability claims - Treehugger
- Gamification: the future of luxury retail in China - Jing Daily
TOP EVENTS:
Please note: I'm limiting the number of events I'm featuring in this email to increase the quaity and value of this email. If you feel that your event or event series should be featured here - email me.
Tuesday, July 9 - Wednesday, July 10
I've attended the first The Lead Summit last year, and it invited the top of the top from the fashion and retail innovation community and held informative panels and talks on the array of innovation-centered topics. Must go for anyone who's serious about setting their foot forward in their fashion tech & retail tech game. To reserve your pass, click here and use the code "CFTN15" special discount for Balanced Fashion Newsletter readers for 15% off the already discounted pre-registration rate. Location: Brooklyn
Wednesday, July 17th
6:30pm #SustainingSustainable: Cultivate Community
This month, we are lucky to be joined by an expert in cultivating community. Dominique Drakeford, founder of MelaninASS, Co-Creator of Sustainable BK, and Ambassador to Sustainable Style and Cultural Context, will be speaking with us for #SustainingSustainable, Cultivating Community to talk about how to build a true community around a set of common goals. You’re going to come away with some hard hitting answers about expanding your marketing goals through audience and relationship building. Price: $23.05 Location: WeWork 500 7th avenue 8th floor
Saturday, July 20 - Sunday, July 21
11:00am Hackathon Blockchain 4 social impact, SDG, sustainability, responsibility
We will use our passions, talents and skills to build projects, solving real world problems with deep technological innovations and increase the influence of both Blockchain and Social impact Communities. Price: Free Location: 450 West 17th Street
Sunday, July 21
2:00pm - 6:00pm DIY Repairs & Sustainability Tips
Fjallraven Soho's very own tailor, Nina, will be sharing with us some easy at-home fixes for a variety of apparel and accessories. She'll be covering topics like cleaning, easy repairs, patches, replacing buttons, as well as the importance of sustainability and recylcing in fashion. We can't wait to see you there! Price: Free Location: 38 Greene Street
Thursday, July 25th
5:00pm The Sustainable Fashion Community Meeting: Cultural Misappropriation in the Fashion Industry
Sustainability is more than caring about the environment. The sustainable fashion movement cares about the people we are trying to create a cleaner planet for. Equity, equality, and justice means empowering others while checking the seemingly unlimited powers that others hold. July 25th, we will examine those who hold power and those who are seeking it with NYC Fair Trade Coalition advocates, activists, and leaders. Price: $10.12 Location: WeWork 1460 Broadway 6 FL
INTERESTING FINDS:
- Net Sustain strategy from Net-a-Porter
- Review Seek (trade show): Chasing the new
- Review Neonyt (trade show and conference): Growth continues as labels set sights on sustainability
Stay Inspired,