Source Fashion wrapped up last week with the “leading responsible sourcing show” citing a 32% increase in visitor numbers, although it didn’t give actual numbers. 

In its third year, the event is a platform for retailers, brands, and wholesalers seeking ethical and responsible manufacturing partners from around the world.

And it managed to attract sourcing, designing, sustainability and buying teams from some big names. They included John Lewis, Harrods, Next, ASOS, Joseph, New Look, Reiss, Gant, Stella McCartney, French Connection, Sophia Webster, Lulu Guinness, River Island, Barbour, Claires, Lucy & Yak, ME + EM, Birkenstock, Boohoo, QVC and plenty more.

But it was about more than fashion with visitors also coming from sports teams, major brands, and businesses such as the NBA, West Ham Football Club and Pepsi — all of them tracking down sustainable clothing.

Laura Taylor, ESG manager at Boohoo, summed it up saying: “Source is a great event to meet suppliers from new regions, watch engaging talks from a variety of fashion experts and network with passionate individuals who are providing innovative products to our industry.”

The event featured 200 exhibitors from over 20 key sourcing regions, including Turkey, Taiwan, Ethiopia, Egypt, China, India, the UK, France, Hong Kong, and Portugal. 

And there was plenty of upbeat talk with exhibitors from both the UK and abroad writing orders.

Parneet Kaur of India’s Achiever Apparel from India said the show was strong for the firm and it picked up some new customers there. 

And Ayu Siti Maryam from the Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia said that “the event has been great for us, Source Fashion as an event aligns with our objectives to support our manufacturing industry. We have bought with us the right companies and they’re happy because they’ve had great business opportunities and valuable contacts to follow up on.”

The next edition will take place from 8-10 July.