Jaana Quaintance-James has confirmed she will leave her role as CEO of Australian Fashion Council after 18 months in the role.
In a post to LinkedIn, Quaintance-James said she is proud of the impact the team has made during her tenure. This includes taking on Australian Fashion Week after IMG dropped the events program, launching a National Manufacturing Strategy alongside R.M.Williams that involved 14 workshops nationwide, and being part of the launch of a New South Wales fashion strategy.
“My greatest joy from this time has been being in the trenches with my people working out how to best deliver systems change not just in an organisation, but across an entire industry,” she shared.
“To the team, members, partners, and industry voices I’ve had the privilege of working alongside — thank you, your passion and our collaborative relationships has made this work deeply meaningful.
“Looking ahead, I continue to have huge capacity for driving positive impact at scale and will be actively engaging with the industry as I explore new opportunities — if you're up for a coffee, lets connect.”
Alongside the above-mentioned projects, she also shared other key wins in her post, including member engagement growth through in-person events nationally, including 20 webinars in 18 months.
She also spotlighted a successful offshore trade activation in Hong Kong, including an event at the Consul General’s residence, and "rebuilding every aspect of the AFC’s Registered Training Organisation in Victoria amid challenging economic conditions.
Quaintance-James took over the CEO role at the AFC from Leila Naja. Prior to her role at the AFC, Quaintance-James was the managing director of Impact Advisory, the chief sustainability and sourcing officer of Global Fashion Group (the company that owns and manages The Iconic) and was head of sustainability and ethical sourcing at The Iconic.
She also held an ethical sourcing manager role at David Jones.