The Business of Fashion Podcast

BoF’s Imran Amed sits down with Priya Rao, executive editor of The Business of Beauty, to go inside the findings of our new report ‘The State of Fashion: Beauty.’ Background : The global beauty industry is booming.  “Beauty remains one of the most dynamic, challenging and sought-after industries, much more than other consumer goods — or even fashion,” says Priya Rao, executive editor of...

BoF’s Marc Bain and a group of panellists break down the state of web3 in fashion and where the technology is headed. Background : Over the last couple of years, the fashion industry couldn’t stop talking about the potential of NFTs, the metaverse, known in tech industry speak as web3. Now, the fervour around web3 has cooled and the speculators are long gone. But for those committed to the we...

BoF’s Imran Amed speaks with Alec Leach about his manifesto on how we can move towards a better relationship with fashion. Background :  For nearly five years, author Alec Leach worked as an editor at streetwear website Highsnobiety, where he spent his “career telling people to buy stuff.” Leach saw up close the contribution his content was having on overconsumption and the lack of responsibi...

The Ugandan-born model how he is finding purpose in pursuing an unconventional career to support his family and the community he comes from. Background : At BoF VOICES 2022, fashion model Dennis Okwera spoke about his childhood in Uganda, fleeing home to avoid the violent life of becoming a child soldier in the rebel group Lord’s Resistance Army, coming to the UK as a refugee at the...

Labour rights activist Kalpona Akter and chief sustainability correspondent Sarah Kent reflect on where the industry stands a decade after the deadly factory collapse.  Background: Ten years ago this week an eight-storey factory complex in an industrial suburb of Dhaka, Bangladesh collapsed, killing more than 1,100 people and injuring thousands of others. The Rana Plaza disaster ranks as one...

Ahead of the opening of “Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty” exhibition, the Costume Institute’s head curator discusses the legendary designer’s work and lasting impact. Background: Andrew Bolton, the head curator of The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute, first dreamed up the idea for a Karl Lagerfeld-centric show at Lagerfeld’s 2019 memorial service. Next month, that vision will be rea...

In advance of his first fashion show at The Hollywood Bowl on April 19, the founder of Fear of God shares his approach for designing subtle garments that allow customers a taste of luxury.  Background :  Jerry Lorenzo, the founder of Fear of God, wants to make his brand an aspirational-yet-attainable destination for consumers, and redefine what’s regarded as luxury. Fashion, he said, sho...

Restaurateurs Asma Khan and Judy Joo share how food can bridge cultures and bring people together.   Background: Food may be a universal experience, but the culinary world has a long patriarchal history. Throughout their own tenures in the industry, chef and philanthropist Asma Khan, who owns London’s Darjeeling Express restaurant, and restaurateur and author Judy Joo, who operates the e...

At Istituto Marangoni in Mumbai, the artistic director discussed the influence of Indian craft on her collections. Background :  This week, Christian Dior presented its pre-fall 2023 collection at the Gateway of India monument in Mumbai, marking the first standalone show from a European luxury megabrand in the country. It was a historic occasion for fashion in India, which is projected to soo...

At The BoF Professional Summit: An Inflection Point in Fashion Tech, the seasoned luxury executive explained why Gucci believes in the long-term potential of fashion and web3.   Background: Last September, Gucci announced that its CMO, Robert Triefus, would be taking on a new role as CEO of  Gucci Vault and Metaverse Ventures. Now, he works closely with president and CEO, Marco Bizz...

At BoF VOICES 2022, the seasoned Nike executive discussed the power of second chances and the secret he kept while building Michael Jordan’s brand.    Background:   Starting in 1999, Larry Miller worked alongside Michael Jordan to build the Jordan brand, which does more than $5 billion in revenue. But his journey to the C-suite was a unique one.  Growing up in West Philad...

Tim Blanks and Imran Amed discuss the highlights of the Autumn/Winter 2023 collections, including Daniel Lee’s debut at Burberry, a transitional show at Gucci and Balenciaga’s first brand statement in the wake of the advertising scandal. Background: This season was a “restart” for the global fashion industry, says Imran Amed, BoF’s founder and editor-in-chief. The Autumn/Winter 2023 collectio...

