The ‘Pink Pound’ is estimated to be worth £6 billion per year in the UK but rampant commercialisation of the Pride flag has raised questions about when it is appropriate to fly the flag or when it is just plain appropriation.

Bev Malik our Retail and Buying Director at Bev’s Paris showroom with Selena Wu. Selena is Bev’s Mentee in Buying and Retail thanks to a pilot Fashion Roundtable mentoring scheme.

For London Tech Week, Black Neon Digital and Fashion Roundtable hosted a panel event on Human Connectivity, Ethics and Fashion, discussing the importance of empathy and authentic connection and communication whilst interactions transition from the physical to the digital space. The shift from IRL to URL is happening across all aspects of life; it has become increasingