For the first time in the Creative Industries Incubator, representatives of the fashion and design sectors gathered and discussed the most critical needs of design/fashion professionals about their growth and competitiveness, and the technological, organizational, and business challenges they face. Enter Koprivnica implements the CODES – CO-DEsign for Sustainability project, which is financed from the Creative Europe program and whose goal is to promote innovative business models that deal with market transformations for the fashion and design sector, based on new forms of collaborative and artistic creation, with integration of digital technologies. The CODES project is based on the concept that products in the F&D sector should be more oriented towards sustainability and mass customization to better respond to the demands of customers in traditional and emerging markets.

Besides representatives of the fashion and design sector, the focus group was also attended by representatives of education. Female entrepreneurs in the fashion and design sector deal with the same problems as other entrepreneurs and they point out that their creative work often suffers because of jobs that pay overhead. They pointed out that the textile sector is undervalued in Croatia, and that most products are sold online and via social networks because it is more profitable than opening your store.

In addition to the above, they talked about verified and unverified training programs, their adaptation to participants, and necessary professional practices. The differences in age and business experience of the participants made it possible to consider the topic from different perspectives. In addition to gaining valuable information about the sector, the participants had the opportunity to connect with colleagues who are struggling with similar challenges and to discuss the topics of sustainable business.

As a continuation of the project activities, the goal of the partners is to examine the situation in the countries participating in the project (Croatia, Italy, Greece) and to see the problems and challenges faced by the stakeholders of the sector. After that, an online interactive platform will be created that will serve for the interaction of the stakeholders of the fashion and design sector, where they will be able to exchange ideas, and create new partnerships together with products and services. In the end, selected representatives of the sector will have the opportunity to participate in a creative residency in Greece and after that, a product catalogue will be created. Throughout all activities, the emphasis will be on sustainability and encouraging innovation.

The project is Co-Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or Creative Europe program. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.