Dr. Achim Berg is a renowned advisor, author, speaker and investor in the global fashion industry. He spent 24 years with McKinsey & Company — 14 as Partner and Senior Partner, where he focused on the fashion and luxury industry. Under his leadership, the advisory of leading fashion players became a hallmark of the consumer practice of the Firm. Achim was the co-founder and co-editor of the highly successful “State of Fashion” report series since its inception in 2016. In addition, he has published more than 40+ reports, white papers, and articles, covering a broad range of topics.

Achim is also recognized as a though leader and regularly featured expert in international press (e.g., FT, WSJ, the Times) and fashion industry media (e.g., Vogue Business, WWD), as well as a regular speaker at global industry events (e.g., BoF VOICES, Business of Luxury Summit, Modaes Barcelona Fashion Summit).

In February 2024, he left McKinsey to focus on personally advising leading decision makers in the fashion and luxury space, such as Mango, where he is the oťcial advisor to the CEO. He launched FashionSIGHTs in February 2025 to support executives, founders and industry leaders to navigate the evolving challenges and opportunities shaping the future of fashion.

Adam Gardiner is the Recycled Lead at Textile Exchange and oversees the delivery of the Textile Exchange’s Climate+ strategy with regards to recycled materials. The Climate+ Strategy guides the industry towards reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from fiber and raw material production by 45% by 2030.

His work focuses on leading recyclers and the industry to transition to textile-to-textile recycling. This is a key focus area for Textile Exchange and his work looks at how synthetic, natural material and MMCF producers can be supported in this transition.

Adam has worked within the fashion and textile industry for the last five years, working within sportswear brands. Prior to these roles, he worked within manufacturing and logistics within the fast-moving consumer goods industry. Applying a systems approach to problem solving, his work looks to support the transition to recycled materials.

Engineer with a specialization in biology and ecology, Alexandre Capelli began his career in 1999 as senior consultant with the French consultancy O2 France where he led projects in communication and eco-design especially for the luxury and agro-food industries. He joined LVMH in 2006 where he works now as Group Environment Deputy Director. He leads the topics of sustainable design, biodiversity, green innovation, and creativity, especially through the Maison/0 program dedicated to regenerative luxury and in collaboration with the Central Saint Martins in London and the sustainability mentoring of the LVMH Prize for young fashion designers. He is a member of the UNCCD Business4Land (B4L) Champions’ Council and of the Nature Credits Expert Group. He also leads the LVMH biodiversity partnership with UNESCO.

Amanda is leading the curation and visual identity of the sustainable textiles collection and Future Fabrics Expo since 2011. Her background is in design consultancy and education, and has co-authored two books: Fabric For Fashion, and Fabric For Fashion The Swatch Book, and led the creation of several online educational modules. She delivers presentations and seminars internationally, both at industry events and in educational forums.

Ankur Agarwal is a seasoned venture capital leader with a sharp eye for value creation, operational excellence, and mission-driven innovation. As Head of VC Investments at PDS Ventures – the venture capital arm of PDS Limited, a global fashion infrastructure company listed on the Indian stock exchange – he spearheads the firm’s early- and growth-stage investment strategy, focusing on technologies and business models shaping the future of fashion, sustainability, circularity, and consumer innovation.

Part of the Founder and Executive Vice Chairman’s Office, Ankur plays a pivotal role in aligning PDS Limited’s long-term vision with its innovation and investment initiatives. He manages the $50M VC fund, overseeing deal sourcing, due diligence, portfolio management, and value creation. Under his management, PDS Ventures has built a diverse portfolio of 80+ investments across the globe, backing both emerging disruptors and category-defining startups.

With a background spanning corporate finance, private equity, M&A, and cross-border transactions, Ankur combines financial discipline with entrepreneurial insight -translating promising business models into scalable, sustainable outcomes. His pragmatic, data-informed approach ensures that PDS Ventures’ capital is not only catalytic but also resilient and results-driven.

