THE BRITISH FASHION COUNCIL
The British Fashion Council is a not-for-profit organisation that aims to further the interests of the British fashion industry and its designer businesses. Based in London and formed in 1983, the British Fashion Council is funded by industry patrons, commercial sponsors and the government including the Mayor of London and the European Regional Development Fund. The British Fashion Council promotes leading British fashion designers to an intensely competitive global market. It is the central co-ordinating body for London Fashion Week, organiser of the British Fashion Awards and has developed several support schemes for emerging design talent in London.
British Fashion Council Year in Review 2015 - 2016British Fashion Council
Highlights of the British Fashion Council's Instragram Feed (2015)Original Source: British Fashion Council
THE BRITISH FASHION COUNCIL'S MISSION
The British Fashion Council looks to lead the industry through creative influence and is strategically repositioning British fashion in the global fashion economy. The BFC has five strategic pillars; business, reputation, education, digital and investment.
Business: The British Fashion Council, with the aide of its partners and patrons, looks to support British fashion designers throughout their careers.
Reputation: Charged with promoting the British fashion industry internationally, the British Fashion Council stages a series of key trade events throughout the year.
Education: By working alongside Britain's fashion colleges and universities the British Fashion Council looks to attract young people into the industry.
Digital: The British Fashion Council looks to promote learning and innovation in the fast changing digital space of 'Fashtech' to the benefit of all involved in the British fashion industry.
Investment: The British Fashion Council aims to contribute to developing a fashion eco-system to support growth and entrepreneurship in the long-term through investment.
BUSINESS SUPPORT
The British Fashion Council recognises designers face substantial challenges throughout their careers. Therefore, the British Fashion Council, with the help of its partners and patrons, offers substantial support to British fashion designers in the form of financial aide, mentoring and promotional opportunities (shows, catwalk & exhibition space), as well as access to influential press and buyers from around the world. Thanks to the success of these initiatives
the British Fashion Council has established a reputation for effectively promoting and nurturing emerging design talent.
NEWGEN
In 1993 the British Fashion Council created NEWGEN, its initiative to support emerging and start-up fashion brands. NEWGEN has grown to become one of the world’s most internationally recognised talent identification schemes.
Globally recognised as a prestigious showcase of the best up-and-coming British fashion talent, recipients are selected by a panel of media and buying experts chaired by Sarah Mower MBE, the British Fashion Council's Ambassador for Emerging Talent.
NEWGEN offers catwalk designers financial support towards their show costs and the opportunity to use the British Fashion Council's Catwalk Show Space, Presentation Space or exhibition offering designers the chance to meet influential press and buyers from around the world.
Since NEWGEN’s inception, its roll call of designers has included Alexander McQueen, Antonio Berardi, Boudicca, Julien Macdonald, Lara Bohinc, Matthew Williamson and more recently Christopher Kane, Erdem, Marios Schwab, Mary Katrantzou, Marques’Almeida and Simone Rocha.
NEWGEN Winners in 2010 (2010)Original Source: British Fashion Council.
PAST NEWGEN RECIPIENTS: 1993-2016
Abe Hamilton
Adam Entwisle
Adele lCarke
Agi & Sam
Alan Gallacher
Alex Gore-Brown
Alex Mullins
Alexander McQueen
Alice Lee
Alistair Carr
Ann Sofie Back
Anna Vince
Anne Brennan
Ann-Louise Roswald
Anthem
Anthony Symonds
Antonio Beradi
Arkadius
Artifice and Guile
Ashish
Ashley Williams
Astrid Andersen
Atalanta Weller
Avsh alom Gur
Basso & Brooke
Bi La Li
Blaak
Bobby Abley
Bora Aksu
Borba Margo
Boudicca
Buba
Bunney
c.neeon
Camilla Staerk
Carolyn Masey
Cassandra Postema
Cathryn Avison
