On February 3rd, a 9-hour long event took place. In partnership and live from Spring Studios, the 6th Worldwide Talks brought different voices into the stage. The industry leaders brought the different discussions on technology, innovation, diversity, sustainability and more.
Jordana and Marcelo Guimarães, Founders of Fashinnovation, opened the day by sharing a bit about Fashinnovation’s trajectory. The company started in 2018 with physical events and, in 2020, due to the Pandemic, pivoted to digital summits, which allowed it to reach an international audience in more than 120 countries. This past edition was the 10th Fashinnovation event, since the start of the company.
Keep reading to learn what happened in the 6th edition of the world’s biggest fashion & innovation event.
6th Worldwide Talks
FASHION IS PIONEERING WITH ECO-CONSCIOUS VALUES IN THE BEAUTY MARKET
The first panel at the 6th Worldwide Talks welcomed Frederic Fekkai, Founder and CEO of Fekkai. He talked with Jessica Michault, Deputy Editor at Harper’s Bazaar Arabia and Harper’s Bazaar Saudi.
And right in the first part of the conversation, the entrepreneur put the audience to reflect. He said, “nature has awesome packages for products: look at a nut or a banana.” He talked about the importance of building a brand with values aligned with your personal beliefs.
Fekkai was one of the pioneers in the production of sustainable cosmetics. However, times have changed and, today, sustainability is no longer an option but a necessity. He shared about the new products he has been exploring in his brand and how he has sought to revolutionize the industry.
FASHION IS DISRUPTING THE LUXURY MARKET & BREAKING PATTERNS
“I’m a creative who enjoys creativity.” The famous tailor and Creative Director, Sir Ozwald Boateng inspired the audience in a conversation with Melanie Grant, Luxury Editor at The Economist at the 6th Worldwide Talks.
Sir Ozwald shared a little about his journey as an entrepreneur and stated that one of his greatest legacies is revolutionizing the suit and tie. Bringing style and authenticity to traditional tailoring pieces, he highlighted the importance of creativity within the industry – one of his hallmarks.
The Creative Director also highlighted that “Creativity is always about the experience of immersion and connection.” This means that adding a touch of authenticity gives the piece a unique air, which becomes a designer’s expressive mark.
FASHION IS ELEVATING CULTURES GLOBALLY & ENDEAVORING
Getting together voices from different backgrounds to discuss a singular topic is one of Fashinnovation’s marks. And, on the 6th Worldwide Talks, that wasn’t different.
This panel was moderated by Tijana Ibrahimovic, Founder of Pop Style TV and touched points on important cultural topics. Juana Burga, Actress, Entrepreneur and Founder of Nunca Awaq, and Norah E. Almuhaidib, Founder of Shop At Culture shared their thoughts and highlighted the importance of embracing cultural heritage.
When it comes to cultural appropriation, Norah stated, “The base of it is acknowledging culture. When you have a brand inspired by a certain culture, I think giving credit is very important.”
Going further with the conversation, Juana said that “Fashion is elevating cultures globally because right now we are bringing together not just a trend, but a lifestyle that goes way back from many generations.” In other words, there is a big difference between copy and inspiration and even if the latter is chosen by a certain brand, it is essential to have respect for that culture.
FASHION IS REDUCING IMPACT & ACHIEVING SUSTAINABLE GOALS
Adi Maoz Cohen, Director of Education at the Istituto Marangoni Paris, moderated the conversation with the Head of Marketing and Communications at Bluesign, Kutay Saritosun.
SDGs are a hot topic right now but it must not stop only in the conversation, we must act. To help achieve these goals, it is essential for brands to have complete control of the production chain. However, as stated by Kutay, “A reason why brands are struggling with the management of their supply is the task and role of managing information. Sometimes this is not prioritized in their system”.
Kutay explored several topics on this panel. From the importance of transparency in the textile industry to implementing sustainability in a brand and company in the fashion industry.
