Kering Launches its Kering Generation Award in Saudi Arabia in Partnership with the Saudi Fashion Commission

On October 29th, Marie-Claire Daveu, Chief Sustainability & Institutional Affairs Officer at Kering and Burak Çakmak, Chief Executive Officer of the Fashion Commission of Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Culture have signed a partnership to launch the Kering Generation Award in the Kingdom, promoting sustainability and innovation in the fashion industry, aiming to drive meaningful change and elevate sustainable fashion initiatives.

Since 2017, inspired by the Group’s sustainability signature – “Crafting Tomorrow’s Luxury” –, Kering has been running this Award program across several countries (China, Japan) to identify promising change-making startups and technologies covering fashion, leather goods, jewelry, eyewear and beauty. Through this Award, Kering strengthens its commitment to fostering visionary talent and advancing sustainable solutions that minimize the environmental and social impact of retail and wholesale practices.

The first Saudi edition of this Award program will specifically seek to identify start-ups that have an impact on customer engagement, circular economy and water protection. Together, Kering and the Saudi Fashion Commission commit to driving impactful change by promoting sustainable practices and supporting visionary fashion initiatives that shape a responsible future. 

“We firmly believe that the future of luxury is built on sustainable innovation and engaging the next generation. This partnership with the Fashion Commission of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, through the expansion of our Kering Generation Award, reflects our commitment to driving meaningful change in the Saudi fashion industry”, stated Marie-Claire Daveu.

The Award ceremony will be held in Riyadh in 2025. The jury panel will feature distinguished leaders including Marie-Claire Daveu, Kering's Chief Sustainability & Institutional Affairs Officer; Miral Youssef, President of Kering Middle East and Africa; and Amanda Smith, CEO of WWD.

About the Kering Generation Award

In 2017, as part of the Group’s sustainability strategy, Kering joined the “Plug and Play – Fashion for Good” accelerator in Europe, scouting innovative solutions across the entire fashion industry chain, as well as thinking about changes from perspectives such as “alternative raw materials to recycling technology” and thereby extending product lifespan.
Aligned with Kering’s vision of “Crafting tomorrow’s luxury”, the “Kering Generation Award” was founded in China in December 2018, aiming to recognize and support Chinese startups that can bring about positive environmental and social impact and address challenges in alternative raw materials, green supply chain, retail & use and the circular economy.
In 2021, the second Kering Generation Award focused on biodiversity and beyond, seeking startups working in the areas of ensuring clean water, building healthy soil, supporting wildlife and animal welfare as well as empowering people with knowledge of the relationship between fashion and nature.
In December 2022, Kering announced the third Kering Generation Award around the theme “Coming Full Circle”, promoting the complete development of the circular economy at every link of the fashion industry. The Award Ceremony was held on 16 October 2023 in Shanghai.

About Kering

A global Luxury group, Kering manages the development of a series of renowned Houses in Fashion, Leather Goods and Jewelry: Gucci, Saint Laurent, Bottega Veneta, Balenciaga, Alexander McQueen, Brioni, Boucheron, Pomellato, DoDo, Qeelin, Ginori 1735 as well as Kering Eyewear and Kering Beauté. By placing creativity at the heart of its strategy, Kering enables its Houses to set new limits in terms of their creative expression while crafting tomorrow’s Luxury in a sustainable and responsible way. We capture these beliefs in our signature: “Empowering Imagination”. In 2023, Kering had over 49,000 employees and revenue of €19.6 billion.