Cecile Scheele previously worked as marketing director at multinational real estate company Jones Lang LaSalle in the Netherlands which is one of the largest real estate companies in the world. Now she is the owner of the fashion agency Goodbrandz, founder of the Soul Salon clothing trade show and initiator of Dutch Sustainable Fashion Week. It could be said that she was one of the pioneers in the field of sustainable fashion, especially in the Netherlands.
At present, there is a growing awareness among consumers when it comes to sustainable fashion events that they begin to understand the true impact of it. But how do we get to the next step, where do people really start buying it? What needs to be done is to direct consumer behavior. We must start normalizing sustainability and stop putting it in a separate corner. Sustainable fashion cannot create a ‘wow’ effect.
In 2011, Cecile Scheele started and founded Goodbrandz, with the aim of starting a sustainable fashion movement. Sustainability is the way to do it and that’s why your clothes or jeans must be produced carefully. Goodbrandz represents and promotes eco-friendly and ethical fashion brands, by creating visibility infamous fashion shops.
Cecile Scheele and Goodbranz
At present, around 15 sustainable fashion brands are incorporated in Goodbrandz. This succeeded in achieving its goals, but the demand to represent these brands was high. “That’s why I started Soul Salon, to get more visibility and create a platform to represent these sustainable brands. Most of them are small labels.”
The fashion sector seems to be reversed nowadays, mainly because of sustainability issues. “Every innovation can be linked to making the production process more sustainable. But the movement towards sustainable fashion is too slow. ” According to Cecile, different links have difficulty in connecting. The reason for this is that knowledge and information are too little on the demand side. Consumers need to be informed and that’s how we determine the next potential step.
The important problem now is the balance between sustainability and commercial. Special methods are needed so that we can engage consumers in the right way, one of which is important for brands to create true experiences. The true or genuine story behind the brand can be a wonderful input for buyers to know. Enter the story to use and create a unique selling point from it. Show the world how extraordinary, beautiful, and good quality your product.
Cecile Scheele and Dutch Fashion Week
Last year the third edition of Dutch Sustainable Fashion Week runs from 7 to 16 October. She started DSFW in 2014 with a strong belief that consumers have an important role in transforming the fashion industry towards a sustainable business model. However, the relatively slow movement in this industry is heading towards sustainability. The overall goal of DSFW is to increased awareness in a sustainable fashion.
During the campaign, around 500 participating shops across the country highlighted their sustainable brands. Scheele has worked with the local government to organize local events and performances throughout the country. In addition, during the week there are several performances, exhibitions and workshops were held in Amsterdam to create this national awareness.
Cecile Scheele’s role is the initiator of this Dutch Fashion week event. Every year she tries to increase activity with new partners. She strongly believes in the strength of partnerships and co-creation with schools, governments, museums, organizations, and associations.
