Source Fashion: highlights from a fascinating London event

Fashion sourcing trends, the latest legislation and a focus on big brand ideology were evident at Source Fashion earlier this month – it was an event that brought together the great and the good of European fashion retail.

Held 14-16 July at London Olympia, topics including the impact of artificial intelligence, new policies, collaboration, and fashion integrity as the fashion sector met to talk responsible sourcing and retail’s approach to sustainability.

According to the show’s organisers, thousands of visitors attended over the three days in west London – with attendees representing brands and retailers such as Amazon, AX Paris, Boden, Clarks, Debenhams, French Connection, Hunter, Jaded, Lyle & Scott, Paul Smith, PepsiCo, Reiss, River Island, Sainsburys, and The Very Group.

On stage offering the latest industry insights were the likes of Nick Beighton, former ASOS CEO, and Jo Mourant, head of sustainability & product at Next. Below, we’ve picked out some of the key talking points from the conference.

“Purpose should drive profit”

Ex-ASOS CEO Nick Beighton was in conversation with fashion activist Caryn Franklin, and he said: “Leadership isn’t a right, it’s a privilege, you have to do something with it.”

Asked by Franklin how to educate shareholders out of profit greed, he responded: “I’m an unashamed capitalist but capitalism creates problems and issues. Conscious capitalism overall gets better results.”

He added: “I reconcile it with creating a purpose for a brand. Purpose should drive profit, not profit driving purpose. We can use capitalism to change the agenda and future-proof business. It can enrich and change the ecosystem.”

Pressed on the subject of degrowth and the idea society needs to produce less in order to make true strides with sustainability, Beighton responded: “I don’t think we should make less, I think we should make better.

“Make garments in a transparent way where you know where the materials are grown, you know the conditions of the factory. Imagine the farm and factory had glass walls – if you could see everything going on in there would you still want that garment?”

Beighton continued: “There is no competitive advantage to abusing the planet. We need to collaborate for better solutions on everything from packaging to plastics.”

And on proximity sourcing, he commented: “The P&L works, the agility works, there’s nothing faster than UK sourcing. It’s very important to the future of fashion to encourage more craft in the UK.”

Who, what, why?

Mourant discussed in detail hers and Next’s responsible sourcing journey and highlighted legislation and the need for accurate data as challenges the industry faces today while talking up sharing best practice and collaborating as opportunities in this space.

Jack Stratten, head of trends at retail consultancy Insider Trends, warned delegates “the more brands there are, the less loyalty there is” – and urged retailers to “invest in stories”.

He said: “Customers don’t just want cheaper.

“Cheap doesn’t tell a story. There’s a need for something more distinct in a sea of sameness that consumers are struggling to navigate.”

Mike Coates, assistant director of fashion retail enforcement at the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), a business watchdog, underlined the importance of brands avoiding greenwashing – the CMA has established a Green Claims Code that allows organisations to check if they are overstating the sustainability credentials of a product or range in their marketing and wider messaging.

“Businesses are going to have to come together and collaborate to achieve the step changes they need to make,” he remarked.

“It is the holy grail to be able to show the consumer an entire product journey.”

Elsewhere, Hayley Shore, design director at PepsiCo – yes you heard right, PepsiCo, the drinks maker – spoke at the event about responsible sourcing in fashion.

During her session, she displayed pieces from a new Pepsi fashion collection which has mostly been produced in the UK or Europe, with offcuts and waste set to be re-used in the next collection. The garments have come to market as part of a strategy to support the PepsiCo rebrand with fashion merchandise.

“It’s important to ask ‘who’s making it, what’s the footprint, what’s the products lifecycle, is it fit for purpose, why are we making it, and are we giving ourselves enough lead times to create it in a better way’,” she explained.

“It’s also about educating our partners to invest more in the process of making things better.”

Franklin and Tina Wetshi, creative director of research agency Colechi, also held a conversation live on stage where they discussed the importance of thinking deeper about fashion’s relationship with the natural world.

Wetshi said: “We understand the link with food, that what we eat affects us, but it’s not an open topic in fashion. 

“Fashion needs to operate within nature, and we need to re-humanise it.”

What a fascinating show it was, featuring some great insights.

Considering the compelling output from the Retail Technology Show in April, it is clear the European fashion industry is laser focused on bettering itself and finding ways for continuous improvement. What an opportunity for those currently working in the sector to shape a new direction, and be a force for good in the years ahead.

Indeed, there is always more that can be done – and we at BlueCherry are here to help any fashion, apparel, footwear, or accessories brand improve their systems, build better supplier relationships, and transform their current strategies with the latest technology as they embark on their journeys.

Why not connect with one of our team today to understand how BlueCherry’s PLM and ERP can help you become a better business, map out your sourcing strategy, and strengthen your relationships throughout the fashion value chain.