As part of Montreal Fashion Week, Core Fabrics and Closet Core Patterns are thrilled to invite you on September 23rd to two special events celebrating circular fashion and our vibrant creative community. Whether you're in the fashion industry or sewing your own beautiful handmade wardrobe, we’d love to see you there!
Core Fabrics and Collective Détour invite Québec’s fashion community to a Lunch & Learn networking event on Tuesday, September 23, at 8280 boulevard St-Laurent, suite 301, in Montréal.
Join us from 11:30 a.m. for a warm and welcoming gathering of designers, industry professionals, and media, complete with light bites and a glass of wine.
At noon, we’ll host an inspiring panel discussion on a pressing topic: textile circularity. Moderated by Collective Détour, the conversation will bring together local pioneers in sustainable fashion to share practical strategies for rethinking how we source, produce, and bring fashion to market — all with circularity in mind.
Meet the Hosts & Moderators
Tereska Gesing & Heather Lou
Co-founders of Core Fabrics
a Montreal-based company dedicated to sustainable textiles.
Heather, CEO, is a proven entrepreneur and the founder of Closet Core Patterns, one of the most influential brands in the home sewing industry. Known for her thought leadership and strong community engagement, Heather has built a loyal customer base, with over 200,000 followers on Instagram alone.
Tereska, COO, is also a serial entrepreneur. She launched Semis urbains, the first online garden centre in Quebec focused on urban food growing, and created Grand Potager, an urban agriculture hub that supports more than 25 organizations at the Verdun Greenhouses. She also holds a fashion design degree from Collège Lasalle.
Myriam Laroche & Abby Marino
Co-founders of Collective Detour
a sustainability consultancy agency dedicated to guiding textile and apparel companies toward circular, and responsable business models.
Myriam is a senior strategist in sustainable fashion, specializing in secondhand markets and circular textile systems. With over 15 years of experience, she helps brands shift toward more inclusive, regenerative business models.
Abby is a sustainability strategist and researcher with a focus on economic analysis and process automation. Her work supports data-driven decision-making for better industry practices.
Meet the Panelists
Leyla Lardja
Research and Innovation Manager at Vestechpro
Leyla Lardja has over ten years of experience in sustainable development. She brings expertise in life cycle analysis, circular economy, and interdisciplinary research to support apparel companies in developing innovative, sustainable solutions.
Julien Tougeron
President of Véloise & International Biomass Alliance
Julien Tougeron, a UBC Sauder MBA graduate, has 18 years of experience in international development, project management, business support, and public relations. As president of the Textile Biomass Alliance, he works to promote sustainable and responsible textile production practices both locally and internationally.
International Biomass Alliance
Turning Agricultural Waste in Sustainable Textile with Véloise
Philippe Gagnon
VP of Canadian Operations at Attraction
Philippe Gagnon has worked in the fashion industry since 2009, becoming an expert in operations management for garment production. His career has taken him to Peerless Clothing, Les Confections Stroma, Canada Goose, and, since 2019, Attraction, where he has demonstrated creativity and innovation in textile circularity.
On Tuesday, September 23, we’re opening up our studio at 8280 St-Laurent Blvd, suite 301, Montréal for a special evening with our community of sewing and sustainable textile lovers.
Drop by for a fun 5 à 7 and shop your favourite eco-conscious fabrics in person. It’s the only time this year you can visit our space and shop on site!
Plus, bring your sewing questions for our Sewing Clinic with the Closet Core Patterns team! They’ll be on hand to offer expert advice and help troubleshoot your tricky projects.
15% off everything during the event
Clothing & fabric swap
SEWING CLINIC WITH THE CLOSET CORE PATTERNS TEAM
A Chance to Connect with fellow sewists
Whether you’ve shopped with us before or are just curious to see what we’re all about, we’d love to see you there! Come say hi, connect with fellow makers, and maybe even go home with your next favourite fabric.
ABOUT CORE FABRICS
Founded in 2020 by Heather Lou and Tereska Gesing, Core Fabrics is a Montreal-based online fabric store offering thoughtfully sourced, eco-conscious textiles and supplies for the modern sewist. Most recently, we launched a wholesale platform with a textile buyback program at its heart—part of our mission to champion circularity in the fashion & textile industry.