CLARITY
In conversation with the organisers of MUNICH FABRIC START about the industry, the trade show calendar and new dates
New year, new beginnings – what’s new at MUNICH FABRIC START in 2024?
Sebastian Klinder: In 2024, MUNICH FABRIC START will continue to serve as a central European anchor point for the fashion industry, combining creativity and business. When it comes to scheduling and organising our events, we want to meet the needs of as many exhibitors and visitors as possible, while also taking into account differing rhythms of the industry. For this reason, we have decided to shorten the date in September 2024 to two days in line with the current market requirements – with streamlined schedules at familiar venues. With this scheduling, our shows remain the relevant sourcing platforms that can meet the permanently and rapidly changing needs of the fashion industry against a background of efficient time and budget management. MUNICH FABRIC START, BLUEZONE as an international trade show for denim, streetwear and sportswear, KEYHOUSE as an innovation hub and THE SOURCE, where products and services relating to the latest sourcing services and apparel manufacturing take centre stage, will therefore take place on 3 and 4 September.
Frank Junker: Of course, a lot will remain the same this year – in the best possible sense. We are looking forward to many long-standing exhibitors as well as new faces who will present their latest developments at MUNICH FABRIC START. With MUNICH FABRIC START, THE SOURCE, BLUEZONE and KEYHOUSE, we are creating a framework that reflects the industry as well as the latest trends and innovations in all their facets. And the line-up of our carefully curated seminar program includes numerous highlights that should not be missed.
» CLARITY is about the pursuit of structure and unambiguousness on both a large and small scale «
„Clarity“ is the title of the new summer season. What’s behind it?
Sebastian Klinder: “Clarity” describes the pursuit of structure and unambiguousness on both, a large and small scale. Both are increasingly rare in the context of the current realities of our lives, because today everything is relative or relocatable. In view of this increasingly diffuse situation, we are also intuitively searching for orientation – both, on a large and small scale. Fashion, design and aesthetics are no exception. Consumers also want clarity, for example with regard to production and supply chains. So, there is also a constantly growing requirement for information that needs to be satisfied.
Frank Junker: Balancing and harmonising opposites serve as a central source of inspiration, for example in reconciling traditional craftsmanship and new technologies that can make the industry more sustainable. By balancing the dichotomies that move the industry – new and old, rural and urban, functional and decorative, self and society – new ideas can emerge that creatively prepare for the challenges of today and the future.
The fashion industry and the corresponding trade show landscape – especially in Germany – are currently in a phase of upheaval. As the organiser of MUNICH FABRIC START, how do you see your role in this context?
Sebastian Klinder: As a platform for high-quality fabrics and materials, MUNICH FABRIC START plays a central role in the German fashion landscape. We want to create the ideal environment for business with a high-quality, comprehensive exhibitor portfolio and the right scheduling. Our aim is not to set trends, but to reflect the most relevant ones, thereby strengthening the entire value chain and driving the development of the industry. With our holistic ecosystem consisting of Fabrics, Additionals, Bluezone, Per4mance, ReSource, Design Studios, Keyhouse, Sustainable Innovations and The Source, we fulfil this aspiration at MUNICH FABRIC START. Through targeted coordination with the industry, we offer an ideal atmosphere in which future-oriented players can come together.
Frank Junker: MUNICH FABRIC START is a creative hub that gives designers space to bring their ideas to life. We see ourselves as trailblazers for creative and technological innovations and thus as a driving force for the further development of the fashion industry. In this context, the topic of sustainability, for example, is firmly anchored in the program of our events. In addition, we attach great importance to our range of trend forums and presentations in order to be able to offer our guests the most holistic, future-oriented program possible, which serves the need for orientation and inspiration in equal measure and, last but not least, brings the entire industry together for exchange, networking and get-togethers.
