FashCon Philly is back, and the 2026 edition is shaping up to be the most ambitious yet. Philadelphia’s premier Business of Fashion Conference returns on April 8, 2026, at Moore College of Art & Design, produced by the Philadelphia Fashion Incubator (PFI) and sponsored by QVC. Building on a sold-out debut in 2025, this second annual conference brings together fashion and beauty entrepreneurs, founders, industry leaders, students, and creatives for a full day of panels, keynotes, networking, and real-world insight at the intersection of fashion, business, and innovation.
For anyone building a fashion or beauty brand in Philadelphia — or anywhere in the region — FashCon Philly represents one of the most direct pathways to knowledge, connection, and opportunity in the industry. The conference is designed not as a fashion show but as a working day, built to equip founders with the tools, perspectives, and relationships needed to turn creative vision into a viable business.
FashCon Philly 2026 Keynote Speakers
The morning opens with a keynote from Ruthie Davis, one of the most recognized names in independent luxury footwear design. Davis built her brand from the ground up — a global luxury label known for bold, sculptural heels worn by celebrities and carried in top retailers worldwide. Her FashCon Philly 2026 presentation focuses on micro-entrepreneurship in fashion, drawing on her own journey to show how creative founders can build businesses that are both profitable and sustainable without losing their artistic identity. It is a rare kind of keynote — specific, hard-earned, and rooted in the reality of building something from scratch.
The afternoon closes with an equally compelling fireside chat. Jewelry entrepreneur Jane Winchester Paradis, founder of Jane Win — the brand behind the widely popular intention coin jewelry — joins QVC beauty and fashion icon Mally Roncal for a conversation moderated by FOX29 personality and host Jenn Fred.
Roncal, best known as the host of QVC’s “Over 50 & Fabulous” and as a celebrity makeup artist with a client list spanning some of the biggest names in entertainment, brings a perspective that bridges creative artistry and mass-market brand building. Winchester Paradis offers the view from the founder’s chair — what it takes to build a brand that connects emotionally with consumers and scales through retail partnerships. Together, they offer a rare dual lens on entrepreneurship and resilience.
QVC Takes Center Stage at FashCon Philly 2026
QVC returns as the lead sponsor of FashCon Philly 2026 and is showing up with more than just its name on the program. QVC Host Terri Conn will serve as the conference emcee, bringing her signature energy and professionalism to a full day of programming. Joining the lineup are Rachel Ungaro, GMM VP of Fashion at QVC & HSN; Abigail Bizarro, Director of Social Platforms and TikTok Lead at QVC; and Lisa Kunz, Director of Creative Design & Development. Their participation means attendees get direct access to the people making real decisions at one of the country’s most powerful retail platforms — conversations about how emerging brands can get noticed, get placement, and scale through multi-platform commerce.
QVC’s presence also signals something broader about where the conference is headed. For independent fashion and beauty founders, landing a partnership with a platform like QVC can be genuinely transformative. Having that access built directly into the FashCon Philly programming — not as an aspirational panel but as a hands-on conversation with actual decision-makers — is one of the things that makes this conference worth the trip to Moore College.
FashCon Philly 2026 Panel Sessions and Programming
Beyond the keynotes, FashCon Philly 2026 packs the day with panel sessions covering the topics most pressing to today’s fashion and beauty founders. Artificial intelligence gets its own dedicated session — AI for Fashion and Beauty Founders: Tools That Save Time, Money & Mistakes — led by AI strategist Barney Stacher. As AI tools become increasingly embedded in design, production, marketing, and operations, this session gives founders a practical framework for what to actually use and how to use it effectively without getting lost in the hype.
Other sessions explore the full arc of building a fashion business, from the founder’s origin story to the mechanics of selling in today’s fragmented retail landscape. How Emerging Brands Sell Today examines the multi-channel world that modern founders must navigate — from direct-to-consumer and social commerce to wholesale and platform selling. Creating Content that Converts on TikTok digs into one of the most important and least predictable channels for reaching new audiences right now. And The Business Toolkit: The Insider Blueprint for Fashion and Beauty Entrepreneurs is a practical, no-fluff session on the operational and financial fundamentals that often go unaddressed in creative entrepreneur education.
The speaker roster runs deep. Dana Donofree of AnaOno, Emily Soloby of Juno Jones, fashion consultant and author Mary Gehlhar, Philadelphia Department of Commerce’s Sophie Heng, Vetted Magazine founder Jamie Lewin, PFI alumna and MinkeeBlue founder Sherrill Mosee, fashion lawyer Antonella Colella, and Philadelphia Inquirer fashion critic Elizabeth Wellington are all on the program. It is a lineup that takes the full scope of what it means to build and sustain a fashion brand seriously — not just the creative side, but the legal, editorial, commercial, and civic dimensions as well.
Who Attends FashCon Philly
FashCon Philly draws a cross-section of the fashion and creative community that you rarely find in the same room. Designers and founders sit alongside investors, retailers, fashion students, and service providers. That mix is intentional — PFI Executive Director Elissa Bloom has built the conference around the idea that Philadelphia’s fashion ecosystem grows stronger when its parts are in conversation with each other. The Resource Center running throughout the day puts industry organizations, business experts, and service providers within direct reach of attendees, and networking is woven into the structure of the day, closing with a reception that gives everyone a relaxed context to continue conversations started in the sessions.
The conference expects over 200 attendees — a significant number for a city-based industry event — and that turnout reflects how seriously Philadelphia’s fashion community is taking its own development. This is not a passive audience coming to observe. These are founders and creatives who are actively building, and they come to FashCon Philly looking for the real-world insights and connections that actually move the needle.
How to Get Tickets to FashCon Philly 2026
FashCon Philly 2026 takes place on Tuesday, April 8, 2026, at Moore College of Art & Design in Philadelphia. Tickets and full event details are available at fashconphilly.com. The event is produced by the Philadelphia Fashion Incubator, with additional support from the Philadelphia Department of Commerce and Philadelphia Magazine. If you are building a fashion or beauty brand in Philadelphia, or simply want to understand where the industry is headed, FashCon Philly is the room to be in this spring. And while you’re planning your Philadelphia fashion calendar, check out our coverage of Tira Cooks at Philly Fashion Week for more on the city’s growing fashion moment.
About Post Author
Discover more from dosage MAGAZINE
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.