YouSaid · the spoken record

Imran Amed

lines on the record: 30
first: 2024-07-02
most recent: 2024-07-02
sittings or episodes: 1
sources: podcast

Every line below is reproduced as it was said and linked to the record it came from. Nothing here is summarised or generated. Directory · Search · Corrections

“And as a moral responsibility, but also as an economic imperative, reducing waste in fashion is also going to increase profitability in fashion. And so really focusing on this waste area, I think, is really, really important, not just because we're living in this planet that's getting hotter and hotter and hotter, but also because this is an industry that's going to be more challenged over the next 10 years. And I think people are going to be looking for ways to cut costs and deliver more efficiently to customers and a big part of that will come from reducing waste.”
2024-07-02 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: Why the fashion industry needs a makeover, with Imran Amed · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Integrate AI tools and processes into the way they run the business, but also the way they run the creative process and some of the designers I'm talking to are also already using some of these tools. The second is the rise of the Indian fashion market. You know, India over the next decade is going to become the third largest economy in the world after the United States and China, a market that every fashion CEO I know is starting to look at. And I guess the third thing is something that we already touched on, which is, you know, fashion's role in addressing the climate crisis. You know, fashion is one of the highest emitting, most damaging industries in the world.”
2024-07-02 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: Why the fashion industry needs a makeover, with Imran Amed · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Would keep my eye on artificial intelligence because just as it is likely to change and disrupt pretty much everything in business and creativity, it's going to be really interesting to see how leaders on both the creative and the business side of fashion begin to”
2024-07-02 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: Why the fashion industry needs a makeover, with Imran Amed · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“To reduce waste, I had the opportunity to visit their headquarters in Spain and see almost like if you were like managing the liftoff of a space shuttle, it was like this room filled with computers and data and like everything that's going on in their supply chain all around the world. It was like fascinating H&M historically has been one of the businesses that's been most focused on sustainability, but they've really lost their creative edge. I think the biggest thing we need to change is customers' relationships with clothes and the industry has a big part to play in that.”
2024-07-02 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: Why the fashion industry needs a makeover, with Imran Amed · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Manufacturing cycle, the way they work with manufacturers in really small runs, the way they're testing and gathering data from customers on what people want before investing and making more of it, there's actually part of that model that's quite intelligent. The challenge is the materials they're using, the conditions of the people who work in those supply chain, we don't really know much about it because they're not very transparent about it. And it causes me a lot of concern that we're training customers to buy things and wear them once or twice and then discard them. So there's a little element of what they do that I'm quite curious about, but a lot of what's happening in those models that's actually really problematic. And the way Zara and H&M and some of these bigger players are responding to that is, you know, Zara, for example, is moving a bit more up market.”
2024-07-02 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: Why the fashion industry needs a makeover, with Imran Amed · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Never, it's never bought. It's never worn. And so all of the toxicity and chemicals and emissions that are part of creating clothing. And by the way, every garment we create has some kind of impact. All of that effort is actually for nothing because those clothes are never worn because so much of the industry is making things without knowing what people actually want to buy. And one of the things that Tamu and Shean have managed to do is create this very responsive”
2024-07-02 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: Why the fashion industry needs a makeover, with Imran Amed · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“So fast fashion is obviously a topic we're obsessed with at BOF. Probably one of the biggest, if not the biggest issues when it comes to fast fashion is the issue of waste. So, you know, so much of what we produce in our industry is actually never bought or worn by anybody.”
2024-07-02 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: Why the fashion industry needs a makeover, with Imran Amed · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Do if you look at historical photos going back 50 or 100 years is to look at what people are wearing. It gives you a sense of what's happening in the world at that time. And so when we look back to 2024, Bob and like the Hoka sneakers and the athlete and the streetwear looks that people are wearing, these are a reflection of what's happening in the world right now. And that's what makes fashion so powerful.”
