Ellen Haeser: 'Fashion needs to move from chasing trends to creating meaning'

After six and a half years in vocational education, Ellen Haeser is returning to the stage. During Masterly Milano 2026, the speaker and cultural strategist will present From Cradle to Grave – an ode to lifelong, inexhaustible sources of inspiration. This is an audiovisual work focusing on fashion and interiors.

With over 45 years of experience in the fashion industry, Haeser reflects on the zeitgeist. She advocates for a shift from a trend-driven mindset to a value-driven one. FashionUnited speaks with her about education, retail and the future of fashion.

Where does your renewed urge to interpret the zeitgeist come from?

In education, I discovered the value of acting as a link between curricula and the reality of the industry and society. Connecting, translating and providing direction are my strengths.

Why now? The urgency has increased. The current zeitgeist puts pressure on young people, making them insecure. This is precisely why I want to be visible again. I aim to bring meaning, beauty and future prospects back to the profession, and to translate complexity into choices that professionals can make today.

What characterises the current zeitgeist, in your opinion?

We are ready for a shift from a trend-driven mindset to a value-driven one. Currently, there are many stimuli, but there is little room for depth because attention is constantly shifting to the next trend. Consequently, many consumers lack an understanding of what products are, how they are made and why it matters.

The zeitgeist calls for 'positive frugality': looking more consciously, choosing more consciously and sometimes consciously not buying. This is only possible if knowledge and context are made appealing, from materials and origin to maintenance and lifespan.

I see this translation in what I call 'manuals': practical value guides for products. When children learn to feel, make and understand what textiles are, a greater sense of value naturally develops. Just as culinary culture grew through knowledge and examples, fashion and interiors can shift towards quality and craftsmanship in the same way.

The text continues below the photo

What is your presentation at Masterly Milano 2026 in April about?

I am presenting From Cradle to Grave – an ode to lifelong, inexhaustible sources of inspiration. It is a continuous audiovisual cycle, fuelled by conversations with approximately 25 women from different generations and disciplines.

I want to literally give a voice to fashion and interiors as carriers of identity, zeitgeist and value. The project deliberately focuses not on new trend stimuli, but on meaning, context and imagination.

This urgency is not unique to fashion. In the design field, there is a growing awareness that acceleration and erosion pose risks. The appointment of Harry Nuriev as Designer of the Year 2026 at Maison&Objet is a clear sign of this. His 'Transformism' manifesto reinterprets existing objects and interiors, giving them new cultural meaning.

How do you see spring/summer 2027 and autumn/winter 2027? Where are we heading? What is changing?

For SS27 and FW27, I see a clear movement towards history, craftsmanship and quality. This is not nostalgia, but is visible in the choice of materials; construction methods; finishing and lifespan. Knowledge about what something is and how it is made will once again be decisive for consumers' value assessment, in both fashion and interiors.

With this, the desire for do-it-yourself grows: making, altering, repairing and personalising. I expect a revaluation of making one's own clothes, similar to what we have seen in interiors for some time. Retail can respond to this with a hybrid offering of product and service: semi-finished goods, customisation, repair and maintenance.

After a strong focus on vintage, pre-loved and upcycling, a new phase is emerging: redesign that is also aesthetically and qualitatively convincing. The Dutch brand Peterson Stoop, founded by two young women, demonstrates this possibility by transforming used trainers with their own technique. To ensure consumers keep their items for ten years, they must above all be desirable.

Where do you think the fashion sector stands on sustainability, and what have you observed in the industry and in education?

In the industry, I have seen a dual picture over the past ten years. Clear progress has been made, from alternative raw materials to improved processes, among both large and small players. At the same time, many initiatives fail due to a lack of scale, funding or supply chain collaboration.

Work is still too often done in silos, with insufficient consolidation and connection to retail and consumer behaviour. This is where it ultimately needs to 'land'.

