Fashion & Retail Entrepreneurial Business Management Program
About GFBA
The Global Fashion Business Alliance (GFBA),is a fashion and retail business development organization. The GFBA is an outgrowth of The Fashion Business Association of America (FBAA) representing a larger geographic footprint and has created a Virtual Fashion Business Development program for entrepreneurs, designers, and companies within the international fashion and retail industries.
The GFBA has developed programs for designers and entrepreneurs through Master Classes, Mentoring and Consulting with best practices and guidance in building sustainable businesses focused on scaling, internationalization, and all aspects of brand and company growth.
Fashion & Retail Business Development Programs
The GFBA provides the latest information and resources via virtual Master Classes, LIVE Mentoring, and Consulting in collaboration with North America’s top fashion business experts. Topics covered include Finance & Factoring, Global Supply Chain Management, Legal & IP, Fashion Business Accounting, US Taxes & Compliance, Retail Development, Brand Development, Branding & Social Media Marketing, and ESG & Social Impact.
The Master Classes are in English and accessible online, anytime, regardless of geographical region.
The Fashion & Retail Business Development Programs are aimed at all professional levels in the industry - from designers and brand owners, founders and directors to managers, showroom sales account executives, retailers, entry-level associates and students studying fashion design, marketing and merchandising, along with business students with an interest in the fashion and retail industries. Product areas include all categories of apparel, footwear, accessories, textiles, and home goods.
Live Webinar Series
Our webinar series, started in 2020, is hosted by Beth Sobol, founder and CEO of the GFBA and has featured top fashion business experts from around the world representing respected organizations such as Hilldun Corporation, American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA), Columbus Consulting, PM Business Advisors, Prager Metis CPAs, Pilnick & Associates, Reed Smith LLC., The Barbarian Agency, Hawke Media, DressX, PlatformE and fashion roboticist Anouk Wipprecht among others.
Meet the Fashionistas: A Conversation With...
The Global Fashion Business Alliance (GFBA) has an on-going LIVE webinar series every two weeks, on Wednesdays at 11:00 am ET. We showcase impressive, interesting and inspiring fashion experts as they share their stories and experiences on the front line. These guest speakers include: the visionaries, the doers, the disruptors, from all facets of the fashion landscape (apparel, footwear, accessories, textiles, etc.) from the US and around the world as well as the ancillary industries that support them in technology, sustainability, logistics, public relations, marketing, etc.
Current Partners
Industry Updates
GFBA Founder
Beth Sobol
Beth Sobol, founder and CEO of the GFBA is a premier fashion business expert and consultant with a focus on launching the careers of International emerging designers into the American market. Sobol is the founder of the original Miami Fashion Week, one of the top fashion weeks in the world, and developed the platform that gave thousands of international designers their initial launch into the American market. In 2015 she sold the brand to European investors and now focuses on mentoring and developing business management programming for designers, brands and entrepreneurs in the fashion and retail markets.
Meet the Fashionistas: A Conversation With Jane Heflin
Wednesday, May 26, 2021 @ 2 pm ET, 1 pm CT, 11 am PT
Jane Heflin, International Bridal Consultant based out of Chicago. With 20+ years of specialized experience, it's sure to gleam some interesting insights.
About Jane Heflin
Jane Heflin is a veteran in the bridal industry. Her work spans from designing her own children's wear line for Neiman Marcus and Bridal for Jasmine Enterprises, to product management, material procurement, marketing, sales, and multi-unit bridal retail management. In recent years, Jane has focused on B-to-B bridal trade shows. During her tenure as Director of The Knot Couture Show in New York City, and now as the Director of the National Bridal Market Chicago, Ms. Heflin helped grow both of these shows to be the bridal industry's leading trade shows in the North American market. Jane searches for domestic designers and regularly travels abroad in search of the best in cutting edge creativity to attend the show.