Bringing Sustainable Fashion to the Forefront: Redress Empowers Emerging Talent in Shanghai
Redress Alumni Designers Wowed a Packed-out Runway at Shanghai Fashion Week
In front of a hushed crowd of 550 from the fashion industry on 16th October 2024, five Chinese emerging brands brought to life their circular designs on the runway. It was the Redress Design Award returning to Shanghai Fashion Week for the first time in 12 years to spotlight the innovative, sustainable collections of select Chinese Alumni designers.
A fashion powerhouse, China is the world’s largest apparel and textile exporter and has an eye-wateringly fast-growing domestic fashion consumer market and explosive creative scene. It is also increasingly embracing and showcasing sustainability across all sectors, with bold climate and conservation targets driving the change. Redress’ Chinese Alumni, wth their circular and sustainable themes, perfectly align with this zeitgeist.
The headlining designer in the Redress show, Ruyin Tian, exemplifies innovative, circular, and sustainable design. Her collections utilise a variety of materials, including recycled fabrics, end-of-roll and cut-and-sew textile waste, and incorporate design techniques focused on durability, versatility, and zero-waste pattern cutting.
A selection of five other Redress Design Award 2024 designers’ waste-reviving collections were also presented, including Xue Wang, Tiger Chung, Yu Zhang, Zheyi Ruan and Violet Ma.
As Asia grapples with the challenges of climate change and textile waste, the runway show at Shanghai Fashion Week served as a vital platform to promote education, collaboration, and innovation within the fashion sector.
Redress Alumni showcasing at Bicester Village Shanghai
Redress is currently exhibiting a showcase of Redress Design Award 2024 Finalists and select other international Alumni designers’ sustainable creations at Bicester Village Shanghai.
The exhibition is in partnership with The Bicester Collection under their Creative Spot Initiative, a platform that aims to support emerging designers globally, and will run from 24 October to 30 November. This marks the first time that the Creative Spot is exhibited in China, bringing much-needed attention to emerging sustainable fashion designers. The exhibition showcases stunning sustainable designs from the ten finalists of the Redress Design Award 2024, alongside innovative creations from select Redress Alumni, with new designs being introduced every two weeks.
Dr. Christina Dean, Founder and Board Chair of Redress, had the honour of celebrating the opening of the Creative Spot at Bicester Village Shanghai together with Alumni Ruyin Tian, Xue Wang and Bicester Collection China’s Fashion Director, Stewart Chen. This meaningful gathering not only showcased the vibrant future of fashion but also underscored the critical importance of collaboration within the industry. With China’s fashion market projected to generate a staggering US$360.4 billion by 2029*, it's crucial to support emerging sustainable designers and nurture their creativity.
Friends in Shanghai, be sure to visit the Creative Spot before the end of November and witness the future of fashion. See you there!