Chau Har Lee
Cho Cho
Christopher Kane
Christopher Raeburn
Christopher Shannon
Cinnamon Aitch
Clare Tough
Claire Barrow
Clements Ribeiro
CMMN SWDN
Code Two Ltd
Commun
Cooperative Designs
Copperwheat Blundell
Cottweiler
Craig Green
Craig Lawrence
Customers Own Property
Dai Rees
Damaris
Danielle Romeril
Danielle Scutt
David David
David Koma
David Wyatt
Deborah Milner
Delphine Wilson
Diego Vanassibara
Dominic Jones
Dr Noki’s - NHS
Duro Olowu
Earley Palmiero
Ebru Ercon
Elvis Jesus & Co Couture
Emilio de la Morena
Emily Jo Gibbs
Emma Cook
Erdem
Erika Trotzig
Fabio Piras
Fake London
Fannie Schiavoni
Faustine Steinmetz
Felder Felder
Felicity Brown
Fred Butler
Future Classics
Gardem
Gareth Pugh
Geeta Patel
Gharani Strok
Ghulam Sakina
GILES
Ginta
Godfrey
Grab & Mac Grade
Guvinda
Hall Ohara
Hamish Morrow
Hannah Marshall
Heikki Salonen
Hikaru Noguchi
Holly Fulton
House of Holland
House of Jazz
Huishan Zhang
Husam El Odeh
Idol
James Small
J Maskrey
J. JS Lee
J.W.Anderson
James Long
Janice Taylor
Jason Ansell
Jemima Rogers
Jennifer Lang
Jens Laugesen
Jensens
Jensens
Jensens Dainties
Jeremy & Biba
Jo Gordon
Johnny Rocket
Jojo & Malou
Johnathon Saunders
Jordan Askill
Julian And Sophie
Julian Roberts
Julien Macdonald
Justin Oh
Justin Smith
Katazyna Szczotarska
Katie Eary
Kim Jones
Kirt Holmes
Kit Neale
KTZ
Kristian Aadenevik
Krystof Strozyna
La Petite Salope
Lainey Keogh
Lara Boeing 747
Lars Sture
Lee Roach
Lewis Sterling
Liam Fahy
Liam Hodges
Lisa Johnson
Lizzy Disney
Lo & Cabon
Lou Dalton
Louis de Gama
Louise Goldin
Louise Gray
LP.BG
Lucas Nascimento
Maarten van der Horst
Maria Chen
Maria Francesca Pepe
Marios Schwab
Marjan Pejoski
Mark Fast
Marta Jakubowski
Martin Kidman
Martine Rose
Mary Katrantzou
Marques’Almedia
Matthew Miller
Matthew Williamson
Mawi
Meadham Kirchhoff
Michael Lewis
Michael van der Ham
Michelle Lowe-Holder
Mikai Fukai
Misa Hirada
Modernist
Molly Goddard
Mootich
Mulligan
Nasir Mazhar
Natascha Stolle
New Power Studio
Nicholas Gligic
Nicholas Kirkwood
Ni-Co
Nothing Nothing
Olivia Morris
Omar Kashours
Osman Yousefzada
Owen Gaster
Palmer//Harding
Palmiero
Paul Frith
Paul Saville
Pauric Sweeney
Pearce Fionda
Peter Jensen
Peter Pilotto
Pieter
Poltock & Walsh
PPQ
Pieter
Poltock & Walsh
Rafael Lopez
Richard Nicoll
Robert Cary-Williams
Rohan Clarke
Roksanda
Rubecksen Yamanaka
Russell Sage
Ryan Lo
Sadie Williams
Sally Turner
Saltwater
Sam de Teran
Sandra Backlund
Sara Berman
Scott Wilson
Selina Blow
Seraph
Shami Senthi
Sharon Ting
Shaun Leane
Saun Samson
SIBLING
Simeon Farrar
Simone Rocha
Simone Shailes
Sinha-Stanic
Sister by Sibling
Sonnentag Mulligan
Sophia Kokosalaki
Sophia Webster
Sophie William
Stephen Fuller
Swash
Sykes
Tata Naka
The New Renaissance
Thomas Tait
Tim Soar Women
TN-29
Toby Clark
Todd Lynn
Tristan Webber
Uniform
Vanda Leitao
Vevers
Vindur
Vinti Andrews
Warren Noronha
William Richard Green
Xavier Foley
Yang Du
Zoë Knight
1205
3F
Sarah Mower, the British Fashion Council's Ambassador for Emerging Talent, talks about the importance of young talent to the standing of London in global fashion and how the NEWGEN scheme supports this talent.
JW Anderson Spring / Summer 2016 Menswear Finale by Jonathan AndersonOriginal Source: British Fashion Council.
NEWGEN MEN
In August 2009, the British Fashion Council launched NEWGEN MEN offering emerging menswear designers in the UK the same opportunities as womenswear designers to showcase their collections and receive business mentoring and support.
With NEWGEN MEN the BFC is able to promote the breadth of British menswear talent internationally. Designers are selected by a menswear committee of leading editors and buyers.
NEWGEN MEN has supported designers including Agi & Sam, Alex Mullins, Astrid Andersen, Christopher Shannon, Common, Craig Green, Diego Vanassibara, James Long, J.W. Anderson, Kit Neale, Lee Roach, Matthew Miller, Nasir Mazhar and Sibling.
Previous Recipients of the Vogue Fashion Designer Fund (2015)Original Source: British Fashion Council
BUSINESS SUPPORT FOR MORE ESTABLISHED DESIGNERS
BFC/GQ Designer Menswear Fund
The British Fashion Council launched the BFC/GQ Designer Menswear Fund in 2013 to extend further support for developing British menswear businesses.
