Forever Pieces represents everything we associate with our vision of positive fashion," explains Arjan Sissing, Global Head of Brand Marketing at DHL. "This competition stands for sustainability and thus unites themes such as sustainable production, circularity and fair production conditions with long-lasting fashion." 

Participating in the competition were many up-and-coming designers and fashion enthusiasts who welcomed the opportunity to bring their sustainable fashion ideas to life. "The feedback from the competition exceeded all our expectations in terms of both quantity and quality," explains Jelena Hofmann, founder and CEO of Mykke Hofmann. "The response shows how deeply the concept of sustainability is anchored in the up-and-coming fashion community."

The main prize awarded to competition winners was 1000EUR in prize money, and the opportunity to bring to life the garment as a Forever Piece. "It is important to design fashion in an environmentally friendly way, and this competition offered me a way to do that," says winner Marta Soloducha, explaining why she decided to take part. The fashion student from Warsaw designed a trench coat whose versatility makes it a Forever Piece. The garment can be worn not only as a coat, but also as a blazer or skirt separately when detached. Micaela Clubourg, an up-and-coming designer from Argentina, now living in Spain, submitted a co-ord set like no other to the Forever Pieces collection. The pair of trousers features a non-waste design, with no fabric wasted in production, while the top represents an eternal design. The other winners are Gaia Stollo from Italy who contributed a classic pair of trouser, Yolanda Patricia Cabarcas, a native of Colombia now working as a freelancer in Milan, who submitted a timeless blouse, and Camilla Pane from Italy who designed a transitional little black dress. Like the rest of Mykke Hofmann's collection, the entire Forever Pieces collection is produced at a factory in Serbia in which women are given a stable job with fair conditions. All workers are paid 50 per cent above regulated wages and are provided with professional equipment - with health and safety as top priorities.

The Forever Pieces are designed to be timeless pieces that go beyond trends and accompany their wearers for a long time. When customers purchase the product, they receive a warranty certificate in the form of a climate neutral NFT to extend the wearability of the clothing through certain repairs. The NFT is stored in a digital wallet on the blockchain, which means the warranty certificate cannot get lost or be inadvertently 

All proceeds from the sale of the collection will go to SOS Children's Villages, the world's largest non-profit organization focused on supporting children without parental care and families at risk. DHL is part of Deutsche Post DHL Group, who has been a partner to SOS Children Village since 2010.

DHL is the fashion and retail industry's leading global logistics partner. For decades, DHL has pioneered solutions to meet the requirements of designers, retailers and some of the world's most glamorous fashion events, while supporting the sustainable fashion movement with environmentally friendly shipping solutions. The Forever Pieces collaboration is DHL's latest undertaking to support talented young designers and champion sustainability in fashion. "Our tailored global logistics solutions allow our fashion partners to optimize their production and sales processes, further helping their business' success and growth," says Mirella Muller-Wuellenweber, President Global eRetail and Fashion at DHL Customer Solution & Innovation. "We offer a unique delivery experience with maximum speed and flexibility while keeping carbon footprint at a minimum, especially in the fast-growing ecommerce sector."