On the latest episode of The BoF Podcast, Coty CEO Sue Y. Nabi shares how embracing identity in the workplace can lead to better business outcomes. Background : As one of the industry’s most visible transgender leaders, Sue Y. Nabi, chief executive of beauty conglomerate Coty, is well-versed in the transformative power of identity. In 2020, she was named the company’s fifth CEO in five years...

BoF’s technology correspondent Marc Bain joins Imran Amed to discuss Silicon Valley’s latest craze, and its potential for the fashion industry. Background :  As chatter around NFTs, virtual reality and the metaverse dies down, conversation about generative AI, a form of artificial intelligence that makes novel content when given specific prompts, is heating up. Artificial intelligence has bee...

Tjada D’Oyen McKenna, the CEO of Mercy Corps, shares insights on growing global food insecurity and deepening inequality. At the end of 2022, one in 10 children worldwide were dealing with malnourishment, the result of the worst hunger crisis the world has faced in a generation. It’s an effect of the ricocheting of the triple threat of climate change, geopolitical conflict and Covid-19 through the...

The film director joins BoF editor-at-large Tim Blanks to discuss how he uses his fashion and music roots to stage powerful experiences including from Abba Voyage and recent Dior Men and Fendi Couture shows.  Background :   Film and creative director Bailie Walsh cut his teeth working in London during the nineties and early aughts alongside talents like Boy George, Leigh Bowery and...

Christine Edman, executive officer of Japanese e-commerce site Zozo, talks about what makes the country’s consumers tick, and how the fashion landscape is set to shift in the years ahead. Background: Japan is home to some of the world’s most sophisticated and fervent fashion consumers, but its digital and e-commerce channels have long lagged behind other markets. That started to shift with the pan...

Author and tech executive Mo Gawdat explores the arrival of artificial intelligence and how it will eventually affect everyone.   Background:   Artificial intelligence is not an if, it’s a when, according to Mo Gawdat, author and the former chief business officer at Google X, who said that it’s only a matter of time before it becomes a dominant force in technology.  Already, Gawdat...

Background :   The Korean cultural wave, also known as Hallyu , has become worldwide sensation a in recent years, with Korean art, music, drama, food and more sweeping the globe. Thanks to the fervour over the likes of K-pop and K-beauty, many of the Korean diaspora have seen the culture they have grown up in become a common sight well beyond South Korea’s borders.   “To see my way of li...

MSNBC anchor Ayman Mohyeldin on the role and responsibility of the media amid misinformation and disinformation. Background : We are in an age of non-stop information. Thanks to the 24/7 news cycle, which lives on social media, on television and constantly-updated web pages, it has never been easier to have a grasp of what is happening in the world.    However, as access to information h...

A group of sustainability experts join BoF’s Sarah Kent to discuss greenwashing in the fashion industry and how to create effective change at BoF VOICES 2022. Background :   When it comes to sustainability, the fashion industry has long relied on self-regulation rather than external enforcement. But oftentimes, these self-defined targets create a “convenient fantasy,” Blackrock’s former chief...

Julie Pelipas and Olya Kuryshchuk discuss the impact of the war in Ukraine and how creativity has endured and been a source of strength amid the destruction. Background :   Since the war broke out in Ukraine, creativity has proved to be a source of resilience for Ukrainians.   This week on The BoF Podcast, Julie Pelipas, the former fashion director of Vogue Ukraine an...

The designer and former Spice Girl speaks at BoF VOICES 2022 about gaining strength from criticism and staying focused and resilient amid constant media scrutiny.  Background :   Victoria Beckham says she has built her career on hard work and resilience. First as a singer in the ‘90s supergroup the Spice Girls and now as a fashion designer for her namesake brand, Beckham has co...

CNN chief international correspondent Clarissa Ward spoke at BoF VOICES 2022 about victory and grief in the crisis, and what the international community must do to stand with the Ukrainian people. Background : Russia’s invasion of Ukraine transformed grain fields into battlefields, levelled whole cities and triggered a global food and energy crisis. Even as Ukraine has pushed back Russian forces,...

The women’s rights activist and Nobel Peace Prize winner spoke with BoF’s Imran Amed about education, growing up as an activist and the evolution of her own activism at BoF VOICES 2022. Background : Malala Yousafzai, the activist and founder of the Malala Fund, has always fought stereotypes and labels.  She says she no longer defines herself by the moment, at age 12, when she was shot in the...