Based in London, Ankur operates at the intersection of entrepreneurship, sustainability, and scalable innovation, driving PDS Ventures’ mission to empower the next generation of entrepreneurs building a more responsible and resilient fashion ecosystem.

Anne Prieur du Perray is an engineer graduated from Centrale Paris, with a background in operations, combined with extensive experience in digital and finance within the LVMH Group. This dual expertise has given her a strong understanding of both business performance and operational transformation in the luxury industry.

She co-founded and is now the CEO of Nona Source, the platform that facilitates the reuse of exceptional materials from LVMH Maisons and the wider luxury industry by making them available to fashion and design professionals. Under her leadership, the company has developed a model that combines circularity, premium service, and operational excellence. Anne Prieur du Perray is committed to connecting sustainability with quality, innovation, and new ways of creating.

Benjamin Redlingshöfer is Managing Director of TITK in Rudolstadt and of the subsidiary companies OMPG and smartpoylmer of the TITK-Group. An Industrial Engineer by training, he studied in Ansbach and Ingolstadt and attended the European School for Management and Technology (ESMT) with on-site trainings in US, China and Germany. He gained international experience in Colombia, Spain and in various leadership roles at Siemens AG, including assignments in Singapore, most recently as Vice President Sales & Marketing.
After moving to Thuringia in 2009, he also served as Managing Director of a Tier One automotive supplier from 2009 to 2015.
Today, he stands for market-driven applied research with a strong industrial perspective and is actively involved in numerous innovation and research committees, supported by a broad international network spanning Europe, Asia, and the Americas.

Brooke Roberts-Islam, Founder of Techstyler, and Contributing Writer at Forbes and Business of Fashion

Brooke is an experienced and respected journalist, consultant and author. She is a leading voice in the fashion and textile industries and her role as senior sustainability contributor at Forbes has earned her a reputation for authoritative analysis and reporting.  Brooke recently co-authored The GANNI Playbook: How to get started running a responsible business, published by Penguin.

In addition to her work at Forbes, Brooke founded Techstyler, which provides sustainability and communications consultancy to brands, manufacturers, fibre and textile producers, NGOs, and investors. Techstyler’s clients to date include Pangaia, Swarovski, FibreTrace, Worn Again, Textile Exchange and Bluesign.

Brooke has prior industry experience in knitwear design, development and production, coupled with a previous career in diagnostic radiography (medical imaging), resulting in a unique skill set for analysing, interpreting and prioritising sustainability solutions for materials, technologies and supply chains.

Camilla Skjønning Jørgensen is a textile and materials innovation leader with more than 20 years of experience across the textile industry, sustainability, and investment. She works at the intersection of industrial reality and capital, focusing on how new material technologies move from pilot stage into real industrial adoption.

Through her company, Skjonning Advisory, she serves as CEO-designate of CLIMATEX AG, a Swiss technology company developing circular textile construction solutions. Her role focuses on shaping business direction, building industrial partnerships, and defining a realistic pathway to scale. She also serves as Venture Partner at the Zurich-based impact investment firm Collateral Good, where she supports the assessment and development of investments within textile and materials innovation.

Camilla previously held senior leadership roles at global fashion brand level, including Head of Product Innovation & Circularity, where she worked across international supply chains and between suppliers, product teams, and business leadership to make sustainability initiatives practical and implementable within the business.

She believes that meaningful transformation requires both deep business understanding and clear accountability for delivering change. That dual perspective defines her work: connecting innovation readiness, industrial scalability, and capital alignment.

Camilla brings a systems-level perspective on how investors, industrial players, and innovators evaluate risk, structure collaboration, and unlock scalable impact.

Carmen leads Business Development, Sales and Marketing for AeoniQ™. She holds a degree in economics and is a certified coach. With more than 25 years of experience in fashion, lifestyle and home textiles she brings extensive international expertise in business development, brand creation and design, and product and license management. Throughout her career, she has shaped and scaled business units within the fashion industry, built high-performing interdisciplinary teams, and successfully led innovation and transformation projects for companies including Hugo Boss, Porsche Design, Holy Fashion Group, HeiQ, and others.

