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Kering unveils sustainable innovation award
25 Dec '18
4 min read
Courtesy: Kering
Kering and the innovation platform, Plug and Play, have introduced the Kering Sustainable Innovation Award to fast-track sustainable innovation in the luxury and apparel sectors in Greater China. It offers comprehensive mentorship and networking, travel to Europe and the US to meet with fashion and innovation leaders, and a € 100,000 grant to the top winner.
The award was launched in Beijing. Inspired by Kering’s motto Crafting Tomorrow’s Luxury, the award programme will identify promising change-making startups and technologies in Greater China that have the potential to disrupt the current textile value chain, bringing a positive environmental and social impact. In particular, Kering seeks startups that address challenges in terms of alternative raw materials, green supply chain, retail and use and the circular economy.
Start-up scouting, due-diligence and a winner selection process will take place from December 2018 to August 2019, under the leadership of Marie-Claire Daveu, chief sustainability officer and head of international institutional affairs of Kering. Three winners will be selected by an expert jury in September 2019 and announced at a Kering sponsored Sustainable Innovation Conference and award ceremony in autumn 2019.
The jury has individuals with extensive knowledge of the fashion, luxury, entrepreneurship, sustainability and innovation fields. The jury includes Jinqing Cai, president of Kering Greater China; Burak Cakmak, dean of fashion at Parsons School of Design; Hung Huang, a writer and top media influencer; Ma Jun, founding director of the Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs; Katrin Ley, managing director of Fashion for Good; Susan Rockefeller, a well-known figure in the world of art, philanthropy and sustainability; Wang Shi, an entrepreneur focused on green construction, forest conservation, biodiversity, and climate change; Jane Zhen Wang, president of Erdos Cashmere Group; and Guoxin Yin, chairman of Chenfeng Group.
The three winners will receive targeted introductions to industry leaders and investors and access to funding opportunities, meetings with and mentorship from Kering Group members and other industry experts, trips to Europe and the US including visits to Kering headquarters in Paris, Kering Group’s Houses, Fashion For Good in Amsterdam as well as Plug and Play Tech Center headquarters in Silicon Valley, California, access to Kering and Plug and Play’s network. The first place winner will also receive a monetary prize of 100,000 euros to develop its project.
“Kering is excited to extend our Plug and Play collaboration to China where we recognise that the entrepreneurial and innovative spirit of Chinese start-ups can offer endless solutions to fashion’s sustainability challenges,” said Marie-Claire Daveu, chief sustainability officer and head of international institutional affairs of Kering. “Innovation and smart problem-solving are critical to reinvent Luxury’s business model as sustainable and through our dedicated Kering Sustainable Innovation Award we hope to catalyse new ideas and solutions in the Greater China region to help us in our mission to do so.”
Jinqing Cai, president of Kering Greater China, commented, “Creating sustainable and ethical fashion is a goal we must work on together. China plays a critical role in pioneering global sustainable practices and can unlock the future of sustainability. This is why Kering wants to empower the new generation of Chinese talents and entrepreneurs to explore collaborative and game-changing solutions with decision-makers in China, in order to address the environmental challenges and move the fashion industry in a more sustainable direction.”
“Plug and Play really values sustainability and has been actively involved in sustainability field in Europe, America and China since we started our business. We are excited to see Kering extending its sustainable fashion effort to China with us. We look forward to finding and investing in excellent startups in retail and use, new materials, energy efficiency, green supply chain and other areas, and enlarging their impact through the Kering Sustainable Innovation Award in China,” said Peter Xu, executive director and CEO of Plug and Play China. (SV)
The award was launched in Beijing. Inspired by Kering’s motto Crafting Tomorrow’s Luxury, the award programme will identify promising change-making startups and technologies in Greater China that have the potential to disrupt the current textile value chain, bringing a positive environmental and social impact. In particular, Kering seeks startups that address challenges in terms of alternative raw materials, green supply chain, retail and use and the circular economy.
Start-up scouting, due-diligence and a winner selection process will take place from December 2018 to August 2019, under the leadership of Marie-Claire Daveu, chief sustainability officer and head of international institutional affairs of Kering. Three winners will be selected by an expert jury in September 2019 and announced at a Kering sponsored Sustainable Innovation Conference and award ceremony in autumn 2019.
The jury has individuals with extensive knowledge of the fashion, luxury, entrepreneurship, sustainability and innovation fields. The jury includes Jinqing Cai, president of Kering Greater China; Burak Cakmak, dean of fashion at Parsons School of Design; Hung Huang, a writer and top media influencer; Ma Jun, founding director of the Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs; Katrin Ley, managing director of Fashion for Good; Susan Rockefeller, a well-known figure in the world of art, philanthropy and sustainability; Wang Shi, an entrepreneur focused on green construction, forest conservation, biodiversity, and climate change; Jane Zhen Wang, president of Erdos Cashmere Group; and Guoxin Yin, chairman of Chenfeng Group.
The three winners will receive targeted introductions to industry leaders and investors and access to funding opportunities, meetings with and mentorship from Kering Group members and other industry experts, trips to Europe and the US including visits to Kering headquarters in Paris, Kering Group’s Houses, Fashion For Good in Amsterdam as well as Plug and Play Tech Center headquarters in Silicon Valley, California, access to Kering and Plug and Play’s network. The first place winner will also receive a monetary prize of 100,000 euros to develop its project.
“Kering is excited to extend our Plug and Play collaboration to China where we recognise that the entrepreneurial and innovative spirit of Chinese start-ups can offer endless solutions to fashion’s sustainability challenges,” said Marie-Claire Daveu, chief sustainability officer and head of international institutional affairs of Kering. “Innovation and smart problem-solving are critical to reinvent Luxury’s business model as sustainable and through our dedicated Kering Sustainable Innovation Award we hope to catalyse new ideas and solutions in the Greater China region to help us in our mission to do so.”
Jinqing Cai, president of Kering Greater China, commented, “Creating sustainable and ethical fashion is a goal we must work on together. China plays a critical role in pioneering global sustainable practices and can unlock the future of sustainability. This is why Kering wants to empower the new generation of Chinese talents and entrepreneurs to explore collaborative and game-changing solutions with decision-makers in China, in order to address the environmental challenges and move the fashion industry in a more sustainable direction.”
“Plug and Play really values sustainability and has been actively involved in sustainability field in Europe, America and China since we started our business. We are excited to see Kering extending its sustainable fashion effort to China with us. We look forward to finding and investing in excellent startups in retail and use, new materials, energy efficiency, green supply chain and other areas, and enlarging their impact through the Kering Sustainable Innovation Award in China,” said Peter Xu, executive director and CEO of Plug and Play China. (SV)
Fibre2Fashion News Desk – India
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