IFM: André Beirnaert takes the role of Interim President

By

Matthieu Guinebault

Published
Oct 5, 2017

After the loss of their Founder and President, Pierre Bergé, the Institut Français de la Mode (IFM) decided on October 4 to transfer the role for the interim to André Beirnaert who has been the institution’s Vice President since 1998. 

As a figure in the fashion and textile industry, André Beirnaert worked as a general manager for textile production and trading for the Chargeurs Group in Europe from 1990 to 1998 before taking up the role of President of TIU North (UIT Nord), the northern division for the Textile Industries Union. He is also known in the professional realm for having unified the European cluster collaboration programme, Up- Tex, and driving the project of the European Centre for Innovative Textiles (Centre Européen des Textiles Innovants, CETI) that was opened in Roubaix in 2012.

The IFM was founded in 1986, supported by the Ministry for Industry and under the aegis of Pierre Bergé who was the President of the institution until his death. The organisation is a member of the International Foundation of Fashion Technology Institutes (IFFTI) and of the Conférence de Grandes Ecoles (CGE). It welcomes 180 students and 2,000 professionals annually, and also produces a number of studies and reference dossiers for use in the sector.