RIYADH — Saudi Arabia's Fashion Commission announced its first-ever strategy roadshow with 7 pillars that cover the various stages of the value chain and empower and support the fashion sector in the Kingdom. The commission held its first Strategy Roadshow on Wednesday at the City Hub in Mohammed Bin Salman Nonprofit City in Riyadh. Fashion Commission CEO Burak Cakmak and the CEO of Prince Mohammed Bin Salman Nonprofit City David Henry laid the foundation stone for the huge Product Development Studio. The studio which would empower the fashion industry in Saudi Arabia is one of the largest development studios in the Kingdom with space covering an area of 1000 square meters. The studio will be equipped with the latest technologies to meet the needs of designers to be able to do product development, prototype and samples. The CEO in his speech mentioned the commission's achievements, such as the Saudi 100 brands, the New York Exhibition, the completion of establishing the First Local Research Center for Sustainable Textiles in strategic partnership with King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), and many more. Princess Reema bint Bandar, a member of the Board of Directors of the Fashion Commission, has also addressed a speech on this occasion, saying, "The innovative designs of the next generation are enchanting, and their creative energy is evident and their vision is a sign of a great news to come." She noted that more than 1,300 people applied to participate in the 100 Saudi Brands program. The seven pillars of the strategy are the following: Education & Creativity to enrich the Saudi fashion industry education system to become the destination for fashion creativity in the region; Product Development to increase the competitiveness and accessibility to new materials to advance Saudi product development in fashion; Manufacturing & Supply Chain will enhance the localization and attractiveness of the manufacturing and distribution system in the fashion sector; the Retail will develop an attractive environment for fashion retail companies to grow and compete locally and globally; Narrative, Storytelling & Events will promote Saudi fashion identity and desirability through creative media platforms and events; Sustainability will enable Saudi Arabia to become the leader for sustainable and ethical fashion in the region; Industry Enablers will increase system integration and accessibility to market intelligence, investment, and partnerships to enable the growth of the fashion sector. On his part, Ammar Bogari, the Fashion Commission Strategy and Business Development General Manager, stated that fashion is not just modeling, or designing clothes, but it is culture, economy, and soft power. He added that globally 60% of what is consumed in fashion goes to landfills annually, while only 1% goes to recycling, which costs the environment an estimated $100 million worth of consumed materials. Bogari said the Saudi female participation in the fashion workforce reached 52%, compared to 30% participation in the overall Saudi workforce. He added that the Saudization rate within core fashion jobs is 66%, while it is 51% in the overall workforce. He also mentioned that the fashion economy in Saudi Arabia lags behind the global benchmarks, as it only contributes 1.4% of the GDP and only 1.9% of the workforce. This means that plenty of opportunities exist while the fashion sector needs efforts to build and gain attention. The Fashion Commission has signed four key partnerships with several companies that would add great value to the entire strategy. As a nice initiative to promote the culture of fashion in the Kingdom, the commission has gifted those invited to its strategy roadshow with a scarf that has been redesigned by artist Asmaa Suroor from the original scarf of "The Pilgrim's Souvenir" from the 1950s, which holds a picture of King Saud bin Abdulaziz Al Saud. The scarf used to be distributed among the pilgrims during his rule. Suroor has redesigned the scarf to preserve and reshape this legacy. And the commission has made this initiative to root the concept of fashion in Saudi Arabia, and how the Kingdom has taken care of this sector long since.
