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Rupa is the Managing Director of ‘Clothing Connect B.V.’, a specialist textiles and apparel sector service provider for public and private sector clients. She has a special interest in working with, and empowering women entrepreneurs and managers globally and is the Founder and President of ‘SPINNA–The Women’s International Textile Alliance’. Rupa has over 15 years of global experience across various segments and aspects of the textiles and clothing value chain. She has not only provided consulting and advisory services to several government forums, private companies and fashion houses, but has successfully turned several small and medium enterprises in the garment sector into profit making units. Rupa’s experience in the textiles and fashion industry started with her own venture sourcing, designing and selling affordable fashion to college students while still at university in Mumbai, India. She has worked in the fashion industry in Manhattan, worked with several projects in Asia, Africa, South America and Eastern Europe. She interned at the WTO and was part of the process which saw the finalisation of the second major review on the Multilaterial Agreement on Textiles and Clothing (ATC). She was instrumental in setting up the first ever benchmarking software tool for clothing manufacturers globally and worked with the International Trade Centre (ITC) to roll out the programme across South Asia, South East Asia and South America. In 2007, the organization, Geneva Women in Trade (GWIT) selected Rupa to represent ‘The Woman in her 20s’, for the panel discussion between women of varied nationalities & age groups, to contribute and participate in ‘The Success Dialogue: Perceptions & Perspectives’.