In this final episode of the underrepresented series, hosts Beatrice Newman and Peter Jeun Ho Tsang recap their favourite insights learned from their guest speakers. They delve into the heart of the fashion industry, exploring the challenges and triumphs of underrepresented voices. 

Join us as we uncover personal stories and insights from diverse speakers who are reshaping the landscape of entrepreneurship. From leading with empathy to redefining operations, this episode is packed with valuable takeaways for anyone looking to make a meaningful impact.

• Listeners are encouraged to reflect on how they can contribute to building better ecosystems of work.
• The conversation provides actionable insights for those in strategy, operations, and creative roles

Connect with Peter: linkedin.com/in/peterjeunhotsang

Connect with Beatrice: linkedin.com/in/korlekie

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The show is recorded from Beyond Form, a fashion tech innovation platform. We build, invest, and educate fashion tech entrepreneurs and startups. We’d love to hear your feedback, so let us know if you’d like to hear a certain topic. Email us at podcast@beyondform.io. If you’re an entrepreneur or fashion tech startup looking for studio support, check out our website: beyondform.io

Authentic Representation & Cultural Storytelling in Fashion:
Cultural consultant Arooj Aftab, a Vogue Business 100 Next Gen agitator, explores the fashion industry, emphasising entrepreneurship that prioritises representation and authentic storytelling. She highlights the resilience required to challenge norms and the power of community engagement in fostering inclusion. 

She champions “Culture over Colour,” and the need to move beyond surface-level diversity to truly reflect society in creative industries. Her values and vision have led her to host events at Bicester Village, bringing together like-minded people to strengthen their community bond. 

Challenging the Fashion Status Quo:
• Inclusion before diversity – representation must go deeper than tokenism.
• Storytelling matters – cultural narratives are essential to authentic fashion.
• Community engagement – change happens through collective action.
• Fashion’s responsibility – the industry must reflect the true diversity of society.

Connect with Arooj: linkedin.com/in/arooj-aftab-91865814a

Find out more about Arooj's work: arooj-aftab.com

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The show is recorded from Beyond Form, a fashion tech innovation platform. We build, invest, and educate fashion tech entrepreneurs and startups. We’d love to hear your feedback, so let us know if you’d like to hear a certain topic. Email us at podcast@beyondform.io. If you’re an entrepreneur or fashion tech startup looking for studio support, check out our website: beyondform.io

Founder of Krippit Paris, a 3D-printed fashion accessories startup, Melissa Chung shares her journey as an underrepresented founder turning a personal problem into a business innovation. She discusses entrepreneurship, the resilience required to thrive as a woman in the finance industry, and the importance of representation for female founders. As a Canadian immigrant in France, she has learned that innovation has no language barrier—great ideas transcend language. Melissa also emphasizes taking the “dis” out of disability, turning what can be seen as a disadvantage into a personal advantage. She highlights how community engagement, mentorship, and advocacy for ADHD and learning differences can empower other underrepresented founders to succeed in innovation-driven businesses.

Breaking Barriers in Fashion & Finance:
  • From finance to fashion – transforming women’s daily struggle in high heels into innovation.
• High heel protectors – tackling a problem women face daily in professional settings.
• ADHD as an advantage – turning challenges into entrepreneurial strengths.
• Advocacy & education – supporting those with ADHD by transforming passions into successful businesses

Connect with Melissa: www.linkedin.com/in/melissa-cs/details/experience/

Visit Krippit: krippit.com

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The show is recorded from Beyond Form, a fashion tech innovation platform. We build, invest, and educate fashion tech entrepreneurs and startups. We’d love to hear your feedback, so let us know if you’d like to hear a certain topic. Email us at podcast@beyondform.io. If you’re an entrepreneur or fashion tech startup looking for studio support, check out our website: beyondform.io

Founder of Heymers Academy and Moodi Studio, Mersedeh Heydari shares her entrepreneurial journey as an underrepresented founder merging architecture, fashion, and game design to create immersive creative experiences. She discusses the resilience required to navigate cultural and systemic barriers in Iran, and the importance of representation for emerging creative talent. She emphasizes that there is no perfect world, and that thriving under Iran’s strict social and cultural standards has not only tested her perseverance but also ignited her creativity, shaping the bold, boundary-pushing vision that defines her work today.

Building Creativity & Opportunity in Fashion- we learn how: 
 • Turning cultural and governmental barriers into opportunities – how to innovate in a country like Iran. 

 • Fashion meets game design – using interactive storytelling to express identity and culture.

 • Students as collaborators – integrating education and industry to nurture emerging talent.

 • Shaping our identities and businesses in tandem- informing creative decision-making through lived experience 

Connect with Mersedeh on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/mersedeh-heydari

Check out Moodi Studio: www.themoodistudio.com

Check out  Heymers Academy: www.heymers.com

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The show is recorded from Beyond Form, a fashion tech innovation platform. We build, invest, and educate fashion tech entrepreneurs and startups. We’d love to hear your feedback, so let us know if you’d like to hear a certain topic. Email us at podcast@beyondform.io. If you’re an entrepreneur or fashion tech startup looking for studio support, check out our website: beyondform.io

Sehrish Raza, a female fashion founder from Pakistan, shares her journey as an underrepresented founder navigating entrepreneurship in South Asia. She discusses the resilience required to scale her business from 20,000 to 200,000 users. She shares her experience pitching on Shark Tank Pakistan, and having the wherewithal and self-confidence to choose herself over a bad deal. Through BizB, she empowers women entrepreneurs and fosters financial inclusion in the region.

Lessons in Resilience & Growth- What we learned: 

• Fundraising and investment realities – the unique hurdles women face when raising capital.
• Shark Tank insights – navigating high-pressure pitching with confidence.
• Confidence as strategy – believing in your numbers and your vision.
• More than 100% Growth Y-oY – achieving exponential success and knowing your worth.
• Operating as a female founder in a male-dominated nation- Outsourcing funding and getting creative

Connect with Sehrish on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sehrish-raza-bizb/

Visit BizB: https://www.bizb.store/en

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The show is recorded from Beyond Form, a fashion tech innovation platform. We build, invest, and educate fashion tech entrepreneurs and startups. We’d love to hear your feedback, so let us know if you’d like to hear a certain topic. Email us at podcast@beyondform.io. If you’re an entrepreneur or fashion tech startup looking for studio support, check out our website: beyondform.io

With nearly 15 years in the British fashion industry, Ahmet Emin Hondor shares his journey advocating for entrepreneurship and resilience among emerging designers with the British Fashion Council. He reflects on how representation and cultural identity have shaped his path, while also addressing the mental drain of navigating microaggressions masked as politeness as a Turkish man in London. For Ahmet, community engagement is crucial to driving meaningful inclusion in the British fashion industry. Beyond his work with the British Fashion Council, he organizes London's Gay Pride, championing diversity, mental well-being, and authentic storytelling. Through his efforts, he is helping to shift global narratives, empower LGBTQ+ voices, and build sustainable opportunities for underrepresented founders in the UK.

Redefining Inclusion in Fashion:
  • Beyond tokenism – meaningful inclusion requires empowerment, not just visibility.
 • Culture as creativity – personal identity shapes design, styling, and storytelling.
 • Mental health matters – navigating exclusion and toxic environments with resilience.
 • Pride & responsibility – corporate inclusivity should last beyond seasonal campaigns.
 • Emerging designers – cultural heritage can be a competitive edge in business.

Connect with Ahmed: https://uk.linkedin.com/in/ahmeteh

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The show is recorded from Beyond Form, a fashion tech innovation platform. We build, invest, and educate fashion tech entrepreneurs and startups. We’d love to hear your feedback, so let us know if you’d like to hear a certain topic. Email us at podcast@beyondform.io. If you’re an entrepreneur or fashion tech startup looking for studio support, check out our website: beyondform.io

Founder of Debonair Afrik, Nuel Bans discusses his journey as an underrepresented founder championing African fashion on the global stage. From launching a blog to landing a Vogue cover, Nuel shares the resilience required to transform passion into a multifaceted brand. He highlights the importance of entrepreneurship, the impact of representation in elevating African creatives, and the power of community in fostering collaboration, purpose, and authentic cultural storytelling. Nuel also opens up about the struggle of minority designers, including repeated exclusion from opportunities with LVMH, and how adversity has shaped his vision to expand into Paris and grow his international presence while supporting emerging designers across the diaspora.

