The Baltic fashion sector is mainly composed of SMEs, with large share of females not only in services & administration but also production (80% in new member states). Despite dramatic changes within the last decade resulting in a loss of a third of its volume and jobs textile, clothing and leather industries still highly contribute to employment esp in the E-BSR, where the sector counts for approx. 6% of the workforce.But as evidenced by a comprehensive analysis of the sector by DG Employment, Social Affairs & Equal Opportunities (May 09) there is potential to counter this trend by focusing on INNOVATION, to facilitate a shift from non-European mass-production towards new forms of regional production, and TRANSNATIONAL COOPERATION, to turn differences among BSR countries into business advantages.There is currently, however, no structure in the BSR offering the targeted, transnational support necessary for fashion SMEs to turn their innovative ideas into economic success. The Baltic Fashion project is intended to fill this gap. It links into the EU BSR strategy priority 8, which calls for actions to strengthen SMEs, especially in the creative sector, and to promote female entrepreneurship. The city of Gdynia is a partner in the project and organizer of the Gdynia Design Days (“cooperative action” under priority 8). In addition to its contribution to (female & non-metropole) employment, the project will also contribute to bridging the East-West divide.Bringing together a strong consortium of partners including regional authorities and business support agencies, fashion associations and educational facilities from all BSR countries, Baltic Fashion aims to create a self-standing BSR wide network with the following goals:a) Strengthen the international performance of the BSR fashion sector and its support structures through development of an information platform, cooperation meetings, and joint analyses (statistical data, good support practices, sectoral activities and potential for cooperation) leading to common sets of actions.b) Promote and transfer knowledge on innovations in the sector (new production methods and technologies, trends, materials), especially to E-BSR countries and with a focus on sustainable development.c) Further develop and realize existing business support activities and facilities (e.g. business training programmes, business clinics), create new spaces for industry cooperation and internationalization (e.g. business cooperation events), and facilitate the shift of fashion production back to the BSR.While the project will mainly work through support structures, it is expected to reach out to hundreds of SMEs during its lifetime.Baltic Fashion will not only make a positive contribution to the economic development of the region, but also to its overall sustainability: it will promote eco-friendly production & materials as well as regional production, contribute to women entrepreneurship and strengthen cultural identity. Achievements: The Baltic Fashion Network collected, assessed and provided information on the Baltic Fashion industry with the aim to support micro, small and medium enterprises operating in the sector. The main operational tool of the Baltic Fashion project and the resulting Baltic Fashion Network is the web-based information portal www.baltic-fashion.eu, the first comprehensive web-based information portal on Baltic Fashion. Baltic Fashion partners assessed the main challenges as well as the existing support offers for fashion business in each country and investigated possibilities for further support. These assessments resulted in National Actions Plans as well as a BSR Action plan, which were discussed among partners and support organizations in Riga in May 2013. However, Baltic Fashion did not only collect information and promote knowledge exchange and transfer, it itself tested new forms of support activities to address the needs expressed by SMEs in the sector. Two examples of these support measures are “Coppice”, a quality label that support fashion graduates to market their collection and the “Fashion business clinic” setting up a environment for collaboration among fashion entrepreneurs. Furthermore, business cooperation events in Vilnius, Riga, Gdynia and Rostock were held, bringing together fashion companies from all along the Baltic fashion production chain. In the course of the project, fashion innovations and their applications were analysed and disseminated to SMEs as well as other support institutions/trainers. They focused on the topics of sustainability, new niches as well as materials and technologies. The innovative approaches identified were compiled in the Fashion Innovation Digest, which was launched in the framework of the Riga Innovation Event in May 2013. The publication is targeted towards fashion designers to serve as a source of inspiration and to motivate them to take up innovate elements/methods in their work. Also, to respond to most urgent needs of BSR fashion companies, Baltic Fashion collected good practice examples of business-trainings as well as developed and tested new ones, e.g. the “Barbie training” for start-ups. The Baltic Fashion Findings sum up the main results of the project. They provide an overview on the state of the fashion industry with regard to support offers in each country and present a selection of the most successful support programmes, business trainings as well as innovative approaches that have been assessed, developed and/or carried through. Furthermore, this document recommends actions to stimulate the fashion sector at national level as well as across the BSR. The Baltic Fashion project partners form a network in order to maintain cooperation as well as exchange of information and experience.