My years in vocational education revealed how slow and system-driven change can be. There is a lot of motivation, but the connection with the industry remains fragile. Lecturers are mainly focused on keeping the education system running, which puts structural collaboration with the professional field under pressure. However, it is precisely through real-life assignments and joint projects that the necessary professional vision is developed.

How do you view innovation and sustainability in the fashion industry, and where do you think the key to scaling up and achieving real change lies?

There is a lot of intention in the sector and much is happening, especially concerning raw materials, collection and supply chain collaboration. This is necessary and is partly supported by European and regional programmes.

Real acceleration, however, will only occur when the market also shifts. By this, I mean that sustainability cannot be solved solely on the production side. It requires consumers to look at clothing differently: what is value; what quality do you expect; and what are you willing to pay for it? We have seen in the food industry that such a shift is possible, although it takes time.

This is why I always return to education. Understanding what clothing is, from material and manufacturing process to origin and impact, changes consumer behaviour. Precisely because fashion touches on identity and well-being, there is an opportunity here to move from a disposable product to a meaningful covering. For brands and retailers, this means investing not only in more sustainable materials but also in service, guidance and product knowledge.

What does this mean for production and retail? How should fashion be produced and sold in the future?

Technology enables made-to-order, micro-production and even production in or near the store. Although this is still rare, it can transform retail from a transactional space into an experiential place. My advice is to make the product story visible and give retail an active role in alterations, repairs and service. This shifts value creation from simply selling to guiding and finishing.

Furthermore, I see that reshoring is growing, although it has hardly reached the average consumer yet. I therefore expect the rise of expertise-retail, both in brick and mortar stores and online, where knowledge is the differentiator and quality is not automatically expensive.

What is your vision on the growing importance of experience, convenience and meaning in retail?

Retail can become relevant again by being more than just a point-of-sale. Teams can organise knowledge, service and creativity, guiding consumers to choose better, wear longer and maintain well. This, of course, clashes with the traditional business model.

I also think the classic formula of a single target audience and a single direction is becoming exhausted. Agility and sensitivity to the zeitgeist will be decisive.

Demographics play a major role in this. In the Netherlands, people over 65 now outnumber those under 20. This active, affluent group is still underserved in retail. Retailers who can connect generations, such as grandparents and grandchildren, are automatically more future-proof.

Who will remain relevant leading up to 2030?

The players who will remain relevant in 2030 are those who exchange a trend-driven mindset for a value-driven one and implement it consistently. They will create places and concepts where consumers not only buy but also learn and do. This can be achieved through workshops, repairs/alterations and making-support.

In a world of abundance, the ability to select and interpret becomes more important than the ability to add. The role of the curator is therefore growing. Technology, particularly AI, can enhance this by taking over repetitive work and creating space for human craftsmanship, such as personal service.

Ultimately, the brands and retailers that remain relevant will be those who dare to shift their business model from volume to knowledge, service and meaning.

Are you actually positive about the future?

My glass is half full. This is not because the challenges are small, but because fashion and textiles still carry great cultural and social significance. This ranges from identity and history to emotion and self-image. That deeper layer has not disappeared, but it has been buried. The task is to make it visible again.

My optimism stems mainly from the interaction between generations. While older generations bring experience and an awareness of quality, younger generations ask sharp questions and navigate the technological world with ease. When these perspectives converge, there is room for acceleration, both in education and in practice.

At the same time, the range of products on offer remains a concern. In education, it is not about prescribing but about broadening horizons. It is about showing young people that alternatives exist and what quality truly means. As with food, the same applies here: only when you know what choices are available can you choose consciously.

Finally, what tip, lesson or food for thought would you like to share with our readers?

In closing, I invite readers to do one simple exercise: look at the item of clothing you have kept the longest. Why that particular piece? What does it say about who you are and what you want to pass on?

By asking such questions, the focus shifts from 'what is new?' to 'what endures?'. That is precisely where a value-driven mindset begins.

This interview was conducted in writing.

Other sources:
- AI tools were used as a writing aid.