Friday 6 June
13:30 – 17:30
The Studio
Join us 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 Circular Design Practice session here.
Mary Fellowes, GreenWith Studios
Bio
Craig Smith, Positive Materials
Bio
Idan Shal–Gohet, Fibe
Fibe is revolutionising the industry by engineering cutting-edge technology to extract cellulosic fibres from potato harvest waste. This untapped waste, which amounts to 150M tonnes annually and cannot be fed to livestock or compost, has the potential to provide 70% of global non-synthetic clothing demand. Our fibres use 99% less water, produce 82% less CO2e and require no land compared to cotton.
Brett Cotten, Arda Biomaterials
Arda Biomaterials transforms globally abundant waste and co-product streams into scalable, animal, and plastic-free biomaterials. Arda’s first transformation is turning spent grain from the beer brewing and whisky distilling industries into a novel, leather-like material called New Grain, for use in fashion, automotive, and other sectors.
Nelly Taheri, Ponda
Bio
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.
Safia Minney, Founder at Indilisi
Indilisi is a project by award-winning sustainable fashion entrepreneur Safia Minney with friends and partners, including Brett and Scott Staniland, Shayla Sakora, Kate Osbourne and Fair Trade groups in Bangladesh, India and Kenya. Our collection champions slow, crafted fashion. We also sell surplus certified organic and Fairtrade cotton fabrics to makers, designers and brands. Do come and see us!
Aditi Mayer
Bio
Sara Grady, Co-Director and Co-Founder at 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.
Harriet Fletcher-Gilhuys, Great British Wool Revival
Bio
Felix Barratt, CEO at 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.
Meredith Wood, Colour Earth
Bio
