FUTURE FABRICS EXPO 9½ | 22ND JUNE - 2ND JULY, 2021, LONDON, UK
FUTURE FABRICS EXPO 9½ POWERED BY THE FUTURE FABRICS VIRTUAL EXPO
From the 22nd June – 2nd July 2021, we hosted the Future Fabrics Expo 9½ in London, showcasing thousands of sustainably produced textiles and materials, all contextualised with sustainability information and open-source tools. We were delighted with the engagement and how the opportunity to physically experience materials was appreciated. The integration of the physical materials in the expo with our digital platform via QR codes, together with visitors joining from all over the world via our online platform was a success. The audience represents the scope of the industry: ranging from luxury brands and high street retailers to start-ups, academics and students. Thank you to all those who attended our Future Fabrics Expo 9½ both physically and virtually! This interim Expo was a one-stop destination of sustainable sourcing both in-person at our London showroom accompanied also with digital online panel discussions available through our online platform Future Fabrics VIRTUAL Expo. Our London showroom Expo offered the opportunity to discover thousands of best-practice, sustainably-produced materials in a diverse range of fibre categories, all accompanied with sustainability information and tools, supplier insights, enabling exploration of the latest collections and sustainability initiatives from our featured mills and suppliers. Alongside this our edited innovations display presented a curated showcase of diverse, emerging and commercially available innovations exemplifying key material themes for the year. Future Fabrics Expo 9½ is aimed at supporting fashion professionals seeking to understand sustainability impacts and source a wide range of more responsibly-produced textiles and materials for a positive and responsible fashion future. All material qualities are supported with detailed sustainability information and contextual content.
DISCOVER THE FUTURE FABRICS EXPO 9½ FULL PROGRAMME HERE
WATCH ALL THE FUTURE FABRICS EXPO 9½ DISCUSSIONS VIA OUR VIRTUAL EXPO PLATFORM! SIGN UP TODAY!
NATURE-POSITIVE MATERIALS DISPLAY: A POSITIVE FUTURE OF FASHION
The Nature-Positive Materials display makes its debut at Future Fabrics Expo 9½ in London! The display spotlights materials that are nature-positive and grown in regenerative organic agricultural systems. Attendees were able to discover Wildlife Friendly Certified® materials, materials farmed with regenerative farming practices, and ‘forgotten’ plant and animal fibres that can play an important role in diversifying the fibre basket and work to restore our planet’s biodiversity.
Listen to the panel discussion with Julie Stein, Wildlife Friendly Enterprise Network, Dr. Helen Crowley, Kering Group, and Nina Marenzi, Founder of The Sustainable Angle’s Future Fabrics Expo, on “Nature- Positive Materials: Best Practice with wildlife at the core.”
“It is the sourcing of raw materials that is the direct interface between business and nature. Through sustainable sourcing and reconfiguring supply chains, we can help drive change in agriculture, mining, and forestry, and promote regenerative, wildlife-friendly approaches to production.”
PARLEY FOR OCEANS AT THE FUTURE FABRICS EXPO
Opening remarks from Cyrill Gutsch, Founder and CEO of Parley of the Oceans:
“We are the material innovators. We are the creators. We are encouraged more than ever now to use that moment and open the door to a New Age, to a new era of materials, to call out the Material Revolution. To let all these harmful toxic ingredients go. And to start a new way of business, a new economy that is based on collaboration and eco-innovation.”
INNOVATIONS AT THE EXPO: A NEW MATERIALS LANDSCAPE
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On Friday 25th June, The Sustainable Angle’s Curator and Educational Consultant, Amanda Johnson, moderated a panel discussion on: “Demystifying New Materials Innovations” with Dr Amanda Parkes, Chief Innovation Officer at Pangaia, and Suzanne Lee, Founder and CEO of Biofabricate.
“The exciting new generation of bio based synthetics are actually sequestering carbon and inevitably will have a lower carbon footprint, so that they can make a significant contribution to climate change. Currently 45% of fabrics used in fashion products are polyester- that’s almost half of all materials are currently oil derived, so if we could flip that 45% that would be a big carbon impact for the fashion industry.”
Suzanne Lee, Founder and CEO at:
VISITORS WERE ABLE TO EXPLORE THOUSANDS OF MATERIALS AT OUR FUTURE FABRICS EXPO SHOWROOM….
LATEST COLLECTIONS AND SUSTAINABILITY INITIATIVES OF FEATURED MILLS AND SUPPLIERS!
discover our FUTURE FABRICS EXPO 91/2 EXHIBITORS!
KEY THEMES OF THE FUTURE FABRICS EXPO 9½
More mills and suppliers who are producing sustainably and responsibly
Our materials showcase continues to expand every year as an increasing number of mills and suppliers prioritise sustainable textile solutions and integrate renewable resources into production.
Are you a mill and supplier interested in exhibiting at the Future Fabrics Expo? Contact us to find out more information or sign up today!
discover our past future fabrics expos!