FASHION IS TRACEABILITY & FUR SUPPLY CHAIN TECHNOLOGY: A GAME-CHANGER FOR THE INDUSTRY
For the 6th Worldwide Talks, we’ve decided to bring a quite controversial but not much-explored topic. In this conversation, Charles Ross, General Manager at Saga Furst North America, stated that “We have to keep on exploring many possibilities to provide transparency and sustainability for the brands and, mostly, for the public.”
Dick Lockard, Director-Connected Products at R-Pac, moderated this conversation based on the importance of transparency and well-known information about the Fur and Lether industries.
As Charles highlighted, “Traceability and technologies are crucial for this need of authenticity.” Therefore, it’s impossible to disassociate the two of them.
FASHION IS A FUTURISTIC VISION: FROM CATWALKS TO THE TECH UNIVERSE
“People don’t know where to turn to understand the future and what to do in their daily lives to insert themselves in it.” Sinead Bovell, Fashion Model & Founder of WAYE, affirmed it during the conversation at the 6th Worldwide Talks with Michael Ferraro, Executive Director at FIT DTech Lab.
Both speakers expressed different new uses for technology accompanied by a renewed mentality about the near future for the fashion and tech industries. As stated by Michael, “Technology is modifying everything in the fashion’s game. Simulations, avatars, radical transformations are new steps into the metaverse. The future has been around here all along. The sooner we understand it, the better it will be in front of it”.
According to Sinead, entire new industries are being born and “we can’t even imagine. But it doesn’t mean we have to think about going back to the hard times in the past. Besides, people don’t know where to turn to understand the future and what to do in their daily lives to insert themselves in it”. That’s why education is so important. People must become aware of the reality we are facing and where it can lead us.
FASHION IS MOVING CREATIVITY TOWARDS A TEXTILE REVOLUTION
There’s no innovation without creativity. Both must come together when it comes to creating new technologies and building a more sustainable future. Borre Akkersdijk, Co-founder of BYBORRE, had a very inspiring conversation with Gustavo Brigatto, Founder and Editor-in-Chief at Startups.com.br.
Borre highlighted the importance of being 100% transparent with your community and customers. As he stated, “Even with the best intentions, the total fashion process is not yet transparent. For me, transparency is the future for this industry and for the world. It helps us become more responsible, and we can do it with technology.”
FASHION IS INTEGRATING METAVERSE, NFTS & THE FUTURE OF THE INDUSTRY
Digital Fashion was one of 2021’s milestones. New skins, collabs between fashion brands & video games and NFT’s sales showed that there’s a new world starting to be explored.
Magali Ginsburg, Founder of Victoire Fashion Agency, moderated this panel with two other amazing speakers. Marjorie Hernandez, Co-Founder, LUKSO and The Dematerialised, and Bei Wang, Chief Metaverse Officer at Straight Fire enriched the conversation.
They explored the current and emerging reality of the NFTs world as well as the growth of the metaverse. As Bei stated, “Fashion will definitely prevail and integrate other spaces in the digital world.”
As we have been seeing, the fashion industry is increasingly moving towards digitalization. We are not saying that the physical will cease to exist. But other experiences will be delivered to the Metaverse in a way never seen before.
However, Marjorie brought up a crucial side to the discussion: inclusivity. She stated that “Every time something becomes digital, it potentially will be demonetized, and also it becomes democratized. Empowering anyone who has access to an internet connection and a mobile phone or a computer is very powerful. We shouldn’t forget that there are 3 billion people in the world who still have no access to the internet, so we need to make sure to bring everybody along”.
Unfortunately, due to low connection, Alexei Falin could not join the discussion.
PITCH COMPETITION: THE NEXT BIG THING
One of the hallmarks of Fashionnovation’s events is the pitch competition. At the 6th Worldwide Talks, six founders presented their companies and ideas to a panel of three judges.
From innovative ideas on influencer marketing to unique platforms that leverage AI, founders had the opportunity to receive feedback from Julia Lucidi, Stefano Galassi and Gary Wassner.
The winner of this edition was United by Zero.
