This year, brands and
retailers have had to face unprecedented challenges due to the impact of
the pandemic on the global economy. According to consumer data tracker,
PSFK Research, the fashion industry is placing Along with these current market trends, a surge of
social protests worldwide have also led shoppers to re-evaluate their
stance on issues such as eco-responsibility, local production and
inclusivity.

In this Q&A series, FashionUnited is spotlighting four sustainable and
ethical brands that were already on the path towards a more socially
conscious and circular fashion future. JPL Atelier, a Peta approved brand,
was founded in 2017 by Colombian designer Juliana Ponce de León. The
collections are produced in a female-led factory in London and the company
strongly upholds transparent sustainability. Founder and designer, Ponce de
León, shared recently with FashionUnited via email her vision for expanding
JPL Atelier to work alongside disruptors, charity partners and building a
community of changemakers.

The Alliance Collection

Launched just in August on Women’s Equality Day, features five organic
cotton white T-shirts, each connected with a distinct charity partner (Peta
UK, UN Women UK, Friends of the Earth, Fawcett Society and Post Carbon Lab)
and embroidered with a different word depicting female empowerment. 30
percent from the sale of each t-shirt is donated to the affiliated
charity.

What’s the best part about creating your own sustainable and
transparent label?

The greatest part of creating my own label is having control over our
supply chain, who we work with, and what we bring into the market. Knowing
that our garments are made responsibly in London and that everyone in our
supply chain is taken care of and respected in the process is what makes it
all worthwhile. It is definitely possible to create a beautiful garment
without exploiting human beings, animals, or the environment (to an
extent).

What’s the most challenging part and how do you tackle that?

The most challenging part by far is finding high-quality fabrics that
meet all of our strict requirements. It is important to know the process of
fabric development to be able to ask the right questions. You may find a
stunning fabric that claims to be “sustainable”, and then come to realise
the supplier doesn’t know the mill’s dyeing processes or how the workers’
working conditions look like.

Another challenge is trying to shift the consumer’s mindset on how much
a luxury “sustainable” garment actually costs versus other garments in the
market. The reason our pieces cost what they do is because this is how much
a garment actually costs to produce responsibly and locally.

I envision the brand expanding and working alongside disruptors and
our charity partners. I want us to keep growing as a community of powerful
feminists, changemakers, and activists.

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What career advice can you share with FashionUnited readers?

Go with your gut and never settle. My entire work ethic is
centered around that philosophy. If you settle for things, whatever they
may be, you limit your possibilities and your ability to disrupt the
system.

When I first started, I was told by people that the concept of a
sustainable luxury label was going to limit our growth and that recycled
water bottle shirts weren’t going to get JPL Atelier anywhere, yet here we
are. Always go with your gut, and never settle. Trust yourself and question
everything.

What do you envision for the future of JPL Atelier?

I envision the brand expanding and working alongside disruptors and our
charity partners. I want us to keep growing as a community of powerful
feminists, changemakers, and activists. JPL Atelier will not only be a
label that produces garments, but a company that supports acceptance,
change, empowerment, and the protection of Mother Earth and all of her
inhabitants.

I want to also keep learning, researching, and finding ways on how we
can successfully work towards circularity and how we can find solutions to
real sustainable fabric development. We have already adapted to the
made-to-order model, which leaves us without any excess stock as we have
the advantage of producing locally. I want to push the agenda on how we
work with innovative materials, dyeing processes, and fabrics.

What is your go-to sustainable fashion outfit?

I love the classic combination of one of our organic bamboo silk
button-down shirts, recycled denim jeans, and a pair of vegan leather
mules. Also, anything vintage, rented, or second hand in the mix is the way
to go!

Photos: courtesy of JPL Atelier, ASV

Racing Point technical director Andy Green is hoping that the team gets a bit of normality not to mention an end to its recent run of bad luck in the remaining six races of the 2020 season.

It’s been a turbulent year for the team, which lost 15 championship points and was fined €400,000 after the brake ducts on this year’s car were deemed too similar to those of last year’s title-winning Mercedes design.

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And since then, Sergio Perez became the first and to date only active F1 driver to test positive for coronavirus which forced him to miss both races of the Silverstone double-header.

