Virgil Abloh to speak at BFC's first IPF Forum

By

Nigel TAYLOR

Published
May 7, 2021

True to its word, The British Fashion Council (BFC) is building a strong line-up for its inaugural Institute of Positive Fashion (IPF) Forum.

Headline speakers for the first of two sessions will be Virgil Abloh and June Sarpong, as the roster of high-profile names are added to the BFC’s leadership event, designed to galvanise the fashion industry into action ahead of COP26, the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Glasgow in November.

Sarpong, director of Creative Diversity at the BBC, will be in conversation with Abloh, the founder and creative director of Off-White and artistic director of Louis Vuitton Men's. The two will discuss how to ensure greater diversity and access within the fashion industry and how representation can help inspire the next generation of industry talent.

The second session, ‘The just transition: Exploring the business case for change’ will be a panel discussion including Cyrill Gutsch, founder of Parley for the Oceans, Laura Balmond, Make Fashion Circular lead for the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, and Nicolaj Reffstrup, founder of Ganni. 

Discussions will centre around “circularity and what it really means in practice, exploring how brands drive circular practices at scale and where the greatest opportunities lie to ensure new circular models are fully integrated across businesses”.

Speakers will include other business leaders (Emmanuel Gintzburger, CEO of Alexander McQueen, and Marco Gobbetti, CEO of Burberry), plus government representatives, environment experts, diversity advocates, creative directors, activists, editors and educators.

Across the IPF Forum, presenters will address key topics facing the fashion industry, designed to “provide the tools to reach net zero, and implement positive business changes”, in a day-long format, taking place digitally, with the first two sessions available exclusively to ticket-holders on the day.

Other key topics to be discussed and presented through speaker programme and private roundtables include the 'Race to Net Zero', 'Green Economy', 'Biodiversity', 'Circularity', 'Social Justice', 'Diversity and Inclusion' and 'Community'. 

Tickets are priced at £150 and include on-demand access to all content for a full year post-event.