AAFA formalizes partnership with the International Apparel Federation (IAF)

The American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA) and the International Apparel Federation (IAF) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) underlining a renewed commitment to bring industry players together across the supply chain and across the globe. It also marks the start of a closer and more frequent collaboration to the benefit of both organizations and their members.

The MoU was signed on March 1, 2023 by AAFA President and CEO Steve Lamar and IAF Secretary General Matthijs Crietee at the AAFA’s Executive Summit in Washington D.C. The presence of a delegation of major Turkish apparel manufacturers at the Summit was an example of the type of connections across the supply chain the signatories strive to create.

The MoU further covers the IAF’s 38th World Fashion Convention to be held in the U.S. this year for the first time in more than two decades. This Convention will be held together with the Sewn Products Equipment Suppliers Association of the Americas (SPESA) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania October 22-25 of this year. The Convention offers a unique opportunity for AAFA members to discuss and connect with garment and textile suppliers from Asia, Africa, Europe, and the Americas. AAFA President and CEO Steve Lamar will speak at the IAF Convention. Throughout 2023, AAFA and IAF will work together on projects that require global alignment across the industry.

“This year’s Executive Summit was focused on the ability to adapt, align, and act. This is exactly what this MOU allows our respective members to do in a time where the production landscape is changing and partnerships are necessary for supply chain resiliency,” says AAFA President and CEO Steve Lamar.

“Traceability, sustainability, creativity, materials sourcing, innovation and information technology, and cooperation across the supply chain are just a few areas that this partnership will focus on,” says IAF Secretary General Matthijs Crietee.