(L-R)Stephanie Phair, Chair, BFC, Oliver Dowden, Secretary of State for DCMS, Caroline Rush, CEO BFC. Pic: BFC
The British Fashion Council (BFC) recently hosted a Downing Street reception to celebrate Britain fashion and sustainability. The secretary of state for digital, culture, media and sport, Oliver Dowden; Stephanie Phair, chair; and Caroline Rush, CEO of BFC attended the event. BFC promotes British fashion and its influential role at home and abroad.
Guests included designers, publishers, retailers, and business leaders from the fashion industry, as well as international guests in London for fashion week. Following five days of over 115 runway shows, presentations and events from global fashion designers with an international audience from over 40 countries, the event focused on the fashion industry’s impact on the environment. The BFC shared its plans for the Institute of Positive Fashion and global initiatives map to support UK fashion designer businesses, while calling for an industry led step-change to address climate change, according to a press release by BFC.The British Fashion Council (BFC) recently hosted a Downing Street reception to celebrate Britain fashion and sustainability. The secretary of state for digital, culture, media and sport, Oliver Dowden; Stephanie Phair, chair; and Caroline Rush, CEO of BFC attended the event. BFC promotes British fashion and its influential role at home and abroad.#
“I couldn’t be more proud of the level of talent and creativity we have seen over the last few days, showcasing the best of British design. From championing emerging talent to raising millions for education through The Fashion Awards to helping business prepare for investment and of course showcasing our talent on a global stage. Throughout my career, I’ve seen first-hand the power of fashion to tell stories and define our culture. This gives an incredible influence to bring the consumer into the conversation as we address sustainability and build a movement for change. As a significant global industry worth £32bn to the UK economy, employing 1million people, we are globally connected and forward thinking. In this year where the UK is hosting COP 26, we are poised to play our part and reimagine our industry as a force for good,” Phair said.
“Climate change is the largest issue facing the planet today, we know that both collective and individual action is needed to meet the pace of change required. We have marked 2020 as a year for positive change. In a very British way, we are looking at a practical, action led agenda that can help inform businesses, connect with global initiatives and bring industry together to tackle big issues: We wanted to share three things we are doing to address this, mapping global initiatives – the baseline to avoid duplication and provide clarity around where new resources can focus. This map can be accessed by a QR code tonight above your phones in reception and on the BFC website. The initiatives currently on the IPF map are segmented by pillar environment, people, community, and craftsmanship, and by territory market. By the time the IPF launches later this year, there will be deeper data to align the initiatives to business verticals. The Institute of Positive Fashion will be launched this year, a platform where businesses can go to see what toolkits and information is available. Where toolkits exist, they will be sign-posted, where new are required we will work with experts to deliver them,” Rush said.
Fibre2Fashion News Desk (GK)