Fashion and Sustainability are the #TrendingTopics at the Fashion Futures Live Forum in Saudi Arabia

The celebrated event brought together some of the sharpest minds in the industry, planting the seed for eco-friendly solutions in the fashion industry

What does the future of the fashion industry hold for Saudi Arabia? How can the Kingdom build a sustainable sector relying on the expertise of its youth and the experiences of other pioneers in the field? What are the best ways to nurture and celebrate local crafts?

These were the questions discussed during the Fashion Futures Live forum, which was held virtually this year and hosted the most prominent global experts in the fashion industry, incorporating many dialogues that touched upon entrepreneurship, transparency in material sourcing and the workforce.

This year’s programme was held under the theme Fashion Futures: Moving Towards Sustainability, Diversity & Innovation, and featured several panel discussions. Keynote speakers included prominent names from the fashion industry at the global and Saudi levels, led by Her Royal Highness Princess Noura bint Faisal Al Saud, Sector Development Director at the Fashion Commission.

HRH Princess Noura bint Faisal Al Saud, Sector Development Director at the Fashion Commission, watches the Fashion Futures Live broadcast in Riyadh

“We all have to be more concerned, more informed and aware, as the Fashion Commission leads us towards a sustainable future in the fashion industry,” Her Royal Highness said during her keynote speech. Fashion Futures Live was streamed for six hours in Arabic and English, providing an opportunity for the largest segment of entrepreneurs and young minds to benefit from the expertise of industry leaders.

The first of these lessons was from Morten Lehmann, Chief Sustainability Officer of Global Fashion Agenda (GFA), who delivered a speech stressing the need to act in accordance with the the Paris Agreement. “This cannot be delayed any longer; especially that an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure. The positive and promising agenda of the fashion sector aims to reduce the environmental damages caused by the industry, and as a result, we hope that we will be able to build a thriving fashion sector, a productive economy and a healthy environment at the same time.”

The fashion industry is arguably one of the most harmful sectors to the environment, and this conference helped provide clear solutions to the global issue. Morten emphasised that choosing recycled materials is one of the most efficient solutions to reduce the industry’s environmental impact. This begins with educating consumers and entrepreneurs who want to offer sustainable products, as noted by Giulio Bonazzi, CEO and Chairman of Aquafil Group, during a panel discussion on ‘environmental efforts in fashion through entrepreneurship.’

During the panel, Giulio explained that sustainability is based on choosing materials that can be recycled. “We must redesign the environmental structure of society by educating the consumers about the properties of sustainable materials and how to use and recycle them well,” he said. Carry Somers, co-founder and Global Operations Director of Fashion Revolution, a nonprofit UK-based global movement, addressed the need to focus on the materials used along with consumer education as the main points for promoting sustainability in the fashion sector.

HRH Princess Reema bint Bandar Al Saud, Saudi Ambassador to the United States of America, speaks at Fashion Futures’ inaugural event in Riyadh in 2019

Speaking about her grandmother’s suffering while working as a seamstress in difficult conditions, Carry highlighted the women and children who work beyond their capacity for very low wages. “Transparency is what our industry lacks the most, which is evident from the statistics,” she expressed. “Initially, only 12.5% of brands published their data, while this percentage has increased to 40% today.

This is relatively good, but we need more. Even if we overlooked numbers and statistics, we cannot forget the experiences recounted by workers who were forced to work with low wages and in an unhealthy work environment. Stories are the perfect way to encourage people to make the right decisions.” One of the main lessons learnt during the event came from Her Royal Highness Princess Reema bint Bandar Al Saud, KSA Ambassador to the US, and among the first to support the fashion industry in Saudi Arabia.

She was hosted on the closing panel discussion with Susan Rockefeller – the president and trustee of Oceana, a nonprofit marine conservation foundation – commenting on the first steps towards establishing sustainability in Saudi Arabia. “We have no historic fashion industry that is entrenched in the way that it is in other countries, so the question we have to pose for ourselves is, where are we going to start?” said Princess Reema.

She called on major companies to provide environmentally friendly options in the packaging and manufacture of their products so that we can fully solve this crisis, saying: “We live in a time that places great importance on creativity and innovation, and I look forward to seeing what the future has to offer in this industry.”

The Fashion Commission team at Fashion Futures Live in Riyadh in June 2021

The importance of empathising with the environment and with the workers who make our clothes was a big focus, with the goal to build a better future for the next generation. “We had the opportunity to start from scratch and turn a new page,” said Princess Reema. “I call on the fashion sector to be a beacon of hope for consumers, communities and the world at large.”

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a huge impact on the fashion industry around the world, with many brands incurring huge losses due to lockdown measures and general closures. Today, with the vaccine available in most countries, the sector has started to recover – evident through fashion shows and fashion weeks, including Fashion Futures.

“Many countries succeeded in rebuilding the fashion sector after wars, and for our part, we have fought a real war against this virus, and we will definitely have a promising sector with our efforts,” expressed Princess Reema. “It is easy to keep walking the same path, however, it is very difficult to change perceptions and reshape the future.

Through this event, we are not only addressing designers, but also the fashion industry as a whole, and telling the youth that there are unlimited opportunities, whether you are interested in creative, engineering, or even economic and business fields. The fashion sector is full of opportunities to embrace all these talents.”

So, what does the future of the fashion industry look like in the Kingdom? It is necessary to keep these dialogues alive and exchange experiences. As Burak Cakmak, CEO of the Fashion Commission, said in his closing speech: “These meetings have the potential to spark cooperation and exchange of ideas that will enable us to build a sustainable fashion sector across the globe.”

The live Fashion Futures event is set to return to Riyadh before the end of 2021.

From Harper’s Bazaar Saudi Summer 2021 Issue