Womenswear giant Sussan Group joins Seamless Foundation Members

The Australian Fashion Council is proud to share that the Sussan Group (Sussan, Sportsgirl & Suzanne Grae) have proudly signed on as a Foundation Member of Seamless, Australia’s national clothing stewardship scheme that aims to make Australian fashion and clothing truly circular by 2030.

The landmark scheme has been set up to change the way Australians consume and recycle their clothes and reduce the 200,000 tonnes of clothing that goes to Australian landfill each year.

The Sussan Group is delighted to join fellow Foundation Members David Jones, Big W, Rip Curl, RM Williams, Lorna Jane and The Iconic. “Together we are working towards shaping a sustainable future for the fashion industry,” Group Retail CEO Rebecca Hard said.

“The Sussan Group is looking forward to helping shape the conversation and recommendations for the proposed scheme. We are excited to be working alongside our Seamless partners on potential solutions to solve the issue of textile waste,” Ms Hard continued.

"It is so pleasing to see Sussan Group stepping up as a leader in our industry by becoming a Seamless Foundation member and making a genuine commitment to the future of the Australian fashion industry,” said Danielle Kent, Project Director of Seamless. “These organisations will play a pivotal part in building the foundational elements of the scheme and ensuring it has the best chance of success.”

The National Clothing Product Stewardship Scheme design and the Roadmap to Clothing Circularity will drive the industry towards clothing circularity by 2030 through:

Incentivising clothing design that is more durable, repairable, sustainable, and recyclable
Fostering new circular business models for Australian fashion based on reuse, repair, re-manufacturing, and rental
Expanding clothing collection and sorting for effective re-use and to ensure non-wearable clothes are recycled into new high value products and materials
Encouraging citizen behaviour change for clothing acquisition, use, care and disposal

AFC supports Yes with #FashionForYes

The Australian Fashion Council (AFC) proudly announces its unwavering support for the Voice to Parliament and launch of #FashionForYes, taking a decisive step towards fostering recognition for the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

This campaign follows the ‘AFC Talks, Voice to Parliament’ event where AFC Director, Yatu Widders-Hunt hosted a panel of powerful Indigenous and industry voices: Rachel Perkins, filmmaker and Co-Chair of Australians for Indigenous Constitutional Recognition, Laura Thompson Founder of Clothing the Gaps, and Elle Roseby Managing Director of Country Road.

The panel engaged in an open and courageous conversation on the meaning and purpose of the Uluru Statement from the Heart, as well as unpacking some of the noise behind the Voice and why fashion brands should find their voice in support of this historic moment.

PANEL'S CALL OUT TO INDUSTRY:

BE ACTIVE (Rachel) BRING YOURSELVES TO THIS (Laura) BE BRAVE (Elle)

OTHER KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THE PANEL:

This is a once in a generation opportunity to unify our nation.
This issue is not about politics, it is about human rights and social justice.
In the same way that we actively supported the fight for marriage equality, it is time to recognise and enshrine our First Nations’ people in the Constitution.
If we don’t make this change now, we will look back at this moment and wonder whether we did all that we could have.
Organisations/brands that have a Reconciliation Action Plan and/or a Social Responsibility Statement, or have previously celebrated Naidoc Week, should ask themselves why they are not actively also supporting the Voice.
Saying that it’s too hard or it’s too political is a privilege that’s not afforded to First Nations’ people. We all need to act now!

JOIN #FashionForYes

The AFC proudly supports the Yes campaign and will share a #FashionForYes toolkit for brands or individuals to use across eDM & Socials.

DOWNLOAD THE #FASHIONFORYES TOOLKIT

If you are creating your own communications, we encourage you to include #FashionForYes in your creative and/or captions for us to share and amplify.

TOGETHER, WE CAN HELP MAKE HISTORY

This is our chance to ‘walk the talk’ and act on our industry’s commitment to diversity and inclusion.

BE ACTIVE. BRING YOURSELF TO THIS. BE BRAVE.

#FashionForYes

AFC Talks, Voice to Parliament

On October 14, Australians will be asked to vote Yes or No on a proposed law to enshrine an Indigenous representative body in the Constitution.

The referendum on the #VoicetoParliament will provide a historic opportunity for Australians to recognise the First Peoples of Australia by establishing an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice.

The AFC invites our community to an open conversation to unravel the facts behind the noise.

Join us as Yatu Widders-Hunt, General Manager at Cox Inall Ridgeway and AFC Board Director, leads a panel discussion with distinguished guests:
- Rachel Perkins, Multi-award-winning filmmaker and Co-Chair of Australians for Indigenous Constitutional Recognition
- Laura Thompson, Co-Founder - Clothing The Gaps
- Elle Roseby, Managing Director - Country Road Group

AFC Talks, Voice to Parliament
4pm AEST, Wednesday 6 September 2023