Fashion with Purpose & Community- in this episode, we discuss:

• Evolving from blog to brand – How Debonair Afrique’s evolution reflects the potential of passion-led projects.
• How cultural identity fuels creativity – African craftsmanship and storytelling deserve global recognition.
• Shifting narratives – challenging outdated perceptions of Africa to highlight appreciation, value, and innovation.
• Representation at the top – Black designers and founders must be visible in leadership positions.
• Overcoming exclusion – turning missed opportunities into motivation to push boundaries internationally.

Connect with Nuel: https://www.linkedin.com/in/emmanuel-ekuban-b3749a150/

Visit Debonair Afrik: https://debonairafrik.com/

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The show is recorded from Beyond Form, a fashion tech innovation platform. We build, invest, and educate fashion tech entrepreneurs and startups. We’d love to hear your feedback, so let us know if you’d like to hear a certain topic. Email us at podcast@beyondform.io. If you’re an entrepreneur or fashion tech startup looking for studio support, check out our website: beyondform.io

Dorcas Payne, a creative business consultant, shares her insights on building successful businesses in niche fashion markets. She emphasizes the critical role of operations and supply chain management in creative entrepreneurship, and the resilience needed to scale. For her, it’s crucial for emerging fashion talent to continuously listen to the feedback loop and use data to grow.  Dorcas is on a mission to make supply chains sexy again, showing how strategic operations, thoughtful execution, and community-driven collaboration are just as exciting and essential as the designs on the runway.

The Backbone of Creative Business- in this episode, we discuss why:
• Operations matter – supply chain and operational strategy are the foundations of growth in the fashion industry.
• Data is king – understanding customer behavior through feedback loops drives better decisions.
• Scale down, execute excellence – resilience comes from doing fewer things at a higher standard.
• Representation in entrepreneurship – systemic challenges for global ethnic majority founders demand allyship and collaboration.

Connect with Dorcas: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dorcas-payne/

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The show is recorded from Beyond Form, a fashion tech innovation platform. We build, invest, and educate fashion tech entrepreneurs and startups. We’d love to hear your feedback, so let us know if you’d like to hear a certain topic. Email us at podcast@beyondform.io. If you’re an entrepreneur or fashion tech startup looking for studio support, check out our website: beyondform.io

From Tahiti to the global stage, Jessica Vaitiare Chin Foo shares her journey navigating entrepreneurship in the United States. She highlights how her French Polynesian heritage shapes her approach to business, the resilience required to overcome systemic challenges, and the importance of representation for diverse founders in creative industries. Jessica also emphasizes the importance of leading with heart, role of communities and networking in creating opportunities. Her ultimate goal is to empower other underrepresented entrepreneurs.

The Heart of Inclusive Entrepreneurship - in this episode we talk about:
• Cultural identity fueling innovation- helping startups thrive
• Why networks and community matter – building authentic relationships can unlock opportunities and drive growth.
• Why mental wellbeing is essential – sustaining entrepreneurs through rejection, loneliness, and setbacks.

• Navigating Racism in France and Italy- The importance of representation and empowerment to make entrepreneurship inclusive and accessible for underrepresented founders.

Connect with Jessica: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessicavaitiarechinfoo/

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The show is recorded from Beyond Form, a fashion tech innovation platform. We build, invest, and educate fashion tech entrepreneurs and startups. We’d love to hear your feedback, so let us know if you’d like to hear a certain topic. Email us at podcast@beyondform.io. If you’re an entrepreneur or fashion tech startup looking for studio support, check out our website: beyondform.io

Peter Jeun Ho Tsang unpacks his top 5 key takeaways from the VC Series in conversation with Rohan Bansal. He unpacks:

1. No set path into fashion and retail tech venture capital – success requires building relevant experience and perspective rather than specific qualifications.
2. The power of networks and relationships, crucial for both founders and investors to opening doors for funding and partnerships.
3. Creating a winning pitch deck is essential when investors spend just three minutes reviewing it – clearly answer "why now" and "why you".
4. Despite $3 billion in equity financing in 2024, there's a surprising lack of specialized fashion tech VC funds and a $20-30 billion annual funding gap
5. Smart money versus hype – seek investors who provide strategic value beyond capital through connections to clients, experts and industry insights

