Audience:
Open industry. All apparel and footwear industry professionals, regardless of AAFA membership, are encouraged to participate.
Description:
Our climates are changing. Consumers are savvier and product reviews travel faster. Just in time, too. They’ll be relying on true performance wear to weather the intensifying climate. How can you develop the products they’ll need and messaging that resonates?
Unfounded claims have legal, brand and safety implications. We’ll cover what makes a validated, trustworthy claim. Then we’ll explore some key performance and sustainability attributes for the new environment. Finally, we’ll show how to develop and verify the claims that consumers will gravitate towards.
Attendees of this webinar will learn:
- The case for validated marketing claims with tested data.
- About protection, comfort, quality, sustainability and design features that will be in high demand.
- How to adapt to product claims that will resonate with consumers in the new climate.
Speakers:
Ben Mead
Managing Director
Hohenstein Institute America
Ben Mead serves as the Managing Director of Hohenstein Institute America. In this role, he serves as the company’s liaison with government agencies, industry collaborations and trade associations. He also oversees OEKO-TEX® responsibilities for the U.S. Prior to joining Hohenstein in 2014, Ben consulted with various brands and industry associations, including Textile Exchange and AFIRM. In those roles, Ben established partnerships with industry leaders and experts to increase industry engagement in green chemistry and sustainable textile processing. While working for Nike, Ben helped develop a restricted substances program and was involved in the implementation of sustainable materials and water programs. Ben holds degrees in Chemistry and Textile Chemistry from North Carolina State University and a certificate in Green Chemistry from the University of Washington.
Dr. Jan Beringer
Senior Scientific Expert
Hohenstein
Dr. Jan Beringer serves as the Senior Scientific Expert for Hohenstein. In this role, he uses an interdisciplinary approach to lead the development of clothing physiology, fit and workmanship of garments, functionalization of fabrics, textile UV protection and textile reprocessing. He has extensive knowledge in textile and fiber chemistry, functionalization, nanotechnology, coating and finishing and clothing physiology. Prior to becoming Senior Scientific Expert in 2015, Dr. Beringer began his career as Head of the Competence Center Innovative Textiles at Hohenstein. From 2009 to 2015 he was the Head of Research and Development of the Department of Function and Care at Hohenstein, specializing in research and testing in the field. Dr. Beringer holds a Doctorate in Natural Sciences in Chemistry with a focus on Textile and Fiber Chemistry from the University of Stuttgart.
Moderator:
Nate Herman
Senior Vice President, Policy
AAFA
Nate Herman oversees AAFA’s Policy department, managing the association’s lobbying, policy, and regulatory affairs activities. Nate leads AAFA’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) program, formulating and implementing CSR policy and representing AAFA and the industry on CSR issues before governments, NGOs, and other key stakeholders. In addition, Nate develops all apparel and footwear industry data and statistics as AAFA's resident economist. Prior to joining AAFA, Nate worked for six years at the U.S. Department of Commerce's International Trade Administration assisting U.S. firms in entering the global market. Nate spent the last two years as the Department's industry analyst for the footwear and travel goods industries. Nate received a Masters of Public and International Affairs from the University of Pittsburgh in 1994 and a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations and Economics from the University of Delaware in 1992.
Unable to join on October 19?
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CONTACT | QUESTIONS
Stephanie Paendong