By Daniela De Marco Cazzani – Kilpatrick
In a fashion market going increasingly digital, Kilpatrick responds to the challenging search for the best talents on the market by investing in BFK, a Ticino-based staffing and recruiting agency established 35 years ago. The project has been co-ordinated by Loomish – a Swiss investment management company specializing in Lifestyle and Fashion.
Leading-edge professionals is what the Fashion market needs and in order to meet the growing demand, Kilpatrick Group SA, Executive Search company numbering 17 branch offices all over the world, has recently taken over BFK HR Consulting, a consulting company specialized in human resources focusing on ICT applied to Fashion. In 2019 they will launch BFK Digital designed to make major investments in the world of ICT and “Fashion Tech” on a global scale.
Let us read the words of Jacob Hoekstra, General Manager of BFK digital and CEO of Kilpatrick Group: “We decided to invest in this company because we estimate they have the potentials we need to innovate and to set a fruitful dialogue with the fashion industry into motion. To this aim, Roberto Lipari, the current GM of BFK, will ensure continuity by giving his support as Board Advisor”.
“Roberto – Hoekstra adds – has garnered a ten-year-old experience in the world of ICT applied to Fashion and knows the market inside out. Thanks to his support and the innovative drive which has always set Kilpatrick apart, we are confident we will responsively meet the market needs and requirements”.
The takeover of BFK has been coordinated by Loomish, an investment management company based in Switzerland specialized in Lifestyle Tech with a special focus on fashion and design.
“Since a few years the impact digitalization and ICT have had on the fashion industry has been viewed as strategically relevant, in addition to outlining future guidelines“, explains Jelena Tasic Pizzolato at Loomish. “In order to grow on the global market, leading fashion brands need digital talents, namely “hybrid” professional profiles knowledgeable about fashion as well as ICT and digital. In what is manifestly an increasingly competitive set, tapping into the services of strategic recruiting agencies, as BFK Digital could become, can make the difference“.
“The strength of our company resides in its global network – adds Hoekstra. “We have seventeen branch offices scattered all over the world and the ability to identify the best resources anywhere. And based on our international vision, I feel I can confidently claim that Ticino has turned out being an extremely interesting hub as it is gradually shaping into a competitive, global-scale scenario.”
“Today we can no longer address and examine the fashion market strictly from the point of view of logistic and production. It requires a global perspective, complemented by digital headways and innovation. And that is where a solid strategic structure can be established.”
“We are thrilled about this new challenge – Hoekstra underlines – as well as about the experienced partners we are sharing this adventure with“.