The BFC/GQ Fund provides one designer with a bespoke, high-level mentoring support programme over a twelve-month period, as well as a £150,000 grant to provide necessary infrastructure to take them to the next stage of their business.
BFC Fashion Trust
The Fashion Trust was founded in February 2011 by the British Fashion Council and offers selected designers business support through mentoring and financial awards to promote the art and business of fashion.
Since its inception, the Fashion Trust has awarded grants and mentoring support to designers including Christopher Kane, Jonathan Saunders, Marios Schwab, Mary Katrantzou, Nicholas Kirkwood, Osman, Peter Pilotto, Richard Nicoll, Roksanda Ilincic and Todd Lynn. The grants have provided invaluable support to growing each business.
BFC/Vogue Designer Fashion Fund
The BFC/Vogue Designer Fashion Fund (The Fund) charity offers a significant financial award that enables a designer to considerably increase their profile as a creative British business.
The Fund helps to develop the infrastructure of the designer’s business to generate employment and with the assistance of high level mentoring, make the transition from a developing creative business to a global fashion brand.
HEADONISM
Headonism is a British Fashion Council initiative curated by Stephen Jones, celebrating the new wave of emerging British milliners. It showcases emerging British milliners within an installation at London Fashion Week
The initiative was launched during the BFC’s 25 year celebrations by Mayor of London Boris Johnson. All designers receive mentoring and business support from Stephen Jones OBE and knowledge sharing from Piers Atkinson and Noel Stewart.
ROCK VAULT
Rock Vault is a jewellery initiative to support, showcase and promote Britain’s most innovative, fine jewellery talent. Curated by Stephen Webster, this unique showcasing initiative has been developed by the BFC to nurture the creative fine jewellery talent based in London. It gives these designers the opportunity to further develop their businesses, as well as exposure amongst both UK and international media and retailers.
Selected designers receive business support mentoring and are awarded a space within the dedicated Rock Vault area at the Designer Showrooms during London Fashion Week.
LONDON SHOW ROOMS
LONDON show ROOMS provides a unique opportunity for British designers to be collectively promoted in international markets. These pop-up showrooms are a strategic element of the British Fashion Council’s designer support pathway.
The showroom is a space for designers to sell their collections to a trade audience with the support of international marketing, media and sales advisers.
Each season LONDON show ROOMS takes emerging designers to Paris giving them the opportunity to promote themselves overseas. It also takes designers to international key markets including LA, New York, Brazil and Hong Kong.
REPUTATION
Ever since 1984 and the first London Fashion Week the British Fashion Council has hosted events aimed at promoting British fashion's reputation globally. The scale and the ambition of the events organised by the British Fashion Council has grown. Not only does the British Fashion Council host London Fashion Week it also organises the parallel menswear event London Fashion Week Mens. Furthermore, the British Fashion Council works to highlight a range of issues such as sustainability, diversity and the wellbeing of models; as well as representing the British fashion industry in the wider UK creative sector.
London Fashion Week September 2016 (2016) by British Fashion CouncilBritish Fashion Council
LONDON FASHION WEEK
London Fashion Week takes place twice a year in February and September showcasing over 250 designers to a global audience of influential media and retailers. It is estimated that orders of over £100m are placed during LFW each season.
For the Spring / Summer 2017 edition of London Fashion Week there were over 350,000 mentions of ‘London Fashion Week’ and #LFW on Twitter; 121,000 images added to Instagram that included #LFW; over 90% of the shows were live streamed to YouTube and watched in 197 countries.
London Fashion Week Little Black Book (2013) by Music Design and Manolo BlahnikOriginal Source: British Fashion Council
The London Fashion Week 'Little Black Book' Guide with cover illustration by the London based shoe designer Manolo Blahnik.
London Collections Men Round-up Highlights Spring/Summer 2016 (2016) by British Fashion CouncilBritish Fashion Council
LONDON FASHION WEEK MEN'S
In the summer of 2012, the BFC introduced London Fashion Week Men's, a dedicated showcase of British menswear talent. Taking place every January and June, London Fashion Week Men's has grown by 67% since it was first founded. The last London Fashion Week Men's schedule comprised of 32 catwalk shows, 37 presentations and over 70 designers in the Designer Showrooms.
Designers as diverse as the Savile Row stalwarts Gieves & Hawkes and Hardy Amies; the homegrown British designers John Smedley and J.W. Anderson; and, of course, global brands like Tom Ford and Burberry have all shown at London Fashion Week Mens.
Ashish, Autumn / Winter 2016 (2016) by Ashish GuptaOriginal Source: British Fashion Council
SUPPORTING MODELS
The British Fashion Council brings together a working party comprising the AMA, model agency representatives, Equity, and the Mayor of London’s office to develop an on-going Model Programme. The panel looks at opportunities
to help set industry standards.
