Mindful Fashion New Zealand have partnered with Raw Assembly on an educational series. Image supplied.
Mindful Fashion New Zealand recently partnered with Raw Assembly Australia to create a five part education series that unpacks the complexities of standards and certifications in the fashion and textile industry. While there is increased demand from consumers for certified products and materials there is also a lot of confusion about the different certifications and how they work.
“There are so many certifications and standards in the fashion and textiles industry, it can be challenging for brands and suppliers, let alone consumers, to understand how they all work,” says Jacinta FitzGerald, Programme Director Mindful Fashion New Zealand. “Identifying the need for more education in this area, Mindful Fashion has partnered with Raw Assembly, bringing together global experts to create this education series as a way to break down some of the complexities and make the information more accessible.”
Each session in the series is designed to help businesses along the value chain across New Zealand and Australia break down how these schemes work and what needs to be in place to communicate with customers. The first session covered natural fibre standards and certifications including include Organic Content Standard (OCS), Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) and Content Claim Standard (CCS) and can be viewed online.
The second session on Thursday 28th October will cover Textile Exchange standards and certifications. The Textile Exchange oversees a portfolio of standards including for animal, recycled and organic fibres including Responsible Wool Standard (RWS), Responsible Down Standard (RDS), Recycled Claim Standard (RCS), Global Recycled Standard (GRS), Organic Content Standard (OCS) and Content Claim Standard (CCS). Registration for the session is currently available on mindfulfashion.co.nz.
Session three will cover Oeko-Tex standards on Thursday November 11th while session four will cover Working with standards on Thursday November 25th. The fifth session details for December 9th will be announced soon. Further details about the sessions including confirmed speakers and timing are available on mindfulfashion.co.nz.