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The show is recorded from Beyond Form, a fashion tech innovation platform. We build, invest, and educate fashion tech entrepreneurs and startups. We’d love to hear your feedback, so let us know if you’d like to hear a certain topic. Email us at podcast@beyondform.io. If you’re an entrepreneur or fashion tech startup looking for studio support, check out our website: beyondform.io

Lack of Fashion & Retail Tech Funds:

The fashion tech sector raised nearly $3 billion in 2024, yet there's a surprising lack of specialised VC funds focusing on this growing market despite proven exits and significant market potential. In this final guest episode with Rohan Bansal, he chats with Peter on what some of the blind spots are for many investors.

The Struggle with Specialised VC Funds:

• Generalist VCs lack specialised expertise in fashion industry dynamics and operations.
• Traditional investors struggle to build the right networks for strong deal flow and exit opportunities.
• An estimated $20-30 billion annual funding gap exists in fashion tech and closing this gap requires collaboration between corporate investors, government subsidies, accelerators and public funding.

Connect with Rohan on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/rohan-bansal-50328179/

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The show is recorded from Beyond Form, a fashion tech innovation platform. We build, invest, and educate fashion tech entrepreneurs and startups. We’d love to hear your feedback, so let us know if you’d like to hear a certain topic. Email us at podcast@beyondform.io. If you’re an entrepreneur or fashion tech startup looking for studio support, check out our website: beyondform.io

The Perfect Investor Pitch Deck:

The perfect investor pitch deck combines storytelling, market understanding, and founder credibility to stand out in the competitive venture capital landscape. Venture capitalists typically spend just over three minutes reviewing each deck, with only 1% securing funding. In this episode Peter and Rohan breakdown what makes a great deck and the red flags that investors see.

Tips & Tricks Explored in this Episode:

• Storytelling is crucial as humans connect with narratives and founders must demonstrate how their experience is relevant to the problem they're solving.
• Market sizing should be realistic and calculated using a bottom-up approach.
• Red flags include co-founders with too-similar backgrounds and unrealistic growth projections
• A disorganised pitch deck often reflects disorganised thinking, and the questions "Why now?" and "Why you?" must be convincingly answered.

Connect with Rohan on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/rohan-bansal-50328179/

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The show is recorded from Beyond Form, a fashion tech innovation platform. We build, invest, and educate fashion tech entrepreneurs and startups. We’d love to hear your feedback, so let us know if you’d like to hear a certain topic. Email us at podcast@beyondform.io. If you’re an entrepreneur or fashion tech startup looking for studio support, check out our website: beyondform.io

The Lifecycle of Fashion Tech Startups:

This episode with guest speaker Rohan Bansal, he discussed with Beyond Form CEO Peter Jeun Ho Tsang the differences between early stage and growth stage companies and what it takes to secure funding at each level. 

Early-stage v.s. Growth Stage Fashion Tech:

• The lifecycle: Pre-seed rounds typically fund companies with just an idea, while seed rounds support those with early traction and some revenue.

• Series A represents a critical graduation point where investor expectations significantly change and growth stage companies need to demonstrate not just revenue growth but also a path to profitability.

• Revenue expectations: European markets typically expect higher revenue thresholds (€150-200K) for seed funding compared to US markets. It's harder to get VC funding in 2025.

• The investment landscape has shifted from "growth at all costs" to "growth with profitable costs" and fashion tech startups need to build positive signals to investors before fundraising.

Connect with Rohan on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/rohan-bansal-50328179/

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The show is recorded from Beyond Form, a fashion tech innovation platform. We build, invest, and educate fashion tech entrepreneurs and startups. We’d love to hear your feedback, so let us know if you’d like to hear a certain topic. Email us at podcast@beyondform.io. If you’re an entrepreneur or fashion tech startup looking for studio support, check out our website: beyondform.io

Rohan's journey into the VC industry: 

Rohan Bansal shares his journey into the venture capital world, sharing how his nomadic childhood across eight countries equipped him with the global perspective crucial for successful investing in fashion and retail tech.

