The International Woolmark Prize is aiming to highlight transparency in the supply chain production for its 2020 edition with finalists presenting fully traceable collections. Consumers are increasingly worried about the environmental impact of their purchases. When it comes to their clothing, they want reassurance they’re taking part in alleviating the world’s problems, not adding to them. 65 percent of surveyed consumer stated the need for trust in product authenticity was in their top five trends for 2019, with 42 percent of millennials wanting to know the makeup of their products and how they are made before they buy them.
Being a completely natural, renewable and biodegradable fibre, wool certainly addresses many concerns, and in a further step forward, this year’s International Woolmark Prize finalists have committed to creating six fully traceable Merino wool looks as part of the program’s global final event in February 2020.
Having been selected from more than 300 applications by the prize’s independent Advisory Council, the 10 finalists have been working for several months with the support of The Woolmark Company’s Innovation Academy, a fast-track mentoring and education program helping brands to implement best practices to address environmental and social issues in tandem with sustainable business growth.
“The International Woolmark Prize is the world’s leading talent development program and as industry priorities evolve, so do the expectations of the prize,” explains The Woolmark Company Managing Director Stuart McCullough. “We see traceability and supply chain integrity as a way to empower brands and customers to make better choices. By ensuring these emerging designers are equipped with the knowledge, support and access to the most advanced supply chain partners, the International Woolmark Prize continues to push the agenda for best practice.”
To achieve this level of supply chain transparency, the International Woolmark Prize has partnered with Provenance, a platform that enables businesses to outline the origin, journey and impact behind products. “We are slowly seeing the movement towards traceability growing with each fashion season, although it’s not nearly as progressive as what we see in the food industry,” said Jessi Baker, the founder and chief executive officer of Provenance. “In fashion, typically it’s the challenger start-ups who are looking to lead with transparency rather than the big houses or corporations.”
Enabled by blockchain, mobile and open data, Provenance software helps brands gather and share key product information and stories in a way that’s secure, trustworthy and accessible, bringing the supply chain to the shopper, online and in store. When the collections of the winners and finalists are commercialised in 2020, smart tags will showcase the journey of each product with mobile-optimised content.
“The benefits of enabling traceability and offering a more transparent supply chain include growing market share through new shoppers, increasing sales, and growing customer loyalty,” added Baker. “But moreover, this can also act as a catalyst for more integrity right across the fashion industry. Customers should be able to truly see where things come from, what they’re made of and how they are affecting humanity and the planet.”
The overall winner will receive AU$200,000 and one designer will receive AU$100,000 for demonstrating outstanding innovation in product or manufacturing. Moreover, the finalists’ collections will be available for commercialisation in September 2020 via the International Woolmark Prize retail network which includes Mytheresa.com, Matchesfashion.com, Takashimaya, Lane Crawford and David Jones.