He was replaced by Nico Hulkenberg, who was also in action last weekend at the Eifel Grand Prix in what proved to be another fraught race when Lance Stroll fell ill just hours before qualifying.

• Read also: Perez frustrated with fourth, Hulkenberg thrilled with P8

“We just don’t seem to be getting the run of the green at the moment,” said Green in something of a masterpiece of understatement.

“I just want a normal race weekend. We haven’t a normal race weekend probably since race one of this season,” he told the media in Germany including Motorsportweek.com and RaceFans.net. “Something happens every weekend

“All we need between now and the end of the season is just to have normal race weekends, where we can just race the car, set it up normally – just have a normal weekend without any major distractions.”

Despite the last-minute panic at the Nurburgring, Racing Point actually came away with a solid result.

Even though he had predicted a ‘painful day’ ahead, Sergio Perez took fourth place in the race while Hulkenberg finished in the points in eighth despite having no chance to practice.

It meant Racing Point moved back in front of McLaren in the constructors championship by four points and are now third in the standings.

However Perez remained frustrated not to be able to pass Daniel Ricciardo for a podium place in the closing laps of the Eifel GP, having also narrowly missed out in the previous race at Sochi.

Asked what it would take to finish in the top three, Green replied: “Stop getting a lot of bad luck, to start with!

“If we have that then I think we really can challenge for third, we really can,” he insisted. “That will give us our best possible opportunity.”

“It’s going to be a real battle. There’s three teams there, we’re just swapping places all the time,” he added. “It’s going to be good fun to the end of the season.

Gallery: The beautiful wives and girlfriends of F1 drivers

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Commission tells countries to get ready to roll out coronavirus vaccines

Commission delivers message that EU countries need to get ready — and get on the same page — to roll out COVID-19 vaccines.

The Commission has bought the vaccines. Now it’s countries’ turn to get ready to use them.

Back in June, the Commission unveiled its first vaccine strategy to advance purchase possible coronavirus vaccines from companies. After months of sometimes controversial talks, the Commission completed contracts with three producers and is in the process of completing three others. (EU diplomats have told POLITICO that the Commission is negotiating on a seventh.)

Issued on Thursday, the Commission’s latest communication seeks to harmonize countries’ vaccination plans once a jab is approved by regulators and ready to use. Above all, a vaccine should be made free for citizens and given first to key populations, including health workers and vulnerable groups, the Commission said.

Now, it’s time for EU countries to get ready — and get on the same page — to roll out coronavirus vaccines.

But harmonization hasn’t been the EU’s strong suit. Countries have improved from the early days of the pandemic, when they imposed export bans and fought over personal protective equipment. But they’re still not deploying the same testing policies, quarantine rules, travel guidance or tracing apps. Most recently, countries couldn’t agree to harmonized travel restrictions after more than a month of negotiations.

Rolling out a vaccine will be one of the next major tests of countries’ willingness to coordinate. Each country could — in the end — choose to vaccinate different populations first or charge different prices. They also might have to grapple with different hurdles in vaccinating their citizens.

During a press conference, Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides was optimistic about the “unprecedented coordination” between EU countries, but warned that time will tell if this holds throughout the winter months.

“Unfortunately, as in every crisis, as a temporary time of extreme pressure, the situation on the ground is putting our coordination to the test,” she said.

For months, the Commission has tried to push countries along, but progress is mixed. Kyriakides noted there are still some EU countries that haven’t told the Commission how they’ve implemented the Commission’s preparedness plan from July.

“Unless we have this information, we are not able to follow and see how implementation is happening,” she said. “We need to have the information [on] how this is moving.”

Countries have been on board with advance purchasing the vaccines, but the Commission, in its paper, acknowledges that distributing them will be “a considerable challenge requiring a strong collaboration and concerted action” across EU countries.

“While the responsibility for health policy lies with Member States, and national strategies may differ … it is nevertheless important to ensure the coordination of national responses to the pandemic,” the Commission wrote.

