Interview
Mr Jim Liaskos - Chairman, The Council of Textile & Fashion Industries of Australia Limited (TFIA)

The Council of Textile & Fashion Industries of Australia Limited (TFIA), a not-for-profit member-driven organization is the peak representative body for textile, clothing, footwear and fashion industries in Australia, and as the voice of industry it focuses on ensuring that Australian decision-makers and major political parties are conscious of the demands and issues facing the domestic Textile, Clothing & Footwear industry.

Representing the interests of Australia’s textile, clothing and footwear industries to Australian and international governments, as well as the wider community, the TFIA welcomes active participation from all domestic suppliers into the development of State and Federal Government policy setting. This encompasses industry policy, environmental policy, trade policy and training & education policy and implementation.

Mr Jim Liaskos is the Chairman of TFIA. Mr Liaskos has a long history with the TFIA. He commenced his career in the textile and clothing industry with Pacific Dunlop in 1989 which was the largest publicly listed company in Australia involved in the manufacturing and marketing of textile, clothing and footwear products. Since that time he has managed and actively invested in a diverse range of businesses in the industry, all of which have been leaders in their fields of endeavour. These roles have been executed with a strong focus on improving the innovative and productive capacity of these businesses and the industry through the novel use of technology and with an emphasis on quality and performance.

Presently, Mr Liaskos is also the Managing Partner at United Bonded Fabrics P/L (Australias’ largest non-woven products manufacturer). He had been MD for Charles Parsons Holdings, (country’s largest distributor of apparel and industrial fabrics and textile goods). He has also rendered the responsibilities as COO at Austrim Textiles- which was one of Australia’s largest manufacturer knitted and woven fabrics for apparel, automotive and industrial applications.

Mr Liaskos has a Bachelor degree in Engineering and a Masters in Business Administration. He is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, and is a Fellow of the Williamson Leadership Program.

Besides TFIA, he is an Executive Member for PIMA, Past VP of Federation of Automotive Products Manufactuers– Sth Region, Past Member of Expert Reference Group on TCF&L Industry to Victorian Minister for Manufacturing, Past Convener of Australian Tyre Recycler’s Association, Past Council Member of Australian Council of Recyclers, Past Member of Waste management advisory group to Victorian Minister for Business and employment, and Past Convener of Leadership Victoria Alumni.

Mr Liaskos has also donned awards and achievements namely ‘Businessman of the Year’ -1995 by Hellenic Foundation, Banksia Award for Recycling- 1994, and Gold Banksia Award for Outstanding contribution to the Environment.

Over the years Mr Liaskos’ work has embraced an interesting range of projects, some are: Bookmark Bioshpere Project, and Australian Embassy for East Timor Project

In a talk with Face2Face team, Mr Jim Liaskos brings to light current scenario in Australian TCF industry, and his association’s activities in its benefit.