Uitstel zomersolden 2020
Respect for our sector - the way to slow fashion
All this makes us hope: there is a realization that the time has come to return the respect to the fashion industry. At FFDI we also firmly aim for respectful, (human) dignified work. From design to creation, from shop floor to wardrobe. Design teams in Belgium and around the world invest in quality, creativity and technical research in the development of designs and fit. That work must be rewarded, among other through a full sales period.
The current problem makes us think further about various ecological challenges that the fashion industry currently faces, such as over-consumption, fast fashion and great competition. We already offer an answer to this with our latest brand Furore. With Furore we choose an alternative approach where the terms slow fashion and season-less are central.
Why discount a high-quality design after one season to create a similar design the following season? We want to leave behind the trend of fast fashion and the production of clothing with a very limited lifespan. This shift to the seasonless approach means that there is more time to develop new designs, that the sales sector will have more financial breathing space and that consumers will enjoy a quality piece of clothing for a longer period of time.
Who knows, now that our globe is making us live at a slower pace, slow fashion may also take on a new, and even more valuable meaning.
Sales period shifts to August 1st, 2020
78 companies from the Belgian fashion sector
successfully join forces to change sales legislation
The government responded to this question and decided to postpone the sales until August 1ste. Mimi Lamote, CEO of Mayerline, and Peter Perquy, CEO of Terre Bleu, Gigue and Zilton, who act as spokespersons for the fashion sector, emphasize that this step was necessary to save the Belgian fashion sector.
Why it is so important to shift the sales period
The fashion stores had to close on March 18, 2020 due to COVID-19 and since then the losses have been accumulating day after day. The supplies have been paid, the Autumn and Winter collections are now being produced and need to be pre-financed, next summer's collections are in full preparation and meanwhile no more money is coming in.
Peter Perquy: “If we can open the stores again soon, we know that some large retailers and online players will be inclined to sell as many goods as possible at great discounts to get rid of stock and generate fast cash flow. For Belgian brands and boutiques, however, this is completely different: if we cannot sell our collections at a fully-fledged margin for several months, we have no financial buffer to carry the sales and to absorb some of the interim losses.” That buffer seems to be coming anyway, thanks to the shift of sales to 1 August 2020.
Together we stand strong