FASHION IS GOING FROM MAGAZINES, TO MOBILE, TO THE METAVERSE
META‘s Head of Industry, Retail, Luxury and Fashion, Karin Tracy, was quite emphatic about the future of fashion. “The metaverse is the next big thing,” she claimed.
Edward Hertzman, Executive VP at Fairchild Media and Founder and President at Sourcing Journal, moderated the conversation. During it, Karin also highlighted the importance of multidimensional marketing. She stated that “What brands are already doing today will still be relevant in the metaverse tomorrow,” She also complemented that “Everything you see out in the world will be shoppable.” Therefore, industry agents will be able to personalize all shopping experiences.
Good news for the fashion industry! Karin says many brands and creators are already inside the metaverse. This new reality that the metaverse promotes “will be giant, it will get better and we’ll develop it together. So, let’s get ready for it this new experiential reality“, explained Karin.
FASHION IS THE INTERSECTION OF PASSION & PURPOSE
In this panel, Mastercard’s Chief Marketing & Communications Officer Raja Rajamannar told journalist Manasa Gogineni, “Instead of throwing commercials and ads at people, there is a better way to connect with them.” He affirmed that that way is to “communicate in the areas they are passionate about, and curate experiences in those passion areas for the consumers that money cannot buy.”
When asked why Mastercard partners with the fashion industry, Raja says that “Fashion is one of the most important passions for people. Therefore, it made sense to be in that space; it is pretty universal. People worldwide like to express themselves and fashion is the mechanism for it to channel and showcase.”
FASHION IS ALIGNING SOCIAL VALUES, PURPOSE & BUSINESS STRATEGIES
“Luxury doesn’t have to be bad for the environment,” model Brana Dane said at the beginning of the panel called Fashion is Aligning Social Values, Purpose & Business Strategies. “The brands which are doing it right really put it out there for you to see and show your proof.”
Virgie Tovar, Contributor Plus-Size Market at Forbes.com moderated this conversation with Brana and Hayley Segar, Influencer and Founder of Onewith.
Hayley complemented the debate about the current challenge of creating a brand. She explained, “One day, I just said aloud: I want something that feels One with my body. And went after it.” This is what adding purpose and a clear goal means.
Customers are demanding transparency and values from brands. They want to relate to the products they are buying. On that note, models like Brana also bring these values into their work. She declared that “we see all these companies mistreating their employees when they have more than enough resources to treat them well, and also to protect the environment better.” Brana explained she focuses on working with brands that show respect and consideration for the industry, the people, nature and clients, “and that’s what I’m doing currently, mostly using social networks” to raise awareness.
FASHION IS INCORPORATING HAUTE COUTURE IN THE MODERN INDUSTRY
Marie Driscoll, Managing Director, Luxury and Retails at Coresight Research moderated the conversation with the iconic Nicole Miller. Founder & Designer with more than 40 successful years in the fashion industry affirmed that she has always been some rebel, “kind of like the good-girl/bad-girl designer. They call me the ‘Uptown/downtown girl,’ and that has been my designing style too. I think that in those spaces in between identities, we can find ours.”
About how things are getting back to normal in New York, Nicole manifested to be very happy, and also for the comeback of a famous TV series. “Sex in the City has many of my clothes, and I’m excited to see this new season of it,” she affirmed.
Times have changed for Nicole: “When I started, I thought I competed with other designers, and now the landscape is multi-facet: we compete with actors, influencers, musicians, speakers; so, the challenge has increased and creativity is more important than ever. It’s important to be focused, develop your identity and don’t let nothing stop you”.
One final piece of advice for the young generations from Nicole: “I still recommend internships: you never get hired, but sometimes you DO, and it’s great”.
FASHION IS PHYGITAL: MASTERING E-COMMERCE & GLOBAL EXPANSION
Mixing the physical and digital worlds is quite a challenge. However, some brands in the market have been leading e-Commerce strategies and spreading their business in the world’s four corners.