2024-07-02 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: Why the fashion industry needs a makeover, with Imran Amed · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“schooled in the rules or conventions or norms of how the fashion industry should work or who it should be accessible to. You know, I think my perspective has had an impact in fashion because I come with that outsider's perspective. I left the couture shows that we were just talking about halfway through to come to the Aspen Ideas Festival because I want to be in spaces and places like these that open my mind and help me connect the dots about what's happening in fashion and how that is interconnected with and intertwined with all of the stuff that's happening in the wider world. The technological forces, the geopolitical forces, the cultural forces, the social forces that are shaping the world around us because at its best the fashion industry is also a reflection of those forces. The most interesting thing you can do”
2024-07-02 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: Why the fashion industry needs a makeover, with Imran Amed · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“I tried for a long time to break in this industry and nobody would let me in. You know, and it was. I knocked on so many doors. I went through official recruitment channels coming out of business school. I networked my way to top CEOs and designers. And pretty much the message that everyone gave me was like, we don't need people like you. Like someone actually literally said that to me, like, we don't need people like you. And I was like, you know, a management consultant with an MBA, you know, this wasn't seen as an industry that needed someone with my kind of experience. And so it has been fascinating as someone who was a complete outsider to now be able to not just be on the inside, but be welcomed into the industry and be appreciated by this industry and to be valued for these perspectives that I bring to the industry. And my perspective has always been informed by being an outsider. Because I wasn't.”
2024-07-02 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: Why the fashion industry needs a makeover, with Imran Amed · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“And he blew up the original Louis Vuitton print, which is the Damier checkerboard print He and kind of infused that with very vibrant color. And according to the reports that I'm hearing, those bags are selling extremely well. So my honest assessment after a year of Pharrell at Viton is I think he's done a very good job of stepping into Virgil's shoes and trying to pick up where Virgil left off. But, you know, I think LVMH and Louis Vuitton are increasingly thinking of themselves as cultural brands, not fashion brands. And so perhaps this is a sign of the times.”
2024-07-02 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: Why the fashion industry needs a makeover, with Imran Amed · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“And so when I had the opportunity to sit down with Pharrell, these were some of the topics that he and I addressed. I think what's really important also to note, Bob, as you think about this decision, is the Louis Vuitton business Lives and dies on the sale of handbags and leather goods. Yes, they have this ready-to-wear business. The lion's share of the profit at Louis Viton is driven by handbags and leather goods. After that pretty monumental show that Farrell staged almost exactly one year ago now on the Pont Neuf in Paris, my eye was on the bags. What are the bags going to be? Because, you know, that's really what that business is built upon. And what he did was he took almost the most. Mundane or ubiquitous Louis Vuitton bagshape, the speedy”
2024-07-02 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: Why the fashion industry needs a makeover, with Imran Amed · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Inarguable that that was a really successful decision. So when they were thinking about, well, who could possibly step into Virgil's shoes? I think they were looking for more of a cultural curator and communicator, someone who could speak to that same community, that Virgil had drawn towards Viton. To be fair, there was a pretty large industry backlash to that announcement for a lot of people who work in the industry who said, you know, you should be taking that opportunity and you should be giving that to a.”
2024-07-02 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: Why the fashion industry needs a makeover, with Imran Amed · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“What the big bosses at Louis Vuitton and LVMH would say is that they weren't looking for a traditional designer. Pharrell had the almost impossible task of stepping into the shoes of Virgil Ablo, who, by the way, was also not a fashion designer. He was trained as an architect. And what Virgil managed to do was take a brand that seemed really inaccessible. Really out of touch in a way with so much of what's happening in culture and the world. And he just kind of broke it open. He broke the rules. You know, and as a black designer, he was able to channel different kinds of creativity that came from the culture and communities that Virgil comes from. And, you know, that was a pretty bold move for LVMH to take at the time. I think it's pretty...”
2024-07-02 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: Why the fashion industry needs a makeover, with Imran Amed · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“I think now the pendulum has switched the other way. And we have another unhealthy balance, which is, you know, the creatives are being put into boxes and forced to work in ways that are all about meeting the demands of these large, now publicly traded companies that are analyzed by all the same investment banks and investment analysts as Procter& Gamble and Apple, you know, and so, you know, when you're these big public companies in every quarter, you have to show growth. It really puts a drain on creativity. And so what I hope is that pendulum, we find a better balance.”
2024-07-02 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: Why the fashion industry needs a makeover, with Imran Amed · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“That such an interesting observation, and I think, you know, Tried to start breaking into this industry 17 years ago. And I think the sway and power that creatives held in the industry at that time was much higher. I think the big bosses of these luxury groups were in a way somewhat beholden to these creative talents, which in a way was not healthy either because I think they would indulge some of the top creatives in behaviors and inhabits and in ways of working that were not healthy and sometimes were toxic, both for the individual and the people they worked with.”
