By VANESSA FRIEDMAN OCTOBER 29, 2014 2:05 PM
A fresh big day for Green Fashion on both sides of the Atlantic!
In London, Kering is actually unveiling a five-year partnership with the Center for Sustainable Fashion at the Greater london College of Fashion, which will involve a series of talks - starting today with François-Henri Pinault, Kering’s chief executive - about the importance of building a sustainable fashion business, a lasting fashion award (money and an internship) for two students every year, and the progress academic courses on the subject. In New York, The Council of Fashion Designers of The united states and Lexus are also unveiling the winners of its $75, 000 first reward and two $5, 000 second prizes for the C. F. D. The. /Lexus Eco-Fashion challenge, now in its fifth year.
Drumroll, please.
And the champions are:
First Place: K/LLER Collection, a four-year-old Brooklyn-based jeweler designed by Michael Burns and Katie deGuzman, which specializes in using recycled metals with all products produced in the United States; and
Runners-up:
Study NY, a five-year old New York-based slow-fashion women’s-wear brand founded by Tara St James with a web site that includes finding information (kind of - at least sourcing location); and
Reformation, a five-year-old Los Angeles-based lifestyle brand founded by Yael Aflalo with its own “gray-water” garden and a “sustainable sewing factory. ”
What’s worth noting about each initiatives, aside from the money involved and the blessing being given by big luxury brand names to the whole concept of sustainable design, is the fact that they are focused on the next generation of style executives (creative and otherwise). There’s clearly a sense among the fashion establishment this is a meaningful concern for those on the way up. Designers and consumers.
Besides, with regard to large companies or industry groups seeking to build ties with their future skill pool, evincing support for their value systems is not a bad way to build a romantic relationship.
It’s win-win for everyone involved (even the applicants that don’t actually succeed; about 27 others in the C. F. D. A. /Lexus competition).
Simply consider the companies’ statements about why they wanted to put their money where their own mouths were in this particular area.
“Kering and L. C. F. discuss the belief that sustainability is instrumental to the fashion industry’s evolution. Both are also devoted to nurturing young talents to fuel today’s fast-growing fashion, ” according to Kering.
“We want to create a relevant conversation around the subject of sustainable design as well as luxury, and the fact the two can go together. And we want to support the idea that this is often the foundation of a real business, and help them to grow, ” according to Andrea Lim, engagement marketing manager for Lexus. (Whew! what a title. )
Pointedly, but the one area where neither group has really stepped forward is in offering an actual cement definition of what “sustainable fashion” means.
The C. F. D. A. /Lexus award, for example , includes the following guidelines for applicants:
• Fall/Winter 2015 selection should contain no less than 30 percent “eco” fabrics or materials, (or 30 percent associated with line should be eco). Eco production should also be addressed, if applicable.
• Applications will be judged on the following: dedication to ecologically responsible and lasting design and production (30 percent of overall score), ability to inspire a good “eco” attitude in consumers and the community (20 percent of overall score), originality and creativity (20 percent of overall score) and presence associated with “eco” fabrics and materials (30 percent of overall score).
“There are simply so many different ways of approaching the subject, ” said Lisa Smilor, executive director from the C. F. D. A., when I asked. “We have to look at them on the case-by-case basis. ”
This should be less an issue for the Kering/L. C. Farrenheit. prize, as that will be project-based, but nevertheless: having spent some time in this area over the last couple of years, and being still very, very confused about the topic, I would suggest that a concrete as well as specific definition of what we mean when we say “sustainable fashion” would be as minimum as valuable a contribution to the advancement of this agenda as any program or even award.
To that end, anyone have any suggestions?
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