From the Sector

In-store Asia, a trade fair for retail resources and investments in store design, visual merchandising and in-store marketing on the Indian subcontinent will again be held in Mumbai from 13 to 15 June 2024. Over the course of the 15 years of its existence it has become established as the biggest get-together of retail decision-makers in India. Here, over 4,500 players from retail, consulting and services, manufacturers as well as retail solution providers come together.

Visitors to In-store Asia have the opportunity to discover a wide variety of exhibitors showcasing their products and solutions for the retail sectors including:

• Point-of-Purchase (POP) displays and interactive flatscreens
• Visual Merchandising (VM) and store fittings
• Signage and graphic design solutions
• Retail technologies for improving customer retention
• Tailor-made store design services
• Start-up initiatives for the retail sector

The 2-day conference at In-store Asia provides a platform for discussions about current retail trends in India and the world over. More than 40 key speakers from India and abroad will share their forecasts, latest trends and use cases on the topics of retail markets, retail experience design, sustainability, visual merchandising, retail technology and store fitting under the inspiring motto “Connected, Collaborative, Conscious”.

Highlights at the trade fair amongst others include the VM&RD Retail Design Awards and the VM Challenge, two events that honour special achievements and innovations in visual merchandising and store fitting. The VM&RD Retail Design Awards acknowledge outstanding store fitting projects in a total of 24 categories. The VM Challenge is a unique live window display contest for the visual merchandising community where six teams compete to dress a window on a given theme.

• C.L.A.S.S. launches the Manifesto for Responsible Fashion and kicks off the CALL TO ACTION of C.L.A.S.S. ICON 2021
• What does it mean to be a “game changer” in green fashion?
• What are the false myths of eco-fashion and what are the guidelines for innovating while safeguarding the planet? And how do you tell the story behind a sustainable fashion collection?

An annual competition to reward a visionary creative who combines design, responsible innovation and communication, capable of raising contemporary consumer awareness of the new values of sustainable fashion. This is the Call to Action launched to find the C.L.A.S.S. ICON 2021 by Giusy Bettoni of C.L.A.S.S. in the Smart Voices panel "C.L.A.S.S. ICON: Award and Manifesto for Responsible Fashion", moderated by the green journalist Diana de Marsanich, and starring, on the 10th February, the fashion designer Gilberto Calzolari, recipient of the international award for creative visionaries in the world of fashion C.L.A.S.S. ICON Award 2020, and Federico Poletti, Marketing and Communication Director of WHITE SHOW.

C.L.A.S.S. Manifesto  

During the Smart Voice, the C.L.A.S.S. Manifesto for Responsible Fashion, the 2021 edition of the C.L.A.S.S. ICON competition and the Sustainability Formula were presented.

C.L.A.S.S. ICON Award is an international award for visionary creatives in the fashion world who are able to convey the values of sustainability not only to fashion professionals, but also to the wider public: consumers. "We created C.L.A.S.S. ICON to reward visionary designers who create their collections by combining design, innovation and responsibility and who are able to communicate the values behind their garments authentically and effectively to consumers. It's time for storymaking and storytelling to align, otherwise it's just greenwashing" says Giusy Bettoni.

From 15th of February to 15th of April it will be possible to apply by sending an email to classicon@classecohub.org, with a description and objectives of the brand, the sustainability values adopted and the strategy, the designer's profile, a photo-video story of the latest collection, and any previous awards won (all info on http://www.classecohub.org).

During the panel, designer Gilberto Calzolari, the first winner of the first C.L.A.S.S. ICON Award, shared his vision for responsible fashion and his current projects. "My brand is a laboratory of experimentation. I create fashion to open conversations and change the way people behave and think. My creativity, from the choice of fabrics and processes to the image I decide to communicate, are the weapons at my disposal. Since the beginning, I have been really excited to team up with C.L.A.S.S. in order to share a common and challenging journey, with the perspective to be part of a constantly growing network activating mutual support. I have always thought at my collections as a call to action for a better future and now more than ever my mission as C.L.A.S.S. ICON is to make people understand that commitment and sustainability can and must go hand in hand with beauty and elegance. The adage 'kalòs kai agathòs' is one of the classical teachings that should never be forgotten: aesthetics, in my opinion, is inseparable from ethics. That's why I don't just target professionals, but also the end consumer, fashionistas and beyond" says Gilberto.