Ramon Ray, Founder and Editor at Smarthustle.com, brought his uncomparable energy to moderate the conversation with three specialists that explained more about this new reality. Echo Mah, Creative Director at Tiffany & CO, Kristin Savilia, CEO at Joor and Gionata Galdenzi, E-Commerce Manager at Aeffe Spa/Moschino, brought up the discussion about the future of the fashion industry.
As Gionata stated, “We spent a lot of time studying data, but the people and we in the business… we choose about the heart”. Therefore, “You have to meet the people where they are. Any platform, anything, you have to be where they are.”
Echo also complemented, “Be human and connect deeply with your audience”. After all, this helps a brand to resonate with its end consumer.
About the global market, Karin affirmed that “You need to hire locals. But also send someone from your company that knows your business. It’s not the role of being a boss but of being a connector.”
FASHION IS REDUCING ECOMM RETURNS WITH SMARTPHONE 3D SCANNING
“One way we can help sustainability is looking at fashion waste. Because, every year, over a few billion dollars fashion waste ends up in the landfill.” Jeff Chen, Co-Founder and CEO of NetVirta, presented his business ideas and solutions for the fashion industry.
Kristopher Fraser, Associate Editor at AS IF Magazine, moderated this panel that brought the importance of mixing technology and innovation to the audience’s attention.
Jeff affirmed that “The largest difference between our solution and other’s solutions is the accuracy.” Therefore, “If all of the fashion brands are using our technology, we can reduce the carbon footprint from the return products. We can reduce 4% of the carbon footprint, just by reducing the transportation return products,” he stated.
FASHION IS PAVING YOUR OWN WAY WITH CREATIVITY & ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Simone Oliver, Global Editor-in-Chief at Refinery 29 moderated the conversation with the inspiring Bibhu Mohapatra.
Creative Director & Founder of his internationally known brand expressed that “all my life I was surrounded by incredible crafts, and I think of it as an advantage. My mom had beautiful panels she made when she was young, and those mixed colors are still in my mind as a language. I learned about motorcycles from my dad. I learned from him how things work. And I’m very grateful for that”.
The Indian designer narrated that “I was born into it: colors, garments, fabrics. My roots were always very close to me, as a support system. So when I’m creating something, my head is shaped by culture: colors, the mixes”.
Bibhu also shared some entrepreneurial tips. “One of the major things about being a good leader is being adaptable. (…) Especially in business, in an industry like ours: you have to know how to be a team player and how to build a good team”. He also complemented that, “To be a good leader, you have to be adaptable to situations, to be respectful to your team, and also reduce the distance with them. But, at the same time, inspire them and be inspired by them, and don’t be afraid to express gratitude”.
FASHION IS BLACK WOMEN ENTREPRENEUR RIPPING THE STATUS QUO
Thirteen Lune co-founder and creator Nyakio Grieco talked with Kia D. Goosby, Fashion Market Editor at Vanity Fair. She shared that “After George Floyd’s assassination, I started thinking about producing clothes for diverse people, considering the beauty of inclusion. And resilience was the key for me.
The woman entrepreneur also understands that the need to humanize the industry is essential for its perpetuation. She complemented that “Brands with no passion and interesting people behind it won’t last, I’m certain of that. Besides, to level the plainfield socially is the ultimate goal, and if we can do it through our productions, then we’ll be succeeding”.
Nyakio left a tip for the 6th Worldwide Talks audience: “When you have a mission and purpose behind anything you’re building. (…) I find it so interesting when I talk to young entrepreneurs or people who are just starting out on their entrepreneurial journey, and I tell them immediately: create a mission with your business.”
FASHION IS FIGHTING STEREOTYPES & CONQUERING DREAMS IN THE PARALYMPIC GAMES
I had the honor to talk with Luiza Fiorese, Athlete at the Brazilian Paralympic Sitting Volleyball Team. She opened her heart about the reality that she faces as a paralympic athlete and as a person with disability.