What you'll hear about VC investing:

• Living in different countries provided Rohan with unique insights into market idiosyncrasies and consumer behaviours.
• VC roles are highly competitive:  over 450 applications for each associate position and 40% of new VC hires in 2024 came from startup or tech backgrounds.
• Key technologies transforming fashion retail include: AI for shopping personalisation, demand forecasting, and smart factories with IoT solutions for sustainable and cost-efficient production.
• Emerging VCs should focus on long-term trends rather than following hype cycles and being a sector specialist could help outperform generalists in terms of investment returns.

Connect with Rohan on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/rohan-bansal-50328179/

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The show is recorded from Beyond Form, a fashion tech innovation platform. We build, invest, and educate fashion tech entrepreneurs and startups. We’d love to hear your feedback, so let us know if you’d like to hear a certain topic. Email us at podcast@beyondform.io. If you’re an entrepreneur or fashion tech startup looking for studio support, check out our website: beyondform.io

As we close out 2024, this year's final episode is joined by Yoobin Jung, a VC at Plug and Play, where she along with our host Peter break down the fashion tech booms and busts that happened throughout the year. They discuss:

• AI's transformative impact on fashion design: Generative design tools are accelerating prototyping and reshaping brand identities, but raise ethical concerns about potentially replacing junior designers.

• The sustainability challenge: AI could help align production with demand, potentially addressing the persistent issue of overproduction in the fashion industry.

• Luxury brands and AI adoption: High-end fashion houses are cautiously approaching AI, grappling with complexities of clothing structures and concerns about AI-driven overconsumption.

• Recommendation algorithms: Effectiveness varies between Europe and South Korea, prompting questions about enhancing consumer experiences versus fuelling overconsumption.

• Regulatory landscape: EU policies like Extended Producer Responsibility aim to promote circularity, yet industry readiness is questionable, as evidenced by Renewcell's bankruptcy.

• Future of luxury e-commerce: The resale market is gaining prominence, with potential lessons from South Korea's Kakao platform on integrating digital and physical retail experiences.

Contact Yoobin on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/yoobinjung

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The show is recorded from Beyond Form, a fashion tech innovation platform. We build, invest, and educate fashion tech entrepreneurs and startups. We’d love to hear your feedback, so let us know if you’d like to hear a certain topic. Email us at podcast@beyondform.io. If you’re an entrepreneur or fashion tech startup looking for studio support, check out our website: beyondform.io

We wrap up our 'Build It' podcast series with a reflective finale. Host Peter Jeun Ho Tsang tell us his top 5 key takeaways from navigating business growth, how to get through challenging times as a fashion tech startup, through to tech and humans coming together. This episode highlights the passionate voices featured throughout the series and how the call for a strategic collaboration between brands, investors, and innovators to not only sustain emerging technologies but to also foster their growth. 

Connect with Peter on LinkedIn.

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The show is recorded from Beyond Form, a fashion tech innovation platform. We build, invest, and educate fashion tech entrepreneurs and startups. We’d love to hear your feedback, so let us know if you’d like to hear a certain topic. Email us at podcast@beyondform.io. If you’re an entrepreneur or fashion tech startup looking for studio support, check out our website: beyondform.io

Setting Up a Fashion Store in the 90s:
Today's episode we're with Afsal Koya, CEO of Raza Clothing which is a fashion store and label in the USA that uses AIMIRR's virtual try-on technology. Afsal's transformation from a computer scientist to a streetwear brand founder is an unusual one. We hear his journey that started in a small Ohio store back in 1992, Afsal shares how he navigated the evolving landscape of fashion trends to launch his own brand, emphasising the importance of learning and teamwork in driving retail innovation.

AIMIRR and Virtual Try-On:
AIMIRR's AI-powered magic mirror is currently installed at Castleton Square Mall, Indiana and we hear how Afsal worked with AIMIRR CEO Pritesh Kanani to get the technology up and running. This episode unpacks the insights collected to date, in particular how it's been a hit with the younger crowd and how the seamless AR shopping experience has boosted the store's foot traffic. Does that mean in-store VTO technology is ripe for mass adoption?

