The Business of Fashion
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
Previously, Reference Festival operated separately from Berlin Fashion Week, which has historically carried little clout with the creative community. But this year, the festival will be on the official Berlin Fashion Week schedule and co-funded by Berlin’s Senate Department for Economics, Energy and Public Enterprises.
As part of the festival, which combines a mix of fashion, art and music performances and installations, GmbH will debut its autumn/winter 2021 runway collection, while 032c will host a special presentation to mark its 20th anniversary. Other fashion names in the line-up include Mowalola, who will launch a new collaboration with furniture designer Chapel Petrassi; and vintage archivist Endyma, which will stage a Helmut Lang archive exhibition.
This year, Reference Festival will launch the inaugural Reference Prize, an incubator programme, in partnership with cult retailer Slam Jam to coincide with its 30th anniversary. No formal degree or training will be required of applicants. The prize winner will be announced in the summer and receive mentorship and support from Slam Jam, as well as PR and brand consulting services from Reference Studios.
This is the second iteration of Reference Festival. Its debut in 2019 saw around 2,200 people attend a 24-hour long experience in an abandoned carpark in South West Berlin’s trendy Neukölln neighbourhood. Due to pandemic lockdowns, the festival will be broadcast digitally this year on an interactive platform open to the public. It will run from 21 to 23 January.
This week’s round-up of global markets fashion business news also features the China Duty Free Group, Uniqlo’s Japanese owner and a pan-African e-commerce platform in Côte d’Ivoire.
Affluent members of the Indian diaspora are underserved by fashion retailers, but dedicated e-commerce sites are not a silver bullet for Indian designers aiming to reach them.
This week’s round-up of global markets fashion business news also features Brazil’s JHSF, the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and the impact of Taiwan’s earthquake on textile supply chains.
This week’s round-up of global markets fashion business news also features Dubai’s Majid Al Futtaim, a Polish fashion giant‘s Russia controversy and the bombing of a Malaysian retailer over blasphemous socks.