Kyriakides wouldn’t speculate on when these vaccines will be ready, but when they are, the Commission will distribute the vaccines according to population size to all EU countries at the same time. Another EU official reminded reporters during a subsequent briefing that all vaccines purchased by the Commission won’t be ready at the same time.

The Commission said it has discussed flexible ways to label and package vaccines, which industry has said would make it quicker to distribute their jab.

Countries also need to fight vaccine hesitancy head-on by stressing the EU safety standards required; get systems in place to share data with the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC); and prepare to study the safety and effectiveness of vaccines independent from pharma companies, it said.

The Commission’s paper lays out a schedule for countries to get their vaccination policy together. Starting now, it says, countries need to get the transport and storage of vaccines ready; train health staff; and ensure vaccines are accessible and affordable.

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Danny Murphy claims Jurgen Klopp “deserves a medal” for luring Thiago Alcantara to Anfield.

The former Liverpool midfielder says landing a player of his experience and skill is an “absolute steal”.

The Spaniard is yet to start a Premier League game for the Reds, but Murphy claims the 29-year-old will have an important part to play this season.

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READ MORE: Five international stars who can’t get a game in the Premier League

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He told the Football Index Podcast: “I think Thiago is an unbelievable acquisition because he is one of the only players in Europe who could improve Liverpool’s midfield.

“Even at 29 years old, he will give Liverpool at least three or four years and it was a brilliant bit of business for the fee involved as well.

“I first watched Thiago at Barcelona and the game looked effortless for him. Thiago is a midfielder that can dictate the tempo of a match like [Paul] Scholes used to, and there aren’t many of them about.

“Thiago has the ability to always have time on the ball because of the movement he does to create space. He very rarely loses the ball when he is pressed because of his awareness.

“Thiago is an absolute steal at that price. Klopp deserves a medal for convincing him because the Liverpool fans are going to adore him.”

 

Thiago has taken in just 45 minutes of football for Liverpool so far, with that solitary outing coming off the bench in a 2-0 victory at Chelsea.

He has been stuck on the sidelines since then after contracting Covid-19, but has been given the all-clear to resume his Reds career and will be looking to figure in a derby date with Everton on Saturday as Klopp’s men seek to a shake a humbling 7-2 defeat against Aston Villa from their system.

Murphy added: “I think Liverpool are still favourites to win the title.

“Defensively Liverpool have been the best team for two years. Tactically they were all over the place against Aston Villa and a lot is being said about Liverpool now trying to play with a high defensive line, but they still have [Jordan] Henderson, Thiago, [Sadio] Mane and Alisson to come back into the team.

“Jurgen Klopp does not accept performances like the one against Aston Villa.

“There will be a consequence to the players if they continue to perform like that and he has the strength to freshen it up if needs be.”

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There have been some calls for Gareth Southgate to go after a couple of underwhelming international breaks. But who would replace him?

Be careful what you wish for…

 

Mauricio Pochettino

The ex-Tottenham boss would be up for it. Three years ago, in Guillem Balague’s book, Pochettino discussed the prospect of managing England…

“If I were to be an international manager one day, I’d relish the opportunity to coach the England national team.”

‘One day’. How about ‘this day’? But despite the manner of his Spurs exit, Pochettino is in a wonderful position where he can afford to wait until one of the biggest club jobs becomes available and then he can pretty much name his price. The fact Southgate earns less than half the salary Ole Gunnar Solsjaer is paid at Manchester United – before the FA imposed pay-cuts – makes the position no more appealing at this stage.

Maybe when he’s sick of Ed Woodward’s sh*t in a few years, then he might consider the England job. But not just yet.

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Rating the players: England 0-1 Denmark

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Arsene Wenger

Fourth time lucky?

Wenger says he has already rejected offers to manage England: “Yes, I turned them down two or three times,” he said upon leaving his Arsenal post in 2018. “But I saw it that the daily involvement was, for me, important.”

Occasional work is better than no work, which is Wenger’s current situation, at least from an elite coaching perspective. Though aged 70, Wenger would have to wonder if he needs the grief.

There is also another factor behind Wenger’s reluctance to rake the England job: “I felt and said many times it should be an English guy who takes the English national team.

