A Recap of the Exhibitions and Conferences in January 2019

Looking Back at the Conferences of January 2019

Sustainable fashion and fashion-tech are vital elements of Berlin’s current fashion scene. At the conferences, where numerous talks and presentations take place, experts and individuals interested in the industry can inform themselves about these key themes. The international speakers were particularly inspiring.

#Fashiontech

The #Fashiontech took place on the 15th of January 2019 and inspired many, due to its technology orientated talks and presentations. It started off with an introduction, “Fashioning the Future”, by Ole Tillmann, Anita Tillman and Michael Stracke. It proceeded with various talks and masterclasses, primarily focusing on the topic of “How to transform your organization”. The conference was divided into four sections: #LISTEN!, #LEARN!, #EXPERIENCE! And #BUSINESS!. The international experts structured their keynote presentations accordingly so that they suited these four categories. Afterwards, the audience was encouraged to engage with the speakers and other visitors in the networking area. The interactive masterclasses took place in the conference area of the Kraftwerk Berlin. In this area the visitors had the possibility to gain more knowledge and learn through interactions. The exhibition space offered a display of new fashion-tech related products for the visitors to look at. The shift and digitalization of the industry, was one of the core themes discussed on stage, as well as in the workshops. Sebastian Klauke, CDO of the Otto Group, was the first speaker at #Fashiontech and was a perfect example regarding the matter of digitalization. He spoke about the digitalization of the renowned mail order company, as it is one of the largest e-commerce companies in the world. Creative director, Justine Leconte, was another example of success through digitalization. The influencer told the audience about how she gained over 400.000 subscribers on YouTube, within the timespan of three years.

Fashionsustain, die Neonyt-Konferenz

Das Thema Nachhaltigkeit wurde am darauffolgenden Tag unter die Lupe genommen. Am 16. Januar 2019 fand die Neonyt-Konferenz Fashionsustain, im Kraftwerk Berlin statt. Alles drehte sich hier um Nachhaltigkeit in der Mode und das Kernthema dieser Saison: Wasser. Reporterin, Vanessa de Lacaze, moderierte die gesamte Konferenz. Um 10.30 Uhr leiteten Neonyt-Showdirector Thimo Schwenzfeier und Nachhaltigkeitsexperte Max Gilgenmann mit einem gemeinsamen Vortrag über das Kernthema Wasser, die Konferenz ein. Besonders beeindruckte die Keynote-Präsentation von Clare Press, Editor-at-Large für Nachhaltigkeit bei der Vogue Australia. Der Titel ihrer Präsentation lautete: „We are Water. Inspiration and Respiration for Fashion“. Mit einer sehr emotionalen Ansprache machte sie deutlich, wie wichtig Wasser für unseren Planeten ist, und dass diese Ressource nicht verschwendet werden sollte. Im Laufe des Tages fanden mehrere sogenannte Off- und Onstage-Sessions statt, in denen das Thema von Vertretern verschiedener Unternehmen debattiert wurde. In den Pausen hatten die Besucher die Möglichkeit, sich mit den Rednern auszutauschen und ihre Fragen zu stellen.

Looking Back at the Exhibitions of January 2019

In the previous season of the Berlin Fashion Week, six fashion related exhibitions took place, in which fashion related lifestyle products were displayed for trade visitors and buyers. All of these had their own concepts and different focal points. Sustainability and fair fashion also played an important role at the exhibitions.

Premium

The Premium exhibition opened its doors for German and international industry experts, who were eager to discover more about fashion and its newest trends. Its new location and newly developed floorplan, in Luckenwalder Straße, attracted many visitors. The brands were categorized into specific groups, following some certain criteria. For example, if visitors were interested in more expensive brands, they were lead to the so called Sophisticated Contemporary hall. In order to attract the interest of the buyers, curated “key looks”, “key stories” and “key items” were exhibited at the individual stands. Due to this, the exhibition seemed more focused than in the previous seasons. Environmental protection and sustainability were also an aspect of Premium. Aside of their collection, ECOALF and the artist Juan Garaizabal, exhibited their collection and main mission in the courtyard, in front of Premiums entrance. “Stop Talking, Start Acting” was their motto and inspiration. The clear mission statement of the installation was “Because there is no Planet B”.

Show & Order X Premium

The Show & Order exhibited a variety of fashion related lifestyle products on six floors. The exhibition space was curated accordingly and each floor was named after a different city. The visitors walked around the exhibition space freely and got inspired by the stories told by the individual brands.

Seek

Aside of having an insight to the most current street and urban wear brands, the visitors were served cake and prosecco. This is how Seek celebrated its 10-year anniversary and simultaneously thanked their guests for their loyalty. For this occasion, the Seek expanded the trade union’s space, which improved business opportunities. This was appreciated by the visitors and brands. Autonomy, anti-trend, reinvention and tradition played an important role this season. This was made clear by the brands concepts.

Panorama

Im Vergleich zur letzten Wintersaison verkündete die Panorama für Januar einen deutlichen Besucherzuwachs. In insgesamt neun Hallen und auf 3 Etagen stellten rund 600 Brands ihre  Kollektionen für Herbst und Winter 2019/2020 vor. Der neue Fokus der Modemesse lag auf der Digitalisierung und Emotionalisierung der Angebote.

Nach Messeschluss am Donnerstag verkündete Panorama-Chef, Jörg Wichmann laut Tagesspiegel, es werde für künftige Modewochen über eine gemeinsame Location aller Messen, möglicherweise auf dem Gelände des ehemaligen Flughafens in Tempelhof nachgedacht

Selvedge Run

Auch die Selvedge Run profitierte vom Besucherrekord der Panorama. Erstmalig fand sie in dieser Saison unter dem Dach der Panorama statt, was wohl vor allem positive Effekte hatte. Als separates Segment in der Eingangshalle der Großmesse Panorama wurden zusätzlich zum spezialisierten Fachpublikum auch einige der Panorama-Besucher auf die Brands der Selvedge Run aufmerksam. Der Spartenmesse für Handcrafted- und Denim-Wear hat die Fusion, Experten zufolge nicht geschadet.

Neonyt

„Gemeinsam Mode verändern”, so lautet das Motto der globalen Plattform für Nachhaltigkeit, in der Saison für Herbst/Winter Saison 2019/2020. Die Neonyt vereint mit ihrem neu entwickelten Konzept den Greenshowroom und die Ethical Fashion Show Berlin. Das Thema Nachhaltigkeit stand weiterhin im Mittelpunkt. Auf der Messe stellten 150 internationale und nationale “Sustainable Brands”, vom 15. bis zum 17. Januar ihre Mode-Innovationen und fairen Marken, im Kraftwerk Berlin aus. Unter dem Dach der größten, Business-Veranstaltung im Bereich nachhaltiger Mode, fand am 16. Januar zusätzlich die Neonyt Konferenz, Fashionsustain statt.