NYC's Fashion x Innovation: 2024 Highlights & Fashion Week 2025 Kickoff
Building the Bridge Between Fashion & Technology: 200+ Attendees, 8 Industry Cohosts and Countless New Connections.
Welcome to 2025! For our many new followers (!) I’m Rachel Sterling - FashionTech Founder with roots in luxury fashion and tech - and founder of Fashion x Innovation!
Coming from fashion and tech, I saw in each experience how hard it was to meet people in other industries who were interested in what we did, could inspire us or who we could collaborate with. I knew I wasn’t alone in my desire to connect and as a FashionTech founder, I wanted to bridge the gap and elevate our category.
So last year, I started by teaming up with fellow FashionTech founders Colette Johnson (in haus/The PS Collective), Kotryna Jukneviciute (Arete), and Kate Sanner (Beni) to host 2 big Tech Week events and then kicked off this event series (FxI): a space where fashion and tech innovators could find each other to connect these two industries.
In 6 months, here’s what FxI has achieved for the FashionTech community of NYC:
4 meetups featuring 8 industry-leading co-hosts thank you again Elisa, Priya, Threads of Tech (Manya and Naama), Kat, Farida, Lilian and Melody (The No. 29)!
Hosted 200+ professionals and students (shoutout to CBS!) from fashion, tech, business and innovation
Representation from global brands (Valentino, Stuart Weitzman, Google, Apple)
And, leading FashionTech startups including ThredX, Circ, Debrand, Rediem and more
I’m so proud of what we’re building here and excited to continue on in 2025! If you’ve been enjoying it too, please consider sharing this community with your network.
New: Looking to Sponsor or Support FxI?
We’ve recently started receiving inquiries about sponsoring and supporting FxI, so I wanted to open this up to the wider community. As we grow, we’re looking for:
Sponsors to provide venue space and refreshments
Event photographers and day-of management support
Event planning and logistics assistance
Interested? Email biz@rachel-sterling.com.
Substack Exclusive: Early Invite to FxI's Fashion Week Pregame
Come kickoff Fashion Week at our next FxI event! Join us on February 5th at 6:30pm in Williamsburg to reconnect with your FashionTech favs or make new friends in anticipation of upcoming shows and FashionTech events going on all weekend.
This month, we're honored to be cohosting with Cara Marie Piazza and Sam Snider in their beautiful studio space. If nothing else, come for the vibes of this beautiful space where the magic happens for Calyx Studios - Cara's natural dyeing business that's collaborated with industry leaders like Coach, Mara Hoffman, Ulla Johnson and Target - and Sam's brand Samuel Snider.
Whether you're heading to Fashion Week events or simply passionate about the intersection of fashion and innovation, this gathering is your opportunity to connect with NYC's brightest minds in the industry.
Space is limited so secure your spot before we open this to the general public Wednesday. Looking forward to seeing you there!
looks great!