“It’s a big country, they have enough quality managers, and I thought maybe it was not right for me to do that.”

About those ‘quality managers’…

 

Eddie Howe

Howe was reportedly considered for the role in 2016 when his stock was as high as it ever was. Back then, he had just steered the Cherries through a comfortable maiden season in the Premier League and was being touted for jobs left, right and centre.

The FA opted for Sam Allardyce then – that went well – but Howe suggested that he would have turned down the job anyway.

“I consider myself a training ground manager, so I don’t think it would be for me in the short term, if I was offered the job,” he told FourFourTwo.

“In the longer term, though, who knows?”

Four years have passed, and whatever Howe’s career plan, it almost certainly did not involve leaving Bournemouth in the Championship after their bubble burst last season. He is available now, but Howe has a reputation that may not require rebuilding, but it certainly could do with some touching up before the FA consider him more seriously. The 42-year-old reportedly doesn’t want to work until he’s had a break until around Christmas, just in time for the annual Premier League manager purge.

 

Sean Dyche

If Howe has ever been in contention then Dyche should certainly be considered too.

The Burnley boss is currently the Premier League’s longest-serving manager, having been in charge at Turf Moor for eight years. In that time, he has achieved more in club football than some previous managers and the current England boss too.

Dyche certainly has substance; whether he possesses the necessary style is another matter. The FA showed that they aren’t afraid to recruit from the old school when they hired Allardyce, but then Big Sam ruined it for everyone else. And optics are clearly important to the FA these days.

The Ginger Mourinho is currently the bookies’ favourite to become the next England manager and Burnley might feel soon that it is time for a change if the Clarets cannot arrest their recent form, which has seen them lose their first three matches of the Premier League season.

On the basis that it takes one to know one, Roy Hodgson would back Dyche for the job: “Why shouldn’t a guy like Sean Dyche be in that group of people to be considered,” he said two years ago. “I see no reason why anyway.”

Joint second-favourite behind Dyche with Howe is Brighton’s Graham Potter, with Chris Wilder just ahead of Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard in the betting.

 

Aidy Boothroyd

Christ.

But we have to remember, Boothroyd is just following Southgate down the path he took to the England job.

The former Watford manager is part of the furniture at St George’s Park having been involved with the national set-up since 2014. In that time, he’s worked with the Under-17s, Under-19s and now manages the Under-21s.

Not that Danny Murphy feels he deserves the gig: “Did he get the job on merit? No, not really. There’s a bit of nepotism there and we have to be honest with that,” said Murphy, referring to Boothroyd and his friendship with the FA’s technical director at the time, Dan Ashworth.

The results hardly refute Murphy’s accusation. Boothroyd’s Under-21s may have just booked their place at next year’s European Championship but they would have to win it to make many people forget last year’s sh*tshow. For which he blamed his players.

Maybe he would fare better with an entire England team of right-backs.

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Former Tottenham boss Andre Villas-Boas has recalled the conversation that helped turn Gareth Bale into the world’s most expensive player.

The Wales international had first made an impact at White Hart Lane under Harry Redknapp, but it was not until Villas-Boas tinkered with his formation that Bale’s full potential was unlocked.

The Portuguese, who managed Spurs for 18 months between 2012 and 2013, moved Bale higher up the pitch and it paid immediate dividends as he went on to produce stunning form which saw Real Madrid sign him for a then world-record £85million in the summer of 2013.

“When Gareth wasn’t feeling that he was unlocking his full potential, he came into my office one day and he said, ‘Boss I’m not happy, things are not going well for me’,” the current Marseille manager told COPA90 in a virtual manager masterclass to celebrate the biggest update of EA SPORTS FIFA 21’s Career Mode in 10 years.

“Okay, I said, ‘I can try and change to a 4-4-2 formation, and you play free at the top with (Emmanuel) Adebayor and I can move (Gylfi) Sigurdsson to the left, cutting in.

“This is when Gareth started on that run of games where he scored, I think for five or six games in a row, and then the results exploded, and his career exploded from that moment on.”

Spurs fans will be hoping Bale can recreate similar form as he looks to make his second debut for the club against West Ham on Sunday.

