"You can set a lot in motion here in Terms of Fashion"
Sarah Vieten has been the new managing director of Fashion Net e.V. for a few months now. She spoke to VIVID editor Rainer Kunst about Düsseldorf as a fashion location, the plans and visions she has for her networking work, her fascination with the fashion industry and the topic of failure.
Left: Rainer Kunst Publisher of VIVID; Right: Sarah Vieten
You have now (end of May 2023) been the new managing director of Fashion Net for 100 days. What is your first interim conclusion?
I'm already fully immersed in my new job and my calendar is pretty full. But I have also set myself a lot of goals. In the initial period I want to meet as many members as possible in person and get to know them. I think that personal contact is essential in order to. facilitate good communication and to realise our ideas together.
Can you briefly outline what the exact task of Fashion Net is?
We are the industry representative for Düsseldorf. as a fashion location, the extension of the Office for Economic Development. Our members come from very different areas - for example private business, universities, showrooms, trade fairs. In other words, people who create or represent fashion in Düsseldorf and work in or around fashion.
What do you want to do differently from your predecessors?
I am definitely building on the legacy of Angelika Firnrohr. I have the greatest respect for her work and her achievements for Düsseldorf as a fashion location. Moreover, having worked in fashion for a few years, or in the fashion sector in the broadest sense, I bring a huge contact network with me. Perhaps I can be seen as a kind of new generation that is able to think just a little bit more outside the box. Who, in addition to continuing to look after the big players and wellknown and visible brands, also keeps an even closer eye on those who don't yet have much visibility, like the small designer in the backyard studio. Because it is these people that make up the overall picture of a city known as a fashion location.
What role does Düsseldorf as a fashion location still play today?
Düsseldorf is a very aesthetic city and also an economically very strong city with a lot of purchasing power. And fashion is defi nitely one of the most important economic pillars – and it goes hand in hand with the beauty and lifestyle sectors. There are over 1000 labels and 600 showrooms, some of which are open all year round, not just during the peak times of January and July. Here with regards to fashion, you can set a lot in motion.
You have gained in-depth experience in local retail. How do you think it has to position itself today in order to be successful?
My experience is that customers are looking for a shopping experience that appeals to all their senses. For example, through the feel, the material of the goods or perhaps also the possibility of having a coffee in the shop. This also includes a very good personal service, which does not yet exist in this form in the world of e-commerce. In personal encounters with regular or existing customers, the sales staff often know their needs very well and can also make personal recommendations. In addition, customised shopping is becoming more and more important. In the luxury segment, for example, handbags are often personalised with initials or trainer suppliers create trainers according to one's own taste on request. It is important to connect this personalised shopping experience with the digital world. For example, by allowing people to select products via touchscreen, which are then hung in the changing room.
“My experience is that customers are looking for a shopping experience that appeals to all their senses.”
How does that go together - strengthening local retail and at the same time pushing digital services and thus competing globally? Isn't that a contradiction in terms?
Not at all - both are important. Especially if you want to establish yourself as a brand and want to be able to reach way beyond your local boundaries. This way, people from other cities can also become aware of what`s on offer and visit the shop in Düsseldorf. Moreover, the digital presence is also an information platform and business card that goes far beyond the actual sale. In addition, it can build loyalty with customers who are not in the city. That's why it's important to be well positioned both online and in stores.
Why did you end up in the fashion industry? What is it that makes it so exciting for you?
Above all, it's this special mixture that also defines Fashion Net: You have contact with young designers and start-ups with lots of creative ideas as well as with established companies that have a lot of experience and from which you can learn a lot. Moreover, fashion is a very beautiful subject. I simply enjoy surrounding myself with beautiful things and having personal encounters with the people who make these beautiful things happen, people with ideas and visions who are simply following their dream. The fashion industry is not as superficial as many might think. Behind every garment or collection there is a heart and soul and passion. And that is what inspires me.
How do you deal with setbacks or failure?
Of course, setbacks can be a bit depressing at first. But getting up again afterwards - getting back on the horse, as they say - is what motivates me. Maybe it's a kind of "now more than ever" mentality. I think it's a matter of upbringing for both my brother and me. We were shown that there is actually no failure, but rather that "you live, you learn" and that things will never stop. And at the end of the day, this creates a great sense of basic trust in the world. So, nothing really bad can happen to you in life, because you are always caught, always protected and sheltered, even from way up there. A setback or a failure can also always be a chance to take stock. There is always a reason why things happen.
“The fashion industry is not as superficial as many might think. Behind every garment or collection there is a heart and soul and passion. And that is what inspires me.”
What do you wish for Fashion Net in the next few years? What would success look like for you?
I would like to see Fashion Net continue to grow and watch great new projects come to life in the city. The other day, a member told me that she made a new contact at our After Work Cocktail and found a new job as a result – even something like that can happen and that makes me happy! I wish that people become increasingly aware of the fact that Fashion Net is for everyone who wants to make a difference in the city - in fashion, in beauty and lifestyle, in the related trades, but also in art and culture. And that together, many new ideas can be created. It's great to know that this - the coming up with new ideas - will never stop, because creativity is simply inexhaustible. There will always be new people in the city and there will always be a new generation moving up.
You were born in Mönchengladbach. In fact, your brother is the stadium announcer for Borussia Mönchengladbach. Do you see Düsseldorf as your home?
I've lived here longer than in Mönchengladbach, the. city of my birth. And as a teenager, I was out and about in Düsseldorf a lot and learned to love it. Düsseldorf is where I am based and where my heart is. And, as they say, "home is where your heart is". •
Interview Rainer Kunst / Text Tom Corrinth
Pictures Andreas Endermann