Leather industry leaders came together at an event

Izmir University of Economics (IUE) Faculty of Fine Arts and Design and Izmir Chamber of Commerce Leather Apparel and Leather Goods Group organized a special three-day event to evaluate the creative and environmental aspects of leather production. In the program titled, ‘Clean Leather 24 - Innovative Approaches in Leather Design', students came together in interviews with experts in the industry and held workshops.

On the first day of the event, designer Simay Bülbül gave information about leather design and processes and introduced her own brand. Halil Gündoğdu, President of the Leather Apparel and Leather Goods Committee of Izmir Chamber of Commerce, made a speech on leather production processes, developments in the leather industry and the place of designers in this industry. On the second day of the event, Sedef Orman, Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of Derimod, met with young people. Orman shared her knowledge and experiences on branding in the leather industry.

PRIZE FOR THE TOP 3

Afterwards, Italian designer Stefano Ghilardi introduced his own brand and talked about his ‘Upcycle’ designs that he combined with leather. Finally, Erkan Zandar, President of the Leather and Leather Products Exporters' Association, shared the developments in the leather industry and future expectations. For three days, IUE students also held workshops accompanied by mentors. The jury members from the faculty and the industry evaluated the designs of the students, determined the top 3 groups and presented their awards.