2024-07-02 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: Why the fashion industry needs a makeover, with Imran Amed · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Brand's luxury logo hoodie. Everyone's putting out bags that are exactly the same shape with the same kind of gold logo hardware. It just feels like merch now. And we're missing that creativity that I think customers are really looking for, especially now that they're scrutinizing their spend so much more.”
2024-07-02 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: Why the fashion industry needs a makeover, with Imran Amed · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“You know, e commerce player, and the margins began to sink, the math just didn't work anymore. And all of a sudden, as the growth and the market began to fall, you know, these companies were all put into a crisis. So like the lack of creativity in the buy and in the way of engaging with customers ultimately was brought on by the corporatization of these assets, which had been acquired by companies that didn't respect or cultivate the creativity that all of us are looking for as customers. We're not looking for identicate retailers on the internet. We're looking for retail experiences that inspire us. And yes, part of it is that there's a lack of creativity inside these big companies that have become, it's almost like luxury merchandising now, you know, one brands, one thousand dollar luxury logo hoodie is indistinguishable from another.”
2024-07-02 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: Why the fashion industry needs a makeover, with Imran Amed · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“That's exactly right. And so one of the reasons after matches was acquired by APAX and after Farfetch kind of did its IPO and was beholden to the public markets. And after Neta Porte was a Ukes Neta Porte was acquired by Rishma, another big major luxury goods group. They all were pushed to grow really, really fast and they were focused on this, what they call GMV, gross merchandise value. They really focused on communicating growth in GMV and in focusing on growth for growth's sake, they lost the curation, like all of, you know, these companies all had different points of view, different buys before. They all started to look the same and feel the same. So the only way that they could compete was based on price. And when they were competing based on price, that's the worst thing to compete on if you're a luxury.”
2024-07-02 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: Why the fashion industry needs a makeover, with Imran Amed · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Our industry just feels dominated by a lot of business topics and big corporate players that have made it really, really hard for us to focus on the creativity, which is really the lifeblood of fashion. And the industry growth rates are down to like two or three percent. Some companies aren't growing at all anymore. And there's kind of a reality check saying, you know, where does the industry go from here?”
2024-07-02 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: Why the fashion industry needs a makeover, with Imran Amed · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“In it and kind of tried to turn it into like a big e commerce player. That didn't work. Matches is an administration right now, which is the UK version of Chapter 11. And also Neta Porte, which was like really the pioneer in the luxury e-commerce space, which is owned by Rishemon. Netaporte was supposed to be sold to Farfetch. But when Farfetch had those problems, the deal fell apart. So Netaporte is kind of languishing at the moment as Richmond is trying to find a buyer. And so, you know, all of these things have conspired to make”
2024-07-02 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: Why the fashion industry needs a makeover, with Imran Amed · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“And they put on these very onerous, sometimes impossible sales terms on these designers in terms of sell through. And then more recently, Bob, we've seen a crisis happening in the online luxury e-commerce part of the business. So you have this quite important three or four of the most important luxury e-commerce players facing their own issues. You had Farfetch, which was saved at the last minute out of bankruptcy by a big e-commerce player in Korea in December. And you know, again, farfetch was one of the channels that a lot of designers use to kind of reach the market before they could open their own stores and operate their own e-commerce shops. Matches fashion, which is, you know, grew out of a beautifully curated set of stores in London and then was valued at something like $1 billion by APAX who invested.”
2024-07-02 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: Why the fashion industry needs a makeover, with Imran Amed · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“The big brands in this industry have become so big, so dominant, that it makes it really, really hard for the younger independent designers. We had for a time this really healthy ecosystem where you'd have these designers come out of fashion schools. Some of them would go work for a big fashion house. Some of them would kind of create their own brands. And they would sow the seeds for the future creative directors who would eventually take over at the helm of these big houses. But lately I've just had this feeling that that early stage part of our industry is not very healthy. There's been a lot of things happening in the industry that have just made it really, really hard. In the United States, you know, the department store channel is extremely challenged at the moment. And this is where designers at the early stages of their business would first sell their collections.”
