Overview: 10 Must-Read articles from June

Fashion

FashionUnited takes a moment to list its top ten articles of the month June - in case you may have missed them.

1. The Gucci, The Bad, and The Ugly

Gucci has become a touchy subject in some fashion circles. Despite winning the CFDA international designer of the year award in 2016, and revitalizing the 96-year-old house’s image and profits in just two years, providing red carpet gowns for the current crop of starlets, making him Kering’s power player in a volatile luxury market, Alessandro Michele elicits joy and derision in equal measure among designers I know working in the industry. FashionUnited’s contributing editor Jackie Mallon on the luxury fashion house.

2. Hacked By Francisco van Benthum. Designers’ revenge

"Creativity provides solutions to many problems,” says trend analyst Christine Boland. According to her, it’s the creative thinkers caught in apparently hopeless situations that come up with the answers. “We live in turbulent times, in a world turned upside down, which is exactly when creativity reigns supreme, because in times such as these fashion and design provide direction.” In this respect, Hacked By, the relatively new label created by celebrated Dutch designers Alexander van Slobbe and Francisco van Benthum, is a product of these times. Read the story of this upcoming Dutch brand.

3. Carry Somers: 'Transparency is the first step in transforming fashion'

Carry Somers, the founder of Fashion Revolution, visited Uruguay and Argentina earlier this month. During her visit, she hosted a number of lectures and spent her time learning a bit more about the fashion industry in these countries. FashionUnited was given the chance to attend one of her presentations and talk to her about her work at the non-profit organization (NGO) whose aim is to change and improve fashion around the world.

4. 'Alvanon's Fit Movement fits right into our Master Tailor Story'

Amsterdam - “Everything that happens within these doors is part of the world of tailors. This is where people come to discover the true potential they have at their fingertips or improve on the skills they already have,” explains Nannet van der Kleijn, board member of the Master Tailor Institute in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. The sprawling hallways and ateliers of the school, which is nestled in the city’s West side are remarkably quiet for such an immense educational institute. But this level of silence is common, adds Nannet, as everyone who steps through these doors shares a single passion: becoming the best possible tailors they can be.

5.We Wear Culture": 3000 years of world fashion

When Google starts a new project, it usually creates a ripple effect - whether it's e-mail, news, street view and more. Now the California tech giant has embraced the world of fashion with a new platform titled "We Wear Culture" to showcase the best of what the tech world has to offer to create an impressive archive of around 30,000 fashion items that traces the 3,000 years of fashion. In addition, there are about 450 virtual exhibitions on various fashion topics and themes. Find out more about the new initiative below.

6. Why Fashion can no longer ignore the Ecosystem

London - H&M, Nike and Asos were amongst the 13 fashion and textile brands who signed the sustainable cotton pledge earlier this month. Last month, the industry came together at leading denim trade show Kingpins, part of Amsterdam Denim Days, and stirred up the sustainable denim debate. While these are small and honorable steps towards, to truly become sustainable, the fashion and textile industry needs to change the way they operate.

7. Havaianas: Dressing you from ‘toe to head’

"A friend of mine once asked me to bring them a pair of Havaianas and I remembering going ‘What? You want me to bring you a pair of plastic sandals from Brazil? But moving there made me realise how far away I was from the reality of the brand’s influence,” says Guillaume Prou, President and CEO of Havaianas EMEA with a laugh when he remembers his previous opinion of the brand. Nevertheless, Havaianas certainly has come a long way since the launch of its first flip-flop in Brazil, over 55 years ago.

8. Cultural Appropriation could soon be Illegal

Representatives of over 180 different indigenous cultures recently called upon the United Nations (UN) to outlaw cultural appropriation in fashion at a meeting in Geneva. Should their calls be heard, the fashion industry will need to start thinking twice about its use of designs from around the world as it has traditionally been perceived as public enemy number one when it comes to misuse of others’ cultural property.

9.Fashion's biggest brands commit to new Bangladesh Accord

To guarantee that efforts are sustained beyond May 2018, the time when the five-year duration of the Bangladesh Accord on Fire and Building Safety will run out, a new Bangladesh Accord has been announced at the OECD Global Forum on Responsible Business Conduct in Paris.

10. Wool and 3D Knitwear Reshape The Future With Zero Waste

Before an audience of well-heeled design professionals munching on avocado toast inside the luxurious creative space of Manhattan’s NeueHouse, a panel of Fashion Customization Pioneers reveal the results of an interesting partnership. Michelle Lee is Head of Americas for The Woolmark Company, Veronika Harbick is a fashion tech entrepreneur and founder of 3D knitwear brand, Thursday Finest, and Timo Rissanen is Professor of Fashion Design and Sustainability at Parsons. Let the illuminations begin.

And a bonus: Timeline - the rise and rise of Iris van Herpen

Iris van Herpen is said to be a jack of all trades: designer, artist, couturier, innovator, and futurist. Her one-of-a-kind designs, which seamlessly blend fashion with technology, have earned her worldwide recognition and critical acclaim. Learn more about her work and career from FashionUnited’s interactive timeline.

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