Almost a hundred innovative proposals will be supported to develop new products with an emphasis on design in the furniture, textile/fashion, footwear, accessories, jewellery and leather/hide sectors.

The WORTH Partnership Project, presents the second call for ideas for the development of innovative products. This EU-backed initiative supports the fashion industry within Europe and the goal of WORTH is to encourage the development of innovative products with an emphasis on design.

The Worth Partnership Project is an initiative of the European Commission through the COSME program that is being put into action by AITEX and is going into its second year supporting 150 consortia during its 4-year duration.

The second call will remain open until October 24, 2018. The WORTH Community is growing rapidly with more than 850 registered members in the WORTH platform, willing to connect and foster transnational collaboration. If you are ready for the challenge, get registered and take part.

The WORTH Partnership Project fosters collaboration between fashion designers, traditional craftsmen and technology-based companies and manufacturing industries in textile/fashion, footwear, leather/hide, furniture, jewellery and accessories. All selected projects will receive the following benefits for their participation:

• Financial support of €10,000 per project.
• Custom-built coaching and support programmes covering topics such as market positioning, brand creation and protection of intellectual property rights.
• Participation in two international events to display their product.
• Professional relationships and exchange of experiences within the WORTH community.
• Participation in two networking events.

During its first call, the program received more than 100 innovative proposals involving more than 230 participants from 24 European countries. In its first evaluation phase, 41 finalist projects were selected and invited to the WORTH Weekend to present and defend their proposals before the jury of experts and mentors. The event was attended by almost a hundred participants, representatives of the European Commission, and the consortium responsible for the implementation of the project, led by AITEX. The expectations of the participants were high and in exchange they made professional connections and took part in an exchange of ideas. “This unique experience is priceless” said Sabri Colle from the Bulgarian company Madesign.

The first weekend focused on European creativity, innovation and the fusion of traditional and innovative skills bringing about a significant change in the textile/fashion, footwear, leather, furniture and jewellery industries. Leslie Holden, director of the Amsterdam Fashion School and member of the jury said “We have to reflect new ways of mixing creativity and innovation and express creativity through the lens of other disciplines”.

Anna Athanasopoulou, head of the Tourism and Creative and Emerging Industries Unit of the General Directorate for the Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs said “We are giving great importance to the WORTH Project. Through this initiative and thanks to the European COSME program, we can encourage the exchange of knowledge and skills among fashion designers, traditional and digital artisans and manufacturing industries. Our goal is to help small businesses integrate creativity and innovation into production and provide services that make them more competitive, encouraging growth. ”

The 25 selected consortiums are already underway, covering a broad spectrum of industries in 20 European countries. All the projects presented were of high level and have empowered international consortia to develop European creativity. Now we are ready to welcome new and disruptive ideas. Get involved right now!

Más Información: http://www.worthproject.eu/ 

WORTH Partnership Project, is an initiative of the European Union and supports collaboration between SMEs and start-ups, designers, manufacturers and technology companies to create innovative products with an emphasis on design. The initiative is funded by the COSME program and is led by a European consortium with the belief that the creative industries are the pillars of European economic growth.

WORTH Partnership Project is funded by the COSME program of the European Union for the Competitiveness of Small and Medium Enterprises.