KNO Global joined industry leaders for a 3 day event in Singapore combining the Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC) annual meeting and the Global Fashion Agenda. We exhibited at the events during a curated solution showcase, as well as having the opportunity to speak on stage during a panel titled ‘data scarcity’.

What did we discuss on the panel? Alongside us on the panel was Sean Cady, VP of Sustainability at VF Corp (They own brands like Vans, North Face etc) and Ravi Thankran previous President of LVMH Asia for 16 years.  

We were asked to discuss the hot topic of data scarcity, following recent press and media coverage over data capture practices in the industry. Marianne, Founder and CEO of Kno Global, shared about how there was a need to make data capture engaging for the millions of factory workers across supply chains. Whilst a lot of attention was also given to communicating sustainability claims and data up the chain to consumers, there is a huge audience of people making our products who are currently not engaged. These supply chain workers, Marianne argued, could be active changemakers as they are directly involved in the day to day implementation of sustainability related initiatives. However she shared, the ways in which we communicate sustainability to them right now is confusing, and ultimately if they are not engaged in data capture we can’t know the real facts and figures on the ground and be able to verify them.

“It makes sense to engage the worker, and it wasn’t until I sat on the line myself after being a regular consumer, that I got to experience what life is like for them”

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What else was discussed at the event? 

Over the 3 days many different discussions took place, for example what is the role of the supplier in leading the change. Anant Ahuja from Shahi exports shared his experience as an employer of 100,000s+ of workers in India, about how honestly speaking the challenges should be shared just as much as the wins. 

On another panel with Marsha Dickson Founder of Better Buying speaking it became clear that buying practices within brands can influence greatly the impact of products on the environment. 

Nazma Akter, Founder and Executive Director of Awaj Foundation spoke about how giving workers charitable donations or gifts rather than cash was directing resources in a way workers in supply chain didn’t want. 

Overall the event was closed by Federica Marchionni CEO of GFA and Amina Razvi CEO of SAC, reemphasising how continued collaboration as a group is necessary for change to happen at the pace needed.

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What were our top takeaways?

1.Give workers what they need. To do this we must listen 

2.Make data collection more engaging, empowering the user to take action with it

3.Drive change by conquering our fears and talking openly about our mistakes as well as our achievements 

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Talk to us if you want to know more about anything we shared during the event. It  was great  to see so many people in one place after the first annual meeting in a while for SAC. We hope to see you all next time! 

For more information about speakers at the event please see here: https://globalfashionsummit.com/about/speakers/

For more information about the Sustainable Apparel Coalition https://apparelcoalition.org/ 

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