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NOTE: The Sustainable Angle would like to warn visitors and exhibitors of the Future Fabrics Expo about unauthorised companies offering lists of delegates attending our events: this is unauthorised and illegal. Our database and website safety features have been checked and have not been breached. False claims are being made to entice people to purchase data. Should you receive an email with the suffixes or any other unfamiliar source, please note that these entities are in no way affiliated with The Sustainable Angle, the Future Fabrics Expo, or its official shows or conferences. The lists offered are inaccurate and compiled or acquired fraudulently and in contravention of data protection regulations. The use of our association name and event names by these companies has been made without our authorization. We have taken immediate action in response and further ask that delegates and visitors be cautious. We encourage you to contact us when receiving these types of solicitations.
8th FUTURE FABRICS EXPO 24-25th, JANUARY 2019
The Sustainable Angle’s Future Fabrics Expo is the largest dedicated showcase of sustainable materials for the fashion and textile industry in Europe. The expo featured thousands of commercially-available fabrics and materials from suppliers who are offering innovative solutions with a low environmental footprint.
Our biggest-ever edition was at a new venue of 22,000 sq ft at Victoria House in London, WC1.
Through the resources and activities showcased at the Expo, The Sustainable Angle aims to promote and connect materials suppliers with visionary designers and brands, who realise that fashion can have a positive impact upon nature and communities by working with safe, renewable materials and responsible practices throughout the supply chain.
- Over 5000 commercially-available fabrics and materials with a reduced environmental impact on display.
- Popular Seminar Programme series running alongside the expo, featuring speakers from some of the most influential organisations in sustainable textiles and fashion.
- Best-practice core exhibitors and manufacturers with individual booths.
- Innovation Hub, including a collaboration with Fashion for Good-Plug and Play Accelerator Programme.
- Two curated areas dedicated to fashion brands who are integrating sustainability at the core of their businesses (one supported by Lenzing Group and one curated by Arizona Muse x RCM Studio).
- Educational background information and sustainability criteria displayed alongside all materials.
- Information zone featuring industry partners such as GOTS and Fashion Revolution.
- Hangout areas including a plant-based café and bookstore.
Read our 8th FFE Round-Up and Highlights >
Seminar Programme
Our annual Seminar Programme featured panel discussions and presentations with key thought leaders, innovators, industry insiders, textiles producers and designers. This year’s guests speakers included:
24th January 2019
- 9.30am: Professor Dilys Williams, Director, Centre for Sustainable Fashion at London College of Fashion
- 11.00am: Panel on Waste and Recycling: Besim Özek, Director, Bossa Denim and Hideaki Nakano, Chief clerk, Toyoshima and Fabrizio Tesi, Comistra
- 12.30pm: Orsola de Castro, Co-founder of Fashion Revolution, in conversation with Claire Bergkamp, Global Director of Sustainability and Innovation, Stella McCartney
- 2.00pm: Matthew Drinkwater, Head of Fashion Innovation Agency, London College of Fashion, in conversation with Emma Scarf, Ventures Analyst, Fashion for Good- Plug and Play Accelerator
- 3.30pm: Krishna Manda, Senior Manager In Sustainability Integration, Lenzing Group, on the company’s approach to circularity
- 5pm: Edwina Ehrman, Senior Curator at the V&A and Curator of Victoria & Albert Museum’s Fashioned From Nature in conversation with Ben Gleisner, Co-founder- Connecting Good (CoGo) and Conscious Consumer Guide on “Is a labelling system going to help shoppers to buy clothes that don’t cost the planet?”
25th January 2019
- 9.30am: Michael Kininmonth, Lenzing Group, on the microplastics problem in fashion
- 11.00am: Arizona Muse, model and sustainability campaigner, moderating the conversation between Tiziano Guardini, Designer, and Adriana Galijasevic, Denim and Sustainability Expert, G-Star RAW, about the challenges and opportunities they face integrating sustainability
- 12.30pm: Lukas Fuchs, Research Analyst – Make Fashion Circular, Ellen MacArthur Foundation, introduction to circular economy and “How to Make Fashion Circular”
followed by a conversation with Sergi Masip, Sustainable Development, Hallotex, on circular fashion in practice from the perspective of a supplier - 2.00pm: Seminar panel on innovation: Paulo Amaury, Nova Kaeru, Matthias Foessel, CEO, Beyond Surface Technologies and Ina Budde, Founder of Circular Fashion
- 3.30pm: Panel discussion about the realities of producing materials in China: Enrico Forin, Advance Denim, Thecla Loh, Shokay and Tommaso Rull, Profits Fund Global
- 4.30pm: Amanda Johnston, Curator, The Sustainable Angle’s Future Fabrics Expo, presenting a lecture to students
Panels will be moderated by Clare Press, presenter of the Wardrobe Crisis podcast and Australian VOGUE’s Sustainability Editor-at-Large, Arizona Muse, model and sustainability campaigner, and Bel Jacobs, ethical fashion journalist and former fashion editor for Metro.
Core Exhibitors
See the core exhibitors and sponsors that were shown alongside the curated showcase of 5000 materials:
core-exhibitors for the #FUTUREFABRICSEXPO
Materials
Our innovative materials and fabrics on display include:
organic-cotton, regenerated cellulosics, recycled pre / post-consumer textiles, low-impact dyes, vegan leather, materials derived from algae, agricultural food waste…and more!
Since 2011, the Expo has facilitated and supported sustainable sourcing practices, enabling fashion brands to begin diversifying their fabrics and materials and lowering environmental impacts.
See our Past Future Fabrics Expos!
