The Portland’s Functional Fabric Fair, hosted by textile industry communications agency Formidable Media, hopes to “demystify the accelerating paradigm shift” of circularity, the ever-changing textile marketplace and increasing regulatory pressures to equip designers, product developers and brand representatives with the knowledge to spearhead sustainable products.

“Fashion is regularly listed among the top five largest polluting industries in the world and our panel of experts hope to help shape future design and sustainability decisions to mitigate fashion’s outsized impact on the environment,” said Scott Kaier, founder and president of Formidable Media.

“Informed and innovative design is the first step in creating circular products, so today’s designers will be instrumental in creating a cleaner, more sustainable future.”

Handpicked from across sectors including outdoor, fashion, lifestyle, and footwear industries, the Designing for Circularity panellists will bring together experts in materials sourcing, textile finishes, trims, sustainability, recycling, natural materials, and more such as:

• Daniel Uretsky, president of Allied Feather + Down
• Martin Flora, vice president of business development at Green Theme Technologies
• Sarah Schlinger, R&D commercialisation manager at Woolmark
• Sharon Perez, senior business development manager at Lenzing Group
• Brian La Plante, senior manager of sustainability at YKK
• Theresa McKenney, director of sustainability at NEMO Equipment

In 2019, the Functional Fabric Fair was hosted in New York with the theme ‘Focus Topic’, and that year's topic was Water – Our Responsibility, which was weaved into the event, and aligned with the organiser’s dedication to producing a zero-waste exhibition.