It is important for the industry to understand that there is a large market for people with disabilities. Therefore, there must be inclusion without capacitism. “We have to start looking at the person with a disability as a person. That’s exactly why the name is this: person with disability, because person comes much before anything else. Disability is a characteristic of us”, she affirmed.
When talking about the relationship between athletes with disabilities and clothing, Luiza “For the past Tokyo Olympics, we decided not to close a deal with any brand. The Olympic Committee to standardize the uniforms to be equal for everyone. We demanded not to copy the Olympic athletes’ outfits, but to have our own, which is part of the consideration for the competitor.”
She even left a message at the end of the conversation. “I invite people who want to understand more about it, to research about it and see that including is sometimes much easier than we think.”
FASHION IS REBELLIOUSNESS & CREATIVITY
Legendary designer and entrepreneur Norma Kamali participated in a special fireside chat with journalist Simone Oliver. She affirmed that “Ideas are my FORTE, as a designer and as a writer. It has to be something you frequently do, so it’s not a big deal for you. The more you do it, the better you are on it”.
It’s normal to make mistakes on your personal and professional journey. However, it’s essential to learn from them. “Allow yourself to make some sh*t that can be terrible, but in terrible there is something. Because bad doesn’t always mean not good, it means that there’s an idea there that still can be massaged or put aside for a few seasons and then look at it again like ‘Wow this is really good!’”, Norma stated.
Norma clearly has an attitude that took her to success: “If someone asks you for a specific work, you must always say ‘Yes, I can do that’, because then you’ll figure it out. And you’ll also be testing what you’re capable of.”
FASHION IS DRIVING CHANGE FROM INSIDE OUT
Brazilian supermodel and activist Lais Ribeiro talked with Fernanda Simon, Executive Director at Fashion Revolution Brazil and Sustainability Editor at Vogue Brazil. At the 6th Worldwide Talks, she shared about her journey as a model and as a mom.
When it comes to inclusivity in the fashion industry, Lais affirmed that “There used to be much less black models in campaigns. I think that scenario is changing but at a very slow pace. Today, you have to be a model not only with your body but with your voice, your presence in all types of media and attitude too.”
About her maternity, Lais explains it was really hard in the beginning. “I was traveling a lot and my son had to stay with my family in Brazil, for almost five years. But I knew he was the one who gave me the strength to keep going for his future. (…) I think the biggest thing in life is raising a child”.
A final message for future fashion professionals: “Patience. It’s important to have support from your family, and you must observe all that you see culturally and have fun!”, she affirmed.
FASHION IS ONLIFE
Giuseppe Stigliano, Global CEO of Spring Studios, declared that “it’s a privilege for me to be part of this 6th Worldwide Talks panel, because of the topics discussed here, and because I can share the stage with my friend Ricardo Pozzoli. Also, being Spring Studio’s CEO, I’m kind of the co-host of this event”.
Together with Pozzoli, they’ve published the “Onlife Fashion: 10 rules for the future of high-end fashion” book, available online and at international bookshops.
Stigliano remembered the famous phrase Fashion is Onlife, not necessarily online or on land, but all across our life, lines are blurring. “In our times of digital transformation, presence and localization are no longer the same. You don’t need to be localized somewhere to be present. The metaverse is probably another lever or acceleration of that process, together with cryptocurrency, and NFTs, and many other topics.”
So, for Spring Studios’ CEO, it’s crucial to speak about acceleration as one of the main driving forces reshaping every industry, including fashion. “Fashion is the very first sign that something is changing and that there will be an impact in the market. So, change is the only constant and its speed will continue to increase. And, yes, we must adapt to the new technologies, but mostly, you have to understand people, and which trends are here to stay; are relevant for your target. And upgrade your brand in that direction.”
6th Worldwide Talks Take Aways
The purpose of Fashionnovation events is to plant the seed of transformation in the minds of the audience. Generating the spark of change so that, from there, people can contribute to building a more inclusive, innovative and sustainable fashion industry.
The 6th Worldwide Talks had over 45 thousand viewers from all over the world.
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