Panel: Longevity
Panel: Longevity — Day 2, Goldsmiths
Do Luxury Brands Deliver on Their Promises?
Luxury has always sold itself on the promise of permanence. Objects made to last, to be repaired, to be handed down rather than discarded. This panel asks whether that promise is actually true, or whether it has become a piece of marketing language sitting on top of a supply chain most brands would rather people did not look at too closely.
Curated by Shaun Borstrock, the panel brings together Gemma Metheringham of The Elephant in my Wardrobe, fashion designer and founder Maria Grachvogel, and Noah Bier of Maker’s Cabinet. What connects them is that each operates, in different ways, outside the traditional luxury brand framework. That distance is exactly what makes their perspective valuable. They are not defending a corporate narrative about heritage and quality, they are working directly with materials, makers, and people’s actual wardrobes, which means they see what the opaque parts of the supply chain conceal. Where a garment is really made, under what conditions, from what materials, and whether any of that supports a genuine claim to longevity, rather than simply a price tag that implies one.
The conversation will look honestly at where luxury brands deliver on their promises and where they do not, and what would need to change, in materials, in supply chain transparency, in repair services, in the business model itself, for longevity to be something luxury brands practise rather than simply claim. In keeping with the wider Time to Change conference, this is not a celebration of craftsmanship. It is an honest look at whether luxury’s claims to permanence can survive contact with how the industry actually operates.
Conversation Curator Prof Shaun Borstrock PhD FRSA — Head of Knowledge Exchange and Research Ravensbourne University London and Founder, IPOL
Shaun Borstrock spends his career asking an uncomfortable question, do luxury brands actually deliver what they promise? Are they luxury?, or do they just ‘perform’ well? As Professor of Luxury and Consumer Culture and Head of Knowledge Exchange and Research at Ravensbourne University London and founder of In Pursuit of Luxury, he draws a hard line between luxury brands as fashion and luxury as an idea rooted in sustainability, craftsmanship and lasting value. His framework, LuxWashing, interrogates the gap between brand claims and material reality, tracing supply chains back to their true environmental and human cost rather than their story. He pushes brands past decorative sustainability claims toward genuinely regenerative practice. He advises luxury brands directly, co developed the world’s first fully customisable 3D printed textile, and has spent over twenty years moving between academia, consultancy and industry without losing his edge in any of them.
Gemma Metheringham — Founder, The Elephant in my Wardrobe
After working in the fashion industry for over 30 years, Gemma started The Elephant in my Wardrobe in 2020 to challenge overconsumption and throwaway fashion. The conversations started there led her to quit her job, complete an MA in Fashion Futures and start a PhD. Her research explores the future of the secondhand fashion market and how it might reduce fashion’s environmental impact. Committed to sharing what she’s learning, Gemma writes, lectures, upcycles, mends for friends, advocates for radical consumerism and asks ‘is fashion’s future secondhand?’
Maria Grachvogel — Fashion Designer & Founder
Maria Grachvogel is a true fashion visionary. For three decades her pioneering and intuitive approach to design has put the joy of the wearer first, creating timeless and empowering pieces which make women look and feel their very best. The exquisite “Grachvogel cut” sculpts and enhances the female form. Each piece is designed and cut in her London atelier, with Maria cutting, draping and pattern making herself, working directly on the body to ensure ease and comfort, a rare quality in luxury fashion. From the iconic “Magic Trousers” to couture evening gowns, every design considers the lifestyle of the woman, with prints intricately hand painted by Maria herself.
Her seasonless approach means capsule collections are made in limited quantities or to order, keeping the brand close to zero waste while iconic pieces remain available to treasure forever. Maria Grachvogel is the embodiment of the transformative power of fashion.
Noah Bier — Co-founder, Makers Cabinet
Noah Bier is a London-based designer whose work explores the relationship between craftsmanship, industrial design and material culture. His practice focuses on creating objects that challenge disposable consumption through precision, longevity and thoughtful making, demonstrating how contemporary design can generate lasting emotional and cultural value. A graduate of Central Saint Martins, Noah is best known as the co-founder of Makers Cabinet, where he developed a series of internationally recognised products that reimagined everyday creative tools through exceptional design, material innovation and enduring craftsmanship. Currently undertaking a craftsman apprenticeship in Hokkaido, Japan, Noah continues to explore how traditional making practices can inform contemporary design and contribute to new understandings of value, creativity and luxury.
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