Sustainable fashion
UD grad student Carrie Parry wins first place in international fashion competition
10:01 a.m., March 7, 2012--Carrie Parry, a student in the graduate certificate program in the University of Delaware’s Department of Fashion and Apparel Studies, recently won the Green Fashion Competition at Amsterdam International Fashion Week (AIFW). Parry used her courses at UD to develop a sustainable fashion business strategy, and launched her line last year.
To enter the Green Fashion Competition, Parry was selected from hundreds of designers around the world, and then beat eight finalists in a runway show that presented a total of 24 looks. Parry was selected as the winner based on her collection designs and business plan, while utilizing sustainable items for her fashion line.
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"It has been a delight to have Carrie in our courses for the graduate certificate in socially responsible and sustainable apparel business. Carrie has taken the content from each course and actively applied it to her new business and the launch of her line of sustainable fashion. We are very proud of her ability to tackle the complexities of the global apparel industry with an eye toward improving social and environmental conditions," said Marsha Dickson, professor and chair of the Department of Fashion and Apparel Studies.
Thus far, Parry has won several awards, including the Ethical Fashion Forum's 2011 Innovation USA Award, a spot at Designer and Agents' Green Room, and now top honors at AIFW's Green Fashion Competition.
Parry’s label recognizes that creating sustainable fashion is twofold: by making garments from sustainably-sourced recycled, organic and carbon neutral textiles from domestic sources and artisanal communities around the world, and focusing on how garments are worn by introducing the concept of interchangeable and detachable pieces and emphasizing versatility (e.g. day to night, season to season) so people have more use out of the garments they own, and hence consume less.
AIFW and the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs, Agriculture and Innovation created the Green Fashion Competition to initiate a change toward a more sustainable fashion industry. Their “prize pack” provides the winners with the tools to build a successful fashion business that encourages biodiversity in fashion. Additionally, winners are provided with business-related workshops, coaching, connection to the AIFW network and a platform during the 16th edition of AIFW.
Article by Andrea Muddiman