Find out about Raza Clothing: razaclothingstore.com
Find out about AIMIRR's technology: aimirr.com

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The show is recorded from Beyond Form, a fashion tech innovation platform. We build, invest, and educate fashion tech entrepreneurs and startups. We’d love to hear your feedback, so let us know if you’d like to hear a certain topic. Email us at podcast@beyondform.io. If you’re an entrepreneur or fashion tech startup looking for studio support, check out our website: beyondform.io

Fashion's Fit Dilemma:
Today's episode features fashion garment technologist and fit expert Katy Schildmeyer. As online shopping increases, the challenge of ensuring accurate garment fit remains ever-present. Katy and Peter Jeun Ho discuss the pressing need for enhanced fashion education, particularly in the communication of fit and the creation of garments that cater to all body types, including the aging population. They reflect on the historical transformation from shopping experiences of the 90s, to the rising return rates in online retail today which can be more than 30% for some fashion brands.

Ensuring Data Integrity to Find the Fit Truth:
The interview examines the integration of AI into fashion tech. Accurate data is crucial, and Katy emphasises the importance of truthful data in training AI models to avoid misguided innovations. We spotlight industry leaders like COS, Tapestry, and Japanese denim companies, commending their practices towards better fitting products. But how does one find the truth in fit? Find out in this episode.

Connect with Katy: linkedin.com/in/katherineschildmeyer
Katy features Beyond Form startup AIMIRR in her research: aimirr.com

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The show is recorded from Beyond Form, a fashion tech innovation platform. We build, invest, and educate fashion tech entrepreneurs and startups. We’d love to hear your feedback, so let us know if you’d like to hear a certain topic. Email us at podcast@beyondform.io. If you’re an entrepreneur or fashion tech startup looking for studio support, check out our website: beyondform.io

What Failing in Fashion Looks Like:
We welcome back Beatrice Newman, Head of Education at Beyond Form, where we discuss what it means to fail in fashion, what failure looks like, lessons that can be learned, and why it's still a taboo subject. Beatrice shares her personal failures whilst building her brand, Korlekie, from mis-understanding the customer to financing a commercial collection.

Lessons Learned Whilst Failing:
From funding challenges to the art of effective go-to-market strategies, we dive into the realities, challenges, and fails that fashion startups often face. Reflecting on Beatrice's experience, we underscore the importance of learning from missteps to better define one's brand identity and carve a sustainable path forward. We redefine failure not as an end, but as a stepping stone to growth.

Connect with Beatrice: linkedin.com/in/korlekie
Find out more about Beyond Form Education: beyondform.io/education/overview

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The show is recorded from Beyond Form, a fashion tech innovation platform. We build, invest, and educate fashion tech entrepreneurs and startups. We’d love to hear your feedback, so let us know if you’d like to hear a certain topic. Email us at podcast@beyondform.io. If you’re an entrepreneur or fashion tech startup looking for studio support, check out our website: beyondform.io

MODE Pivots into Beyond Form Education:
Beatrice Newman, the creative force behind online fashion education platform Mode, chats in this episode what it means to pivot a fashion business. Exclusively on today's episode she reveals the launch of Beyond Form Education, a groundbreaking initiative bridging the gap between academia and the fashion industry.

Data-Driven Pivoting in the Fashion Industry:
We discuss how data-driven decisions and user feedback are revolutionising fashion education in a post-pandemic world. As the desire for in-person experiences resurges, Peter and Beatrice share insights on creating a global learning canvas that spans entrepreneurship, innovation, technology, and design.

Episode highlights:

• The power of adaptability in reshaping fashion education.
• Leveraging data and feedback for pivotal business decisions.
• Bridging the academia-industry gap in the fashion world.
• The importance of a supportive team and continuous learning.
• Exploring diverse opportunities beyond traditional fashion roles.

Learn about Beyond Form Education: beyondform.io/education
Connect with Beatrice: linkedin.com/in/korlekie

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The show is recorded from Beyond Form, a fashion tech innovation platform. We build, invest, and educate fashion tech entrepreneurs and startups. We’d love to hear your feedback, so let us know if you’d like to hear a certain topic. Email us at podcast@beyondform.io. If you’re an entrepreneur or fashion tech startup looking for studio support, check out our website: beyondform.io