The Business of Fashion Podcast

As the year comes to a close, BoF’s executive editor Brian Baskin and senior correspondent Sheena Butler-Young look back on some of their favourite articles from 2024. The stories include topics that dominated industry conversations throughout the year, as well as some that have had key updates since publication.The four articles they discuss are “How Nike Ran Off Course” by sports correspondent Daniel-Yaw Miller, Butler-Young’s three-part Black beauty series, “The Fight for Influencer Marketing Dollars Heats Up” by senior news and features editor Diana Pearl and “Inside Luxury’s Italian Sweatshops Problem” by sustainability correspondent Sarah Kent. The conversation wraps up with a set of predictions for what’s to come in 2025.Key Insights:Miller’s “How Nike Ran Off Course” topped the list of key stories from 2024. It was a trying year for the brand, marred by declining sales quarter after quarter. Many pointed to former CEO John Donahoe as the source, with marketing and product feeling stale since he joined in 2020. “This was the year where it really crystallized that there were viable alternatives to Nike in the market,” said Baskin, with competitors encroaching from all sides. Looking ahead, Butler-Young said “Nike is not resting on its laurels” and is doing a lot to try to “turn around a very large ship,” starting with selecting a new CEO, longtime Nike executive Elliott Hill.Sarah Kent’s story, “Inside Luxury’s Italian Sweatshops Problem,” digs into this year’s viral scandal surrounding luxury brands’ labour practices. “It found that luxury brands that manufacture in Italy…routinely turn a blind eye to labour exploitation in their supply chain,” said Butler-Young. “They ignore red flags raised by audits and sustainability teams for the sake of convenience and cost.” Dior in particular faced social media backlash for “the disparity between what people pay for products and then some of the things that happen in the supply chain,” said Butler-Young. Next year, brands will face penalties for failing to comply with new European due diligence regulations.Baskin and Butler-Young shared predictions for the industry in 2025. For Butler-Young, ESG and DEI will be key to watch as they “attempt to continue to take shape in a very hostile political environment,” said Butler-Young. Early adopters of DEI who stick with it despite ebbs and flows might benefit by being the most innovative in the space down the line. For Baskin, “My prediction is one of these big struggling brands … is going to successfully pull out of its slump,” he said, pointing to Nike as a potential winner. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Background:In a slowing luxury and fashion market, it’s not just the big brands and e-commerce companies that are being impacted. Independent fashion designers around the world — from China to the US to Europe — are facing a barrage of challenges too. As more multi-brand retailers shut down, this not only puts tremendous cash flow pressure on small fashion businesses, but they are also losing their main channels to reach customers. Alongside other factors like inflation, Brexit and growing geo-political turmoil, it becomes almost impossible to build a sustainable, independent fashion business.But there is hope. According to London-based designer Roksanda Ilincic, “the beauty of an independent brand is that you can quickly adapt, quickly change. You can try to find a solution, maybe even quicker than a big giant.”To examine this topic at BoF VOICES 2024, 1 Granary founder Olya Kuryshchuk hosted a panel on independent fashion, with Ilincic, publicist and consultant Bohan Qiu, and the designer and Antwerp Royal Academy director Brandon Wen. Key Insights:The traditional reliance on multi-brand stores and fashion shows is shifting, with young designers exploring direct-to-consumer models and leveraging emerging technologies. Qui notes that new opportunities are coming from grassroots movements and emerging markets. “I feel like there is going to be this next movement where it’s coming from the streets, it’s coming from the underground, it’s coming from the youth culture that are so sick and tired of the current system. They want to overthrow and build something so strong that our current system can no longer neglect it.”For Wen, fashion education must evolve to prepare students for the realities of a saturated market. While fostering creativity, institutions should also teach practical skills like budgeting and business management to ensure graduates can navigate the industry successfully. “They need a lot more business advice and opportunities … they also should know how to use Excel, make a budget sheet, and … learn how the big machines work so that they’re not struggling with their own machine.”Independent brands must focus on the unique value they bring to the industry, such as craftsmanship, small-scale production, and authentic creativity. Ilincic highlights the importance of educating consumers about these distinctions, explaining, “the quantities that we produce are much smaller than the quantities of the big brands. So just understanding that you’re buying a very unique and specific product. That should be championed.” Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the late 2010s, and particularly after George Floyd’s murder in 2020, the fashion industry appeared to embrace a progressive awakening on issues like racial justice and climate change. Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) departments were established, and companies announced ambitious sustainability targets. Yet, from the outset, critics - often from the same communities these initiatives aimed to support - questioned the authenticity of this activism, suggesting it was more about marketing than meaningful change.Now, those sceptics may have been proven right. Following the 2023 Supreme Court ruling against affirmative action, companies have begun scaling back hiring initiatives, grants for Black founders, and other DEI efforts. Sustainability commitments are also under scrutiny, with the industry far behind its climate goals and facing a hostile political environment in the US. Executive editor Brian Baskin is joined by sustainability correspondent Sarah Kent and senior correspondent Sheena Butler-Young to untangle the future of DEI and ESG (environmental, social, and governance).Key Insights: Diversity and inclusion in fashion was built on already fragile foundations. “Most companies didn’t have a DEI department before George Floyd,” Butler-Young points out. She explains that these departments were often created hastily and emotionally, which left them vulnerable to becoming performative. “We never moved beyond that conversation into ‘how is this good for business? Why does this matter for a company beyond social good?’”"The acronym DEI has become so politicised,’” continues Butler-Young. "Something that started off as having some good intentions and some really value-driven tenets, and suddenly it's co-opted and becomes something almost derogatory." Companies are now moving away from the language, but that often means moving away from the work as well. The story in the world of sustainability contains some parallels. “What we’ve begun to see in a handful of cases is a quiet reframing of sustainability commitments, making them less ambitious and, in some ways, more realistic,” says Kent. This includes “the restructuring of sustainability teams, significant layoffs, and a shifting focus.” Although sustainability efforts are losing traction in the US, Kent points out that European regulations will keep the pressure on global brands. “From an investor standpoint, this is a compliance issue - companies need to meet laws or face significant penalties, which is obviously not good for business.”Additional Resources:What Fashion’s Advocacy Will Look Like in the Trump EraTrump’s Impact on Fashion Takes Shape | BoF Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Many fashion brands are realising that operating across multiple cultural sectors is a business necessity. In our social feeds, fashion competes with music, film, and sports for our attention.Learning how to tap into other cultural sectors is something that many fashion brands are trying to do, but few have done it better than this week’s guests.At BoF VOICES 2024, BoF founder and CEO Imran AmedI spoke with Jens Grede, co-founder and CEO of Kim Kardashian’s Skims, the shapewear brand and David Allemann, co-founder and executive co-chairman of the Swiss sportswear company On, to learn how they’ve tapped into the cultural zeitgeist, especially at the growing intersection of sports and fashion. Key Insights: For both Grede and Allemann, the foundation of a successful brand lies in creating exceptional products. Grede emphasises the critical importance of innovation, crediting Skims’ success to years of fabric development before launching the brand. “Before a brand, there are products, and you can’t build a great brand without a great product,” he explains. Similarly, Allemann shared On’s origins, which began with a makeshift prototype crafted from a garden hose to test their signature “cloud tech” soles. Sports and fashion have become deeply interconnected, reflecting how cultural and personal identity have evolved. Allemann notes that, over the past 15 years, sportswear has transitioned from functional equipment to an extension of one’s personality, becoming a new uniform. “Because it becomes part of our personality, it’s elevated to a whole different level, and so in a sense, [sport] becomes fashion.” Athletes now use fashion as a platform to build their personal brands, with Grede describing it as “a superpower” that amplifies their influence beyond their sport. Tapping into culture is essential for brands looking to stay relevant and expand their influence. Grede describes building a brand as finding “a little part in this moment in popular culture,” which requires an understanding of the zeitgeist. For Skims, partnerships like their recent collaboration with Dolce & Gabbana push the brand into uncharted aesthetic territory while providing customers with something entirely new. On takes a similarly thoughtful approach, having turned Roger Federer from an ambassador into an investor. As brands grow, the decision to go public can be a significant milestone, but timing is critical. Grede acknowledges that Skims will eventually become a public company but stressed the importance of focusing on expansion and building away from the scrutiny of the public eye. Allemann shared advice from On’s IPO journey, describing the need to stay close to the customer: “On really tries to be very close to the consumer and be the brand that helps the explorers and the dreamers and probably even the rebels to ignite their spirit. I think that's what's really important right now.”Additional Resources:BoF VOICES 2024: Global Culture and Creativity The BoF Podcast | Jens Grede on Building Skims, Frame and the Future of FashionWhy On Running Could Be Worth $6 Billion | BoF Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.