A Forum of Trendsetters
BRICS is expanding. From 2024, Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates will be full members of BRICS. The Declaration of the 15th BRICS Summit in South Africa also tasked the member states’ foreign ministers “with further developing the BRICS partner country model and the list of prospective partner countries”. BRICS+ will thus be taking shape as “Friends of BRICS”, with various forms of cooperation to be developed within its framework. One of the key areas is trade liberalization, opening up member states’ markets to their partners. There is much still to be done in this area, including at the legislative level, but the trend is evident: the economies of BRICS countries and their Friends are becoming increasingly interrelated.
This is beneficial for doing business: BRICS+ country
companies are receiving good opportunities for entering receptive new markets
with favourable conditions. The same applies to the fashion industry, which is
being decentralized as voices from emerging markets are added to the
conventional “fashion capitals” that set global trends. The key idea is for the
countries of the alliance to develop their own fashion industries, bring their
industries to the global scene and create a new ecosystem. What will it be
like? What can the fashion industries of BRICS+ countries offer one another? The
participants in the BRICS+ Fashion Summit will be seeking answers to these and
many other questions.
The BRICS+ Fashion Summit had to move beyond the BRICS framework and bring
together participants from over 50 fast-developing partner markets to discuss
topical issues faced by the global fashion industry and domestic industries of
BRICS+ countries. No forum of this amplitude and format has ever been held and
the BRICS+ Fashion Summit, to be hosted by the Government of Moscow, should
provide a key link between BRICS+ countries, as well as an effective,
interactive discussion platform.
The Forum will have a five-day business programme, including three days of
thematic discussions on matters of vital importance for the fashion industry. The theme of the Forum’s day 1 is
“Cooperation” because matching of new partners and markets is the precise
intention of the BRICS+ Fashion Summit. The participants will discuss how to
develop new avenues of cooperation between designers and manufacturers from
BRICS+ partner countries, how to promote their brands on other countries’
markets, how to access international marketplaces and jointly form a
responsible commitment to the environment and socio-ethical aspects of the
fashion industry.
The theme of day 2 is “Entrepreneurship”. What are the competencies required
for a fashion entrepreneur? How can you accelerate your brand’s growth and
attract investors? How to choose the right price segment? Leading industry
experts will share their knowledge about these and other matters during the
BRICS+ Fashion Summit. Their advice will help both novices and experienced
entrepreneurs avoid mistakes and choose a correct strategy for promoting their
business.
Day 3 of the business programme will be devoted to “Technologies”. Innovations
are becoming an integral part of all fashion industry areas, from designer
processes to consumer experience. Moreover, the digital world is becoming
increasingly embedded in the real life of consumers. How is technology changing
the fashion realm? Is artificial intelligence capable of replacing fashion
designers, journalists and influencers? Will conventional fabrics lose their
advantages and relevance? These and other interesting discussions will provide
an opportunity to look to the future and find answers to many of today’s
questions there.
Days 4 and 5 will continue the discussion of the subjects covered by the BRICS+
Fashion Summit headliners, fashion brand case studies, building of
manufacturing processes, successful advertising secrets and other practical
aspects of the industry.
An important part of the BRICS+ Fashion Summit will be an international fashion
intensive course called ‘Globalization in the Fashion Industry. Local Concepts
in Creating a Successful Global Brand’. The course will be delivered by
specialists from Russia, China, India, Colombia, Brazil, South Africa and other
global leading fashion schools.
During the Summit, designers and brands creating signature collections of
garments and accessories will be able to display their works in the B2B
showroom, introducing them to the professional audience. The BRICS+ Fashion
Summit will also feature fashion shows in which international and Russian
designers will participate, and also a fashion film festival.
All the BRICS+ Fashion Summit activities aim to inspire and unite industry
leaders and workers within a single event for making key decisions,
establishing partnership links, sharing experience, developing new global
markets and promoting domestic industries. This will enable the BRICS+ Fashion
Summit to become a starting point for consolidating the creative and economic
status of BRICS+ countries in the world of fashion.
