Clara graduated in Slavic Philology and attended several courses in Trade and Purchasing Management. She started working with textiles in 1997. For several years she developed business with Russia and the former Republics, establishing industrial partnerships and commercial network for cotton commodities' trading. In 2004 Clara joined IKEA Trading where as the Material Area Manager for fabrics. She also carried out a mapping of the cotton textile industry in the most relevant sourcing countries. In 2005 she moved to IKEA of Sweden as Raw Material Strategist. In this position she has incorporated the raw material perspective in the business and developed different aspects of the textile agenda with special focus on technical, environmental and economic aspects of cotton - from field to end product. Clara has extensive experience with cotton textiles and a comprehensive understanding of the cotton industry.