The British Fashion Council runs The Model Zone during London Fashion Week and London Fashion Week Mens to act as an information point for models and a dedicated private space to relax with healthy food. The British Fashion Council requires that designers supply food and drinks backstage and that all models walking at London Fashion Week are at least 16 years of age.
Britain Creates: The Exhibition (2012) by VariousBritish Fashion Council
THE WIDER ARTS SECTOR
The Fashion Arts Foundation aims to nurture collaborations and foster relationships between fashion, film, music and art talent. Through this strategy the BFC aims to highlight London's position as a leading creative capital and reaffirm the UK fashion industry's reputation for innovation.
In 2012, the BFC created the 'Britain Creates' project which was designed to strengthen the longstanding relationships between fashion designers and visuals arts. Nine unique art works were created to celebrate the London 2012 Festival.
EDUCATION
British fashion's reputation for innovation and creativity is in large part thanks to its world class educational institutions. The British Fashion Council through its Education Strategy aims to set the foundations for attracting the best talent to the industry and to give a clear understanding of how to study and train for key roles. This work is carried out in tandem with the colleges and universities that make up the British Fashion Council's Colleges Council.
THE BRITISH FASHION COUNCIL EDUCATION FOUNDATION
The BFC Education Foundation is a charitable trust that looks to help young people enter into the UK fashion industry for the first time by sponsoring students, apprentices, graduates and interns.
Together with the Colleges Council, the Educational Foundation organises events, bursaries, scholarships, competitions and internships throughout the industry.
DIGITAL
The British Fashion Council has been a leading champion of digital technology in the British fashion industry. This adoption of 'Fashtech' is a leading area of competitive advantage for the British fashion industry. The British Fashion Council has not only been an early adopter of social media and live streaming to promote London Fashion Week, it has also encouraged its members to learn more about digital retailing and ecommerce through partnerships with leading technology firms.
Natalie Massenet at London Fashion Week Autumn / Winter 2016 (2016) by Natalie Massent, Chairman British Fashion CouncilBritish Fashion Council
Dame Natalie Massenet, the Chairman of the British Fashion Council, talks about the importance of 'Fashtech' and the way in which British fashion designers are driving innovation in this space.
INVESTMENT
In 2014, the British Fashion Council set out the goal to generate investment for British fashion businesses and prepare businesses for investment.
As part of the launch, a short guide to investment for designers was launched online: designerfactfile.com/investment . The British Fashion Council continues to build the guide to offer further insight and information for all designers to access.
The British Fashion Council looks to contribute to developing a fashion eco-system to support growth and entrepreneurship in the long-term.
British Fashion Council Fashion Forum (2015) by British Fashion CouncilBritish Fashion Council
FASHION FORUM
The Fashion Forum is an all day event that includes seminars, fire-side chats, brainstorming and networking sessions for an intimate group. The Fashion Forum is a think tank to openly debate and discuss the important issues of the sector; engage the investment, finance and broader fashion communities; to showcase businesses with high potential for growth and to generate investment opportunities.
Founded by Natalie Massenet MBE, Caroline Rush CBE and Jonathan Goodwin, the Fashion Forum is the first of its kind in the UK, bringing together all aspects of the fashion, tech and investment industries – creating a private and powerful network of global influences.
In June 2014, the inaugural Fashion Forum was hosted at Syon House, the London home of the Duke of Northumberland. The event began with a special welcome dinner at the Rosewood London on the evening of Monday 23rd June, hosted by Jonathan Goodwin and Natalie Massenet MBE.
The Forum welcomed over 180 guests from across the world including British and international designers and brands, investors, financiers, tech businesses, creative agencies, PRs, retailers, online businesses and luxury groups.
British Fashion Awards 2015 HighlightsBritish Fashion Council
THE FASHION AWARDS
Every year since 1984, when Katharine Hamnett won Designer of the Year, the BFC has organised The Fashion Awards. This award ceremony recognises the best British and global talent as voted for by the fashion industry. In 2016, The Fashion Awards will take place at the Royal Albert Hall and will be attended by over 3000 people - both VIPs and interested fashion fans.
Burberry Prorsum, Spring / Summer 2014 (2013) by Christopher BaileyOriginal Source: British Fashion Council
“London has always been a real hub of creativity but in recent years it has returned to prominence as a city that champions incredible talent, both emerging and established, across all aspects of design. Our capital is now a magnet for upcoming talent from across the world.” Christopher Bailey, MBE, Burberry.
This exhibit was created by the British Fashion Council. All rights belong to the British Fashion Council unless otherwise specifically stated. All models and photographers have been credited where known.
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