"For the first edition of C.L.A.S.S. ICON in 2020 Gilberto was decreed as our chosen one, and the path together was sanctioned at that moment: the sharing of values and visions is an indissoluble bond that keeps us united over time. Like Gilberto, each ICON will be part of a community where together with C.L.A.S.S. will try to make a real smart fashion and above all create an important voice," says Giusy Bettoni.

In support of the C.L.A.S.S. ICON award, C.L.A.S.S. presented its Manifesto for Responsible Fashion, which summarises the values that C.L.A.S.S. has been researching, communicating and developing since 2007: the role of the ethical company and its transparent production, the importance of traceable and healthy products, with total respect for people and the environment. A commitment to a circular economy with a positive impact that also means safeguarding the seas, the ocean, the use of water, energy and resources.

"A Manifesto for fashion with the lowest possible impact on the planet and on people and animals’ health thanks to responsible innovation, perfectly up to the challenges of contemporary lifestyle. This is why I created the Sustainability Formula, which only exists when there is design, responsible innovation and we are able to track and measure the impact of products and processes and communicate the new values in an appropriate way. In a word, when there is knowledge" concludes Giusy Bettoni.
 
F = D x I x S x C
F= Fashion
D=Design
S=Sustainability
C=Communication

The PREMIUM GROUP and its partner, JOOR, the largest B2B wholesale platform in the world, have together developed a digital marketplace showcasing a curated portfolio of brands compiled in partnership with the relevant retailers. The first digital trade show in the world launches on 14 July 2020: PREMIUM+SEEK Passport.

The JOOR Passport platform is geared towards the current market conditions, where only limited travel is permitted, as well as towards the time after the pandemic when physical events will be able to take place again.

The trade show experience is condensed into a one-stop shop for users: one website, one app to search for and find suppliers, and one place to upload and access data and content – in short, one comprehensive digital experience.

The digitalisation of business interactions represents a year-round marketplace where retailers can discover new styles and designers, and brands can generate new contacts.

On the summer trade show dates the seasonal brand lookbooks curated by PREMIUM and SEEK can be uploaded to individual profiles and key looks can be presented in virtual showrooms. The PREMIUM GROUP translates the recipe for success – Commerce, Content and Community – for the digital sphere. Buyers can find out the latest on style and trend stories on the PREMIUM+SEEK Passport homepage, which also highlights key themes such as sustainability. This enables retailers to continue to gain inspiration from brand worlds, to keep abreast of developments and discover new things.

In the relatively short space of time since the last EuroShop in 2017, a lot has changed in retail. Everywhere you look, technology is transforming the way that consumers interact and transact with brands. At EuroShop 2020, 16 to 20 February in Düsseldorf, the 550 international exhibitors of the experience dimension “Retail Technology” (from the more than 2,300 international EuroShop exhibitors) provide impressive proof of this. In the run-up to EuroShop, we had a look around the international stores to see what is already being offered to customers in terms of high-tech.

Spanish fast-fashion retailer Zara has introduced self-service checkouts in store as well as interactive mirrors equipped with RFID; Nike is using local data at its House of Innovation 000 in New York City to stock shelves and restock them based on what the community wants; and at skincare brand SK-II’s Future X Smart Stores in Tokyo, Shanghai and Singapore, visitors are able to experience next generation skin counselling through a magic scan (an AI-enabled skin analysis that unlocks skin age and personalises product recommendations by sitting in front of a mirror for three minutes). There are even coffee shops using robot baristas to serve drinks, such as Café X in San Francisco and Ratio in Shanghai. And then, of course, there is Amazon Go, where customers can pick up shopping and walk out, with payment made automatically through the app.