Friday 6 June
13:30 – 17:30
The Studio
Join Mary Fellowes and Safia Minney MBE in a series of Sofa Stories exploring Past and Future Fabrics.
Join us for the day to see how designers and start-ups are channeling their creativity to re-think traditional design systems and innovate the craft of making, as a designer label or larger brand. Through a series of ‘Sofa Stories’ with experts and professionals in their field, we will explore topics such as Circular Design, Social and Ethical Practice and consider how we can produce fabrics more regeneratively. Book your slot for the morning session here.
Chaired by Mary Fellowes, founder of GreenWith Studios, the first part of the afternoon will feature Sofa Story #3 and #4, exploring how sustainable textiles can be developed for the market and integrated into responsible sourcing practices. Hear from pioneering start-ups driving innovation in bio-based and regenerative materials and helping the industry move away from synthetics and mass-produced fibres. From utilising agricultural and industrial by-products to creating next-gen materials from cellulose, and developing new technologies that help reduce biodiversity loss, we will explore the themes and values that unite this exciting movement. Key questions include: How can materials be produced at scale with minimal environmental impact? Is there a future in plant-based, biodegradable textiles? And are sustainable fabrics truly viable in today’s commercial landscape?
Sofa Story #5 shifts focus to traditional craftsmanship and the opportunities that lie in supporting and scaling craft production. Safia Minney MBE, founder of Indilisi, will examine the role of craftsmanship in the contemporary marketplace and the significance of its cultural lineage. The discussion will consider how supporting global communities can contribute to a new commercial model that values grassroots creativity while championing environmental and social justice. Can the broader fashion industry take the traditions of the past and flip the script, moving towards an inclusive and restorative model that challenges today’s disposable culture?
In Sofa Story #6, Safia Minney MBE continues her journey into the future as she’s joined by start-ups reinventing the production of traditional fabrics. The session will highlight their efforts to move away from large-scale industrial processes for leather, wool and cotton, and instead adopt regenerative approaches — from soil to farm, production and product — tackling biodiversity loss and reducing carbon. The discussion will ask: can the industry work effectively to build regenerative supply chains, eliminate pollution and rework the model for traditional fabrics?”
Brett Cotten, Arda Biomaterials
Arda Biomaterials is a London-based chemistry technology company transforming plant proteins into high-performance biopolymers and materials designed to excel in scalability, price, performance, and sustainability. Arda’s first product, New Grain, is a leather-like material composed of spent grain proteins from beer brewing and whisky distilling. We believe partnering closely with breweries and distilleries is a super power for scaling, operating, and selling Arda’s material innovations.
Felix Barrett, Biothread
Biothread is driving a movement to make sustainable cotton cultivation more accessible and rewarding for growers. Our approach supports farmer on-boarding and success through microbial innovation, agronomic guidance, and certification alignment. We are building a premium market that recognises environmental stewardship, enabling direct, traceable connections between certified farmers and fashion brands. By bridging the gap between field and fashion, Biothread fosters collaboration, transparency, and scalable impact across the cotton value chain.
Sara Grady, British Pasture Leather
British Pasture Leather is the first and only producer of leather from the hides of cattle raised on regenerative farms in the UK, certified by Pasture for Life. We connect designers with ecosystem restoration through the production of leather. We work from the farm level to produce a material which is 100% vegetable tanned, made in the UK and traceable to regenerative sources. British Pasture Leather is a new vision for British leather that responds to the growing demand for local, traceable and ethically produced materials.
Meredith Wood, Colour Earth
Colour Earth is a regenerative alternative to synthetic dyes and printing inks, made of plants that heal polluted ecosystems as they grow. Primarily utilised for screen printing applications onto textiles, Colour Earth helps the fashion industry move into a more sustainable and ethical future. Our project rewilds polluted landscapes and builds local community whilst helping people reconnect to nature.
Idan Shal–Gohet, Fibe
Fibe is on a mission to make sustainable agri-based fibres the go-to option for the farming and textile industry. Using a proprietary technology platform, we simplify the extraction process to reduce cost, environmental impact, and processing steps. Our breakthroughs include creating the world’s first textile fibres from potato waste, alongside fibres from various other crops. With 9.6 billion tonnes of agricultural residue wasted each year, Fibe’s technology could expand the market share of natural fibres by 2.4x.
Harriet Fletcher-Gilhuys, Great British Wool Revival
The Great British Wool Revival is an open website and research tool that helps to promote British wool, natural dyes and best-case practise. This initiative connects farmers with designers and makers to support each aspect of the value chain and re-instate the amazing properties that British wool has to offer. The project was run by Fashion Roundtable and researched by The Wool Library. It was funded by YOOX NET-A-PORTER in partnership with The King’s Foundation’s Modern Artisan programme for 2024.
Mary Fellowes, GreenWith Studios
Mary is a Fashion & Luxury Media Executive and Sustainable Innovation Expert leading change across fashion, media, and entertainment. A recognised thought leader, Mary often speaks internationally at COP, Davos, Blue Earth Summit, and the British Fashion Council. An Executive Fellow at King’s College Business School she holds advisory and board roles with SMEs focusing on impact, mentorship and purpose. Mary has worked as a stylist in entertainment, for the Oscars, BAFTAs, Star Wars, Downton Abbey, Fleabag, and for talent including Olivia Colman. She was editor at 11 global editions of Vogue, The Economist, and other Hearst publications and her work has profiled in The New York Times, The Telegraph, Vogue, and Harper’s Bazaar.
Safia Minney, Indilisi
Indilisi is a project by award-winning sustainable fashion entrepreneur Safia Minney MBE, with friends and partners, including Brett and Scott Staniland, Shayla Sakora, Kate Osbourne and Fair Trade groups in Bangladesh, India and Kenya. The collection champions slow, crafted fashion and Indilisi also sells surplus certified organic and Fairtrade cotton fabrics to makers, designers and brands.
Nelly Taheri, Ponda
Ponda is a next-gen biomaterials company connecting the restoration of wetlands to the creation of healthier textiles for the fashion industry. Utilising novel technology to extract fibres from Typha Latifolia seed heads, Ponda creates a next-generation insulation called BioPuff®, designed to keep you warm while regenerating damaged wetlands. This increases biodiversity, captures carbon, and ensures a resilient industry for the future.
Craig Smith, Positive Materials
POSITIVE MATERIALS is a textile company operating at the intersection of design, technology and manufacturing with a team of scientists, product developers and production specialists. They collaborate with an international network of textile supply chain partners, innovative start-ups and consumer brands to develop and create low-impact textiles. POSITIVE MATERIALS is part of PDS Group, a global consumer-driven manufacturing and sourcing platform serving the world’s leading brands and retailers. By integrating a global textile group in the company’s structure they benefit from an integrated approach facilitating R&D and production activities for textile innovation.
Clare Lichfield, Sequinova
Sequinova is a pioneering biomaterials company, revolutionising the textiles industry with cutting-edge biodegradable sequin materials. Plant-based, non-toxic, and available in a variety of colours and effects, we’ve partnered with the world’s leading manufacturers in Europe and Asia to deliver production-ready eco textiles at scale.