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Bale has been regaining his fitness during the current international break, with staff inside the club highly impressed by his levels in training.

That will please chairman Daniel Levy, who negotiated a favourable deal to get Bale back on loan from Real Madrid last month.

But Villas-Boas’ recollection of another incident from his time at Spurs will not be so good for Levy to hear.

The Portuguese has spoken about the time they had Willian pinched from under their noses by Chelsea, just after Bale had been sold.

It is well-known that Spurs paid for the Brazilian’s travel to London and medical ahead of a proposed move to north London, before he eventually chose Chelsea at the death, but Villas-Boas has given more detail.

“I think that Daniel Levy won’t appreciate it too much, but we had Willian in our office at Spurs, watching the Champions League game together, before he left the room and signed for Chelsea that night,” he added.

“We also missed (João) Moutinho, who became famous mostly of course because of Wolves, because of being one minute late on the deadline.”

 

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Harry Kane says England’s players will rally around Harry Maguire after a miserable start to the season.

Already under intense scrutiny as Manchester United captain and the most expensive defender in history, focus ratcheted up even further following a high-profile court case in Greece.

Maguire was withdrawn from last month’s England squad after being handed a suspended 21-month prison sentence following an incident in Mykonos during the pre-season break – a verdict the defender denies and is appealing.

The off-season drama appears to have impacted the 27-year-old, whose poor United form translated onto the international scene on Wednesday when he was sent off for collecting two bookings in a wretched 31 minutes.

England went onto lose the Nations League clash against Denmark 1-0 but manager Gareth Southgate threw his backing behind Maguire after the match, as did skipper Kane.

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“Harry’s a strong guy, a strong guy mentally,” the Tottenham striker, who has faced flak of his own down the years, said.

“I think any professional footballer, it takes a lot of ups and downs to reach the level that we’re at and H has definitely had that.

“He’s had ups and downs in his career. Obviously it wasn’t his night but he’ll definitely learn from it.

“Football’s a game that can turn around quick. All you can do is learn and work harder and that’s what H will do.

“I’m not worried about him. The boys will get around him. We’ve got another camp in a few weeks and we’ve just got to stick together.

“Things are going to go wrong now and then but I’m so proud of the boys in the way they fought and the togetherness.

“That’s what we’ve got to take away from this week, which was a great week with two good wins against Wales and Belgium as well.”

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READ MORE: Rating the players: England 0-1 Denmark

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Kane’s positivity after England’s triple-header came after a Wembley loss that was “hard to swallow” after “putting everything on the line” in a match that saw referee Jesus Gil Manzano make some strange decisions.

Few could argue with Maguire’s red card but the penalty awarded soon after raised eyebrows, while full debutant Reece James was sent off for dissent after the full-time whistle.

England have been shown three cards across their four Nations League matches but Kane said: “I don’t think there’s a problem with discipline.

“I think H’s one is a couple of 50-50 tackles that didn’t quite go his way tonight.

“When you’re putting your body on the line and every bit of effort you’ve got to try and get something out of the game, and again and again decisions just didn’t quite go our way, it’s hard to take.

“You’ve got a lot of emotion and that’s what I want to see from my squad.

“I want to see emotion, I want to see winners and people who will give everything to win. That’s what we did tonight.

“You’ll have to ask the ref what happened with Reece but, yeah, Reece will learn from it and we’ll get around him and make sure whenever he’s next in the squad he’ll be ready to play like he did tonight because he was fantastic.”

Wednesday’s defeat to Denmark diminished England’s chances of reaching the second Nations League finals as they slipped from top of Group A2 to third.

Southgate’s men face a crunch clash at table-topping Belgium when they reconvene next month, before seeing out a strange and testing 2020 at home to Iceland.

“I think it’s definitely a winnable game,” Kane told beIN SPORTS when asked about the trip to the Red Devils.

“Obviously Belgium are a great side but we’ve shown we can beat them already, so we have to take that confidence into that game, then obviously Iceland here as well.

“We’ve got a quick turnaround, three or four weeks, plenty of games for our club now.

“But, yeah, for sure we’ll be back again in a few weeks ready to go and I definitely think we can take positives from this performance.”