HubSpot and NTWRK Team Up With Black Fashion Fair To Highlight Emerging Black Designers
Images: Colin Defenbau. Antoine Grégory and Antoine Manning, left, and Nicole ZiZi, right.
Change in the fashion industry starts from within. Black Fashion Fair is making that change happen by showcasing emerging black designers and documenting black fashion’s past, present, and future. Created by New York fashion editor and creative consultant Antoine Grégory, Black Fashion Fair is a retail and education platform that features a growing collective of black fashion creatives that reflect the organization’s mission of “discovering, supporting and furthering black designers and the communities they inspire.”
This week, customer relationship management platform HubSpot and livestream video shopping app NTWRK are dropping three fashion pieces created by two emerging black designers. Changemaking eco-conscious designers Nicole ZiZi of Nicole ZiZi Studios and Antoine Manning of Homage Year were handpicked by Grégory for their ingenious designs as well as their commitments to their community and the environment.
The drop, which was curated by Grégory, aligns with this year’s INBOUND event, an annual networking affair that brings together professionals from over 161 countries across marketing, sales, customer success, and revenue operations. The pieces are set to drop this Friday, September 9, at 1:00pm ET on the NTWRK app immediately after a Spotlight Stage talk with Grégory and NTWRK Chief Marketing Officer Jason Brown.
HubSpot Global Head of Brand Marketing Amy Marino believes this release is an exciting opportunity for the company to fulfill their vision of amplifying diverse creatives, those of whom NTWRK CEO Aaron Levant says face unique obstacles in business development and retail exposure.
“Antoine Grégory’s Black Fashion Fair is a great example of a business that puts its mission at its core – and they’ve scaled while maintaining purpose,” says Marino. “We’re inspired by Antoine’s accomplishments and excited to partner once again with NTWRK to co-create a one-of-a-kind collection that amplifies these talented designers and their stories.”
“Black designers deserve to be known by name.”
Items in the NTWRK release include a Custom 1:1 Recycled Patchwork Denim Jacket and a Solaris Orange “Grow Better” hoodie from Nicole Zizi Studio, as well as a vibrant Mini Solaris Orange OVA bag from Homage Year, Antoine Manning’s vegan leather accessory brand. ZiZi’s hoodie features a graphic of a vined purple flower on the sleeves and chest, a symbol of growth that mirrors the “Grow Better” text on the sleeves. These three pieces embody HubSpot’s mission of helping organizations ‘grow better’ by focusing on creating meaningful connections and building community.
ZiZi shares that creating the patchwork denim jacket involved utilizing textile runoff from past collections, furthering her brand’s sustainability initiative.
“The patchwork is made of upcycled fabrics from my capsule collection’s production,” says ZiZi. “I've been collecting the cutoffs from the manufacturing process to donate to recycling facilities and use for production; turns out we were able to use some for a piece.”
Below, check out official images of Antoine Manning’s OVA bag and Nicole ZiZi’s orange hoodie, both shot by LA-based photographer Colin Defenbau.
Antoine Manning with his Homage Year Mini Solaris Orange Ova Bag.
Nicole ZiZi with her Solaris Orange “Grow Better” Hoodie.
Where can I buy the NTWRK x HubSpot designer spotlight release?
You can shop the entire drop over on the NTWRK shopping app this Friday, September 9 at 1:00pm ET during INBOUND, an annual event powered by HubSpot that brings together business owners and specialists across marketing, sales, and revenue sectors. Antoine Manning’s orange Homage of the Year OVA bag runs at $200 USD; Nicole ZiZi’s orange hoodie is priced at $150 USD, while her custom recycled patchwork denim jacket will cost $800 USD.
All proceeds from this release will be donated to the Brooklyn Sewing Academy, a program dedicated to addressing systemic issues in the design industry through education and training.
Click the button down below to download the NTWRK shopping app, and mark your calendars for the release date on September 9!