Post by Benjamin Vermin

Fashion is relationships: What our Chainbalance Chat & Dine at DFD really showed me There we are in the picture just before dinner, full of positive anticipation for the conversations ahead. Moments like this are exactly why I believe so strongly in what we’re doing with our Chainbalance Chat & Dine format. Fashion is not only detail it’s a people business. Or, as the CEO of Levi's put it in the State of Fashion: this is a relationship business. And last week at DFD was a perfect reminder of that. How cool is it to meet familiar faces and have first-time conversations with people from across our industry in a relaxed, informal setting? Meeting old friends, like Martin Goppelt, with whom I worked closely back in the first adidas retail team, literally as neighbours in the ADP building. Thank you to Dominik Gross from Création Gross GmbH & Co. KG, Bettina Billerbeck from TextilWirtschaft, Juergen Fleischmann, Dr. Stefan Rassau and many others for the strong exchanges! Moments like these make you realise how much collective knowledge and expertise sits around one table. Encounters like this don’t happen behind your desk. You have to go out, meet people, listen, share and connect the dots. It’s fun, it’s healthy for your brain and there is so much you can take back into your future ideas and plans. To everyone who joined the evening and contributed to the open, honest exchange: thank you. You turned a dinner into a community moment and that’s exactly what our industry needs more of. #wearechainbalance