Soongsil University students take K-eco-friendly fashion to Paris and Milan, opening up sales channels

[Financial News] University student trade specialists teamed up with a domestic eco-friendly fashion brand to tap major European fashion markets, generating export consultations worth about 150,000 euros (about 200 million won).
Soongsil University's Regional Specialized Youth Trade Expert Training Project (GTEP) team said on the 5th that five students partnered with the eco-friendly fashion brand PLEATSMAMA to take part in three international fashion trade shows in Paris, France, and Milan, Italy, helping the company develop export channels.
From September to October, the students took part in Who's Next and Tranoï in Paris, followed by WHITE in Milan. They handled consultations with international buyers and product promotion on site, conducting nearly 200 buyer consultations in total. They generated export consultations worth a total of 150,000 euros, with about 60,000 euros of that amount expected to lead to actual contracts.
PLEATSMAMA, which took part in the collaboration, is one of Korea's leading eco-friendly fashion companies, making clothes and bags from recycled materials such as discarded PET bottles and discarded fishing nets. Soongsil University students ran booths at the venues with company representatives, showcasing the competitiveness of K-eco-friendly fashion in the European market.
Park Shin-uk, a student in the Department of Global Commerce who took part in the trade shows, said, "While consulting with local distributors and buyers, I learned not only about the products but also how important it is in trade to build trust with the other party."
Meanwhile, Soongsil University's GTEP team, with support from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and the Korea International Trade Association, is training young people for practical careers in trade. Students are expanding their expertise by gaining hands-on trade experience, including on-site training at overseas trade shows and online marketing.

[email protected] Kim Man-gi Reporter