After transitioning from the fashion and lifestyle sector into the innovation space, Carmen has been driven by a commitment to advancing a more sustainable future and supporting brands in strengthening their ESG readiness. A strong connector and collaborator, she fosters alignment and meaningful co-creation helping accelerate the fashion industry’s shift toward a more sustainable horizon

As part of Lenzing’s strategy team, Christian stays on top of market and competitive dynamics in the pulp and fiber space. He is excited about new technologies and processes which will shape the future of fibers. He serves as a board member at Swedish fiber company TreeToTextile AB and CIRFS, the European man-made fibers association.​

Prior to joining Lenzing, Christian spent 15 years in a management consulting firm. He holds a Master’s degree in Information and Knowledge Management from the University of Applied Sciences Burgenland, Austria.​

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Julia Aruni Kirschner is passionately committed to social and environmental justice and brings over a decade of experience in labor rights and clean production in the textile industry. After studying “Environmental Resource Management” (M.Sc.) in Lüneburg and Gießen, she gained valuable experience in various fields. This includes working on climate change and climate awareness at the municipal level in Cape Town, as well as working for various German fashion brands.

Since 2015, Julia has been working at ARMEDANGELS, where she initially promoted sustainable practices as a Corporate Responsibility Manager. In 2021, she took on the role of Social Impact Manager, focusing on social impacts within the supply chain. Her work
involved direct on-site engagement in factories and cotton fields, as well as the development of new strategic solutions.

In her current role, Julia has been leading the Impact & Innovation Team at ARMEDANGELS since this year, a team of experts in social and environmental impact. Her academic training and practical experience across various countries and throughout the entire fashion value chain provide the perfect foundation to guide the company toward more sustainable and innovative solutions.

Kirsi Roine is the Senior Director of EU Business Operations at Accelerating Circularity. With a career rooted in chemistry and a passion for textile fibers, Kirsi has worked across the value chain—from viscose production to guiding top global fashion brands through circular innovation.

For eight years, she helped shape Infinited Fiber Company’s global partnerships, advising brands on their transition toward circular systems and turning complex technical challenges into clear, actionable strategies. Her work also extends to EU-level sustainability forums, where she has contributed to industry-wide discussions and advisory efforts.

Known for her optimism, strategic clarity, and collaborative approach, Kirsi brings a steady focus on progress and people. She works at the intersection of innovation, business, and impact—advancing smarter, kinder, and truly circular solutions for the textile industry.

Expertise: Kirsi Roine brings deep cross-sector experience in textile chemistry, circular systems development, and global brand partnerships. Her strengths include navigating EU-level policy landscapes, shaping business-ready circular strategies, and uniting stakeholders around practical, scalable solutions.

Liesl Truscott is the founder of the Gerana Initiative, an independent collective action initiative working at the intersection of business, finance and landscapes.

She brings over two decades of experience in sustainable supply systems, including leadership roles at Textile Exchange and The Biodiversity Consultancy. Known for her ability to spot what’s needed next, she helped initiate the now well-established Organic Cotton Accelerator. Her work has focused on aligning global supply networks with the realities of land, farmers and ecosystems.

Through Gerana, Liesl is now focused on building the conditions for collective action in sourcing landscapes – connecting companies, land stewards and finance to move from ambition to practical, place-based outcomes for nature, climate and livelihoods.

Manuel Steiner is the Director Business Development of LIST Technology AG headquartered in Switzerland, a leading high viscosity technology provider for the global chemical industry.

He spent many years in engineering and project management in different roles within the chemical industry in Europe and in the USA before he joined LIST in 2008. Here he started as Sales Director, then became Technology Director, before taking on the responsibility of Director Business Development in 2019, where he developed LIST‘s Cellulose Fiber business. LIST dissolving technology is key to generating spinning solutions from any kind of biomass, incl. from recycled textiles (incl. Lyocell 2.0), with any known solvent and processing strategy – meanwhile used in many process developments and industrial plant projects.

Manuel holds an Engineering Diploma of the ETH Zurich, an MBA of the University of Rochester and an MIPLM of the University of Strasbourg.

Petri Alava is a member of the Board of Directors of Haelixa and the founder and former CEO of Infinited Fiber Company. He led the development and scaling of innovative textile-to-textile recycling technology, building the company into a globally recognized solution over more than a decade. During this time, he secured over €100 million in funding from major brands including H&M Group, Inditex, Adidas, and Zalando. He also established more than €200 million in long-term offtake agreements with partners such as Patagonia and PVH, bringing deep expertise in scaling breakthrough innovations into industrial adoption

Dr. Pramod Agrawal is CEO and Co-founder of SaXcell BV, a company developing sustainable cellulose fibres from waste textiles. SaXcell produces regenerated lyocell fibres made from discarded cotton rich textiles, supporting the transition toward a more circular textile industry.

Dr. Agrawal is a technopreneur with more than 25 years of international experience in sustainable innovation, material science, biotechnology, and textile technology. His work combines research, product development, scale-up, and industry collaboration across Europe and Asia.

He is an inventor on multiple international patents and has contributed to scientific publications and international conferences in the fields of sustainable textiles, biotechnology, and circular materials.

At SaXcell, he works on scaling textile-to-textile recycling solutions through partnerships across the textile value chain, helping reduce water, land, and chemical use in fibre production.

Shannon Mercer is CEO of FibreTrace, the physical verification layer for textile supply chains. FibreTrace embeds proof of identity directly into fibres at source, combining patented pigment technology, proprietary scanning systems, and digital verification tools to help brands support product claims with scientific evidence. Shannon maintains that seeing the supply chain is not the same as proving what is in the product.

Since joining in 2020, Shannon has led FibreTrace’s evolution from an early-stage startup into scalable supply chain infrastructure. He brings almost 20 years of executive leadership across manufacturing, retail, construction, and agriculture, and holds an MBA from University of Newcastle.

He works at the intersection of strategy, innovation, and digital transformation, supporting strategic alignment with group strategy and cross-Ticino business units alignment across footwear, accessories, bodywear, and global licensing categories. His work focuses on business strategy, product innovation, AI adoption, and operational excellence, with the aim to deliver scalable impact at Group level.

Chemical Engineer with 25 years of experience in the cellulosic fibers sector, having held several management roles at Altri, with a strong focus on sustainability and corporate responsibility.

Tobias Herzog has been with Tailorlux since 2018, a provider of physical traceability solutions for global supply chains. Since 2020, he has served as Managing Director of the company.

Tailorlux develops technologies for the physical marking and identification of materials, enabling reliable traceability in various industries. Tobias was involved in creating a traceability system based on highly enriched MMCF to mark natural fibres as well as viscose marking projects. The focus is on advancing transparency and accountability across complex textile supply chains and brings practical insights into the challenges and opportunities of implementing traceability at scale.

Valerie has been engaged in forest conservation campaigns for 30 years. She worked as the Forest Campaigner with the grassroots group Friends of Clayoquot Sound from 1988 to 2004. In the early 1990s, she pioneered the market campaign strategy of influencing logging companies’ practices by engaging their commercial customers to demand sustainable wood products. She was part of the award-winning collaborative process that developed Ecosystem-Based Management in the Great Bear Rainforest, a 6.4 million hectare (15 million acre) temperate rainforest on the west coast of British Columbia, Canada. She worked on the Great Bear Rainforest negotiations on behalf of Stand.earth (formerly ForestEthics), which she co-founded.

Valerie is focused on accelerating Next Generation solutions. This includes the use of agricultural residues, such as wheat straw, to make commercial paper and the use of recycled clothing to make new rayon, as an alternative to using primary forests for pulp and paper and textiles.