2024-07-02 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: Why the fashion industry needs a makeover, with Imran Amed · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Not real feathers. Tom Brown, he staged a show that was inspired by the Olympics. And so, you know, he always does these like very, very immaculately somewhat lengthy choreographed shows. The big mega brands, Dior and Chanel, Dior is part of the LVMH group, which is the world's largest luxury goods group, dominant in the sector of fashion, but also increasingly in the beauty space and watches and jewelry and hospitality. Dior and LVMH have been showing slowing sales in recent seasons. And so there's this kind of crisis of like, well, what's going to happen now? Chanel actually doesn't even have a creative director at the moment because three weeks ago, Virginie Villard, who took over from the truly legendary Carl Lagerfeld after he passed away, suddenly stepped away from the brand. And so that show went on without a creative director at the helm, which is highly unusual for a house like Chanel and really spoke to the fact that we're in really a transitional moment, both for Dior and for Chanel, the two kind of pinnacle.”
2024-07-02 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: Why the fashion industry needs a makeover, with Imran Amed · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Incredible. Like the creativity and effort that went into these shows was absolutely, it creates this sense of wonder. Daniel took us all into the basement, or maybe it was the wine cellar or the kitchen of this old mansion in the heart of Paris. And we were plunged into darkness. And, you know, his normal venue is this space called the Petit Palais, which is bathed in light. But because of the Olympics, he had to move to a new venue because they've shut down so much of Paris. And we were all seated in this like rectangular shape, probably no more than 200 of us at the most. And the models were, as they emerged from the back, the first one came out sheathed in this gold, incredible gold feather look made to look like feathers.”
2024-07-02 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: Why the fashion industry needs a makeover, with Imran Amed · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“You know, the fashion industry is in a pretty challenged place at the moment. After mid-pandemic and post-pandemic boom in the luxury industry, where brands were growing at high 20% annual growth figures, the industry is at this kind of reckoning point right now. So it was quite interesting for me as a fashion and business analyst and observer to be in the mix this week seeing how things were going. You saw a few things, you know, designers like Tom Brown, who is also the president of the CFDA in the US, and Daniel Roseberry, who's the creative director of Scaparelli, a couture brand that's being revived by the business mogul Diego della Valle. They really, you know, there seem unperturbed by what's going on in the industry. Like these shows were...”
2024-07-02 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: Why the fashion industry needs a makeover, with Imran Amed · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“It's both. The scale of the business is not huge. They say there's only about 200 women in the world that buy auture. But there are meaningful, sizable brands that focus on au couture trying to sell perfume products like a $50 lipstick all the way to a $2,000 handbag. It's kind of the dream factory for the fashion industry.”
2024-07-02 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: Why the fashion industry needs a makeover, with Imran Amed · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Were brought forward a week because of the Paris Olympics. And there are clients at those shows watching the looks come down the runway and actually thinking about what they want to buy. And sometimes these looks can sell for hundreds of thousands of dollars because they're all made by hand using specialist ateliers that are scattered all over Paris and other parts of France. Some of the garments are actually embellished by very, very talented artisans in India known as the Carigars. So I would say that the Au Kouturo represents the highest form of fashion in the kind of Western fashion tradition.”
2024-07-02 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: Why the fashion industry needs a makeover, with Imran Amed · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“We're so inundated these days, Bob, with fashion imagery coming from all over the place. It's sometimes hard for the more casual observer to understand how it all fits together. Couture, the couture shows or the haute couture shows, they sit at the very top of the fashion pyramid in order to be granted the appellation by the Federaci ⁇ n, the Federation in Paris that oversees the Chambre Saint-Dical de la Couture, there's a whole bunch of rules you have to follow about how the clothes are made, who makes them, where they're made. And these clothes traditionally, Bob, are made specifically for the individual. So a lot of these shows, unlike the ready-to-wear shows that happened in February and September, the Oture shows happen in January. And usually in July this year,”
2024-07-02 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: Why the fashion industry needs a makeover, with Imran Amed · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Most interesting thing you can do if you look at historical photos going back. 50 or 100 years is to look at what people are wearing. It gives you a sense of what's happening in the world at that time. And so when we look back to 2024, Bob and like the Hoka sneakers and the athleteure and the streetwear looks that people are wearing, these are a reflection of what's happening in the world right now. And that's what makes fashion so powerful.”
2024-07-02 · Masters of Scale · Rapid Response: Why the fashion industry needs a makeover, with Imran Amed · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT