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Interview with Mr Alessandro Bedeschi

Mr Alessandro Bedeschi
Mr Alessandro Bedeschi
Secretary General
European Association of Fashion Retailers - AEDT
European Association of Fashion Retailers - AEDT

Incorporated with the objectives of coordinating, promoting and defending European fashion and footwear retailers' interests, European Association of Fashion Retailers (AEDT) is an association engaged in activities of ;representing the Members vis-à-vis the European institutions, other international social, economic or cultural organizations, public authorities and the public opinion ; exchanging and disseminating information among its Members through meetings, conferences and newsletters ; organizing, promoting and participating in European projects, studies and events ; and fostering business relations with European and international stakeholders. AEDT supports European Service Pass and is associate member of International Apparel Federation (IAF). It represents more than 400,000 large, medium and small-sized European retail enterprises specialized in fashion and footwear. Born on September 9, 1974 and Italian by nationality, Mr Alessandro Bedeschi is the Secretary General for AEDT. After High-School Diploma from “Giordano Bruno” Scientific High-School in Venice, he has done his Advanced Degree in Political Science with specialization in International Politics, University of Bologna in the year 2000. He also has Master’s degree in Product Management for the Apparel/Textile Sector, University of Bologna. Mr Bedeschi was promoted as Secretary General for AEDT in 2004. Earlier to this, from March 2003 to August 2004, he had been European affairs adviser. Besides, since 2005, he is also a Member of the Board of AADLT – Association for the Advancement and Dissemination of Leapfrog Technology, and the Director of EUROPRETAIL – European Institute of Research & Development and Services for the Retail Sector. Since 2004, he has been European Affairs Adviser for FENA – European Federation of Furniture Retailers as well. Speaking Face2Face, Mr Bedeschi throws light on current fashion retail industry, and the role AEDT plays offering various valuable services.

sir, could you please explain in brief the activities of AEDT?

AEDT carries out several activities. On one hand, our association represents European fashion and footwear retailers vis-à-vis the European institutions, and follows the most relevant European policy and regulatory issues. On the other hand, many initiatives focus on fashion-specific issues with the aim to support and foster the competitiveness of the fashion retail sector. Ensuring a timely and effective communication and coordination with our national member organisations is also a priority
 

One of the aims of AEDT is to organize, promote and participate in European projects, studies and events. What exactly goes behind this entire process?

Through these activities, AEDT helps its members to better face the new challenges and opportunities of the markets. We promote the dialogue and the cooperation among all the actors of the supply chain and the service providers in order to stimulate innovation and anticipate the needs of the sector. For example, we participate in projects on education & training and ICT, we are involved in sectoral studies carried out by the European Commission, we organized a conference on the future of the fashion fairs.

Besides fostering business relations what part does AEDT play in public domain or Corporate Social Responsibility issues?

Corporate Social Responsibility is a very important issue for us. In 2002, with the support of the European Commission, AEDT organized a survey among fashion retailers and published a handbook in order to start an awareness raising campaign. We also participated in the international conference on “Mutual Acceptance & Harmonisation of Requirements in the Textiles & Apparel Industry” organized by the Sustainable Trade and Innovation Centre. One of the main problems is the existence of too many CSR standards and codes of conduct. In this regard, AEDT is active in supporting solutions that increase the level of transparency and effectiveness of CSR schemes.
Published on: 21/05/2007

DISCLAIMER: All views and opinions expressed in this column are solely of the interviewee, and they do not reflect in any way the opinion of Fibre2Fashion.com.