NEWS & OPINION
Meet the Team | Hattie Rowan
Hattie is a recent graduate who is part of SFW’s Communications Team responsible for the website and newsletters. She is passionate about finding more sustainable ways to uphold fashion and other industries, and renounce the outdated consumerist-driven way of life. Hattie believes that it is time we move away from fast fashion, and rediscover the art form in more sustainable, ethical ways.
Meet the Team |Sam Peliza
Sam works with the Communications Team; reaching out to industries, the media and influencers to spread the word about SFW. Her background in fashion, beauty and vintage retail - and her passion for the creative repurposing and upcycling of clothing and other products - inspired Sam to join SFW. We feel very lucky to have her on our team, helping to spread the word of sustainable fashion and make it an accessible and inclusive movement for everyone.
Global Goals Week and Sustainable Fashion
This year’s Global Goals Week is more important than ever as the world’s sustainable development progress has been hindered by COVID-19. The goals were developed by the UN five years ago, and support many of the ideas and aims of sustainable fashion. Both seek an inclusive and equal approach to sustainable development, and both are crucial to overcoming the environmental crisis.
Is a Sustainable Fashion Week Possible?
Can a Fashion Week even be sustainable? Georgia investigates the harmful environmental impact that the annual fashion weeks across the globe can have, from the physical event itself, to the mindsets that the events encourage; suggesting that fashion is ‘seasonal’ and therefore encouraging more and more consumption. However, cities like Helsinki are pioneering sustainable fashion weeks, inspiring other cities to follow suit.
Meet the Team | Ben Butling
Ben is SFW’s Digital Programme Lead, responsible for creating content using recorded interviews and How To workshops. Ben is a young creative who works in and around Bristol as an image consultant, photographer and stylist. He strongly believes that it is time for a change in the fashion landscape, including more representation, education surrounding manufacturing and a real effort to alter the perception around single use clothing.
The Rise in the Second Hand Trend
The world is seeing a rise in second hand shopping as consumers seek cheaper, more sustainably-sourced alternatives to fast fashion. In the US alone, the resale market has grown 21 times faster than the new apparel market in the last 3 years. Buying second hand has several environmental and social advantages. It could also mean that fashion brands begin to provide more environmentally-conscious clothing as they seek to keep up with the growing second hand trend.
Meet the Team | Amelia Crews
Amelia Crews is the Ambassador Lead for SFW. She is a recent graduate in Business and Digital Marketing and has joined SFW because of her love of clothes and her desire that we learn to see the beautiful value in pre-used clothing. She believes that, rather than supporting a constant stream of new clothing, we should learn to create new from the old and find more value behind what we wear.
Oxfam’s Second Hand September
This month, Oxfam launched its #secondhandseptember campaign; asking people to pledge to only shop second hand for 30 days or more. The campaign aims to enhance sustainable fashion and help decrease the 336,000 tons of clothing waste which end up in UK landfill each year. Our blog suggests some online stores which make it easy to shop second hand.
Meet the Team | Alex Barrett
Alex has joined our Communication Team to look after Sustainable Fashion Week's social media channels. Having worked for the fashion industry, Alex understands first-hand the destructive environmental impact it has. Her passion for sustainable fashion, and embracing sustainable lifestyle choices where one can, is what drove Alex to join SFW.
Sustainable School Uniforms
Last year, Labour Behind the Label launched a campaign demanding more transparency from school uniform supplier Trutex. The campaign was hugely successful and shines a light on where our school uniforms come from and how we can make more eco-friendly choices when it comes to buying our Back to School kit.
Meet the Team | Claire Haines
Claire Haines has joined the SFW team as our Programming Lead for City Wide Events. Her background in event management and charity makes her the perfect fit for this role. Claire loves fashion and the outdoors, but hates waste and is constantly learning about new ways to tackle sustainability issues.
Meet the Team | Holly Hames
Holly has joined the SFW team as our Programming Lead; planning the marketplace at our Hub Event and putting together a programme of workshops. She has a background in law and for 9 years has run the vintage clothes store @vinrougevintage.