Sonay Kara

Product Type: Menswear, Womenswear, Tailoring, Denim, Softs, Accessories and Multi-product. Directing production of Ready-to-wear, Tailoring, Made-to-Measure, and Luxury Bespoke Uniform lines with a product portfolio of 1500 SKU's and a sales revenue of 6 million GBP. Managed collaborative supplier relationships with key partners in the EU, Asia, USA and the UK. Expanded the sustainability mindset across the business to assist hospitality brands such as Four Seasons, Rosewood and St. Regis set and adhere to sustainability targets with the introduction of J-WEAR. The from stock reduced environmental impact solution for luxury hotels and resorts with a sustainably focussed capsule of core uniform product designed and developed to offer Quality, Organic and Recycled raw materials with verified supply chains resulting in a product that has an enhanced durability and a longer life. Management: • Managing 100+ suppliers for CMT and Fully factored (FOB) business, collaborating with Ops, Design, and Sales Teams across Europe, Asia, and the UK. • Overseeing product pricing and margin achievement, troubleshooting to maintain design direction. • Empowering teams to engage in sustainability and circular fashion, fostering their development in environmental issues. Supply chain & Logistics: • Sourcing sustainable manufacturers and raw material suppliers for brand J-WEAR. • Adhering to Global Sustainability requirements (ESG), focusing on sustainable materials such as Organic, BCI, Tencel, Recycled Cotton, and Recycled Polyester. • Organizing freight forwarding strategy and managing logistics operations to USA warehouse, including invoices and packing lists. • Segregating European and non-European shipments to enhance cost efficiency and reduce Carbon Emission in accordance with ISO9001/14001 and Scope 3 standards. Costings/Target Prices: • Negotiated with vendors/suppliers to achieve the company's target margin levels, resulting in successful improvements of 35% in blouses, 12% in dresses, and 23% in jackets. Supplier Performance: • Monitored and enhanced supplier performance through strategic programs such as KPIs & PLM. Implemented capacity booking for vendors/suppliers, achieving a 30% reduction in production lead-time. • Monitored and reported Raw Material Index data and fibre usage for all J-WEAR product to Textile Exchange. Certification and Traceability: • Applied Quality Assurance processes to secure ISO 9001/14001 certification. Ensured compliance with Transaction Certificates for sustainably sourced materials, including Recycled Polyester, Recycled Cotton, Organic Cotton, and Tencel, obtained from approved bodies. • Recorded Raw Material Index data and fibre usage for all J-WEAR product to report and set targets..

• Clientele: H&M, Asos, Long Tall Sally and Miss Selfridge (Arcadia Group). • Leadership: Managed a London showroom and led a team of designers and product developers to deliver fashion products aligned with client needs. • Collaboration: With customer buying teams to ensure products met business requirements, identified key seasonal shapes, and achieved a 50% increase in business, while demonstrating excellent communication skills with cross functional teams. • Technical: Developed specifications in Design Tech packs to guide product development, meeting fit, fabric quality, and construction standards, and developed products through fitting and approval processes, maintaining standards of fit and performance. • Development: Conducted ongoing cost engineering, managed fabric/raw material approvals, and aligned product development strategy with customer feedback. Led product/fit training to enhance service efficiency. • Accuracy & Critical Path: Achieved 100% accuracy in PLM updates and product development processes. Efficiently managed critical path from concept to pre-production, ensuring punctual delivery of top-quality prototypes.

• Clientele: H&M (Menswear & Womenswear), Wallis, Marks & Spencer, Top Shop (Arcadia Group). • Collaborative Innovation: Partnered with design team to develop products aligning with business objectives, including identifying new shapes for collections & sourcing sustainable materials. • Design Integration: Facilitated seamless collaboration with designers, ensuring alignment with company goals in product instructions for suppliers. • Quality Management: Supervised thorough garment testing processes, maintaining adherence to standards and initiating corrective actions as needed.

Throughout my career at H&M, I was dedicated to sustainability, driving positive change and steering the company towards becoming a leading sustainable fashion destination. This commitment has led to impactful leadership and entrepreneurial spirit across various departments, spearheading innovation in the Denim Department (4 years), proactive excellence in the COS Department (1 year), and transformative initiatives at the Global Development Centre Project (2 ½ years) • Leadership: Successfully led the Menswear and Womenswear Denim department transfer to the pivotal Ladies Everyday department. • Entrepreneurship: Increased annual quantities from 1.5 million to 5 million pieces, contributing to global business restructuring. • Global Impact: Elevated H&M's status to the "No:1 Fashion Destination" and enhanced consumer engagement through sustainable materials awareness. • Influence: Conducted training sessions in Istanbul, Shanghai, and India, empowering teams to embrace speed and autonomy. • Innovation: Spearheaded creation of top-selling shaping product, winning Golden Hanger award, while also consistently monitoring EIM score results for their impact on the environment. • Achievements: Increased quantities from 100,000 to 3 million pieces, challenging global strategy and earning recognition as "super woman" and Ambassador. • Proactive Excellence: Demonstrated proactive approach in woven ladies-casual department, enhancing product development and production efficiency. • Quality Improvement: Achieved 98% on-time delivery rate and 75% local fit approval rate, leading to elevation to high-impact retail area with monthly volume of 2.5 million pieces. • Management: Led a team of 8 individuals including Product Developers, Assistants, Garment Technologists, and Research & Developers. • Quality Assurance: Ensured consistent production of high-quality product proposals, recommendations, and risk assessments. • Forecasting: Reviewed date with Buying team to align with key performance indicators and evaluate their impact on business. • Supplier Management: Managed capacity planning and negotiated costs, overseeing budget management for collections. • Global collaboration: Led vendor relationships across Turkey, Morocco, Egypt, and Romania, sourcing new factories and materials to meet collection needs while adhering to sustainability regulations.

• Clientele: Tommy Hilfiger USA (Womenswear), Monsoon (Kidswear), House OF Fraser • Leadership: Led product development and R&D from collection stage to garment delivery. • Achievements: Increased jersey and flat knit product quantities to meet customer expectations, overseeing production processes to ensure quality and style alignment with customer requirements.

• Clientele: Mexx (based in Netherlands). Youth, Women's, and Men's (knit, jersey & woven) Dept's.

• Clientele: Kohl's Department Stores – product line from $2M to $12M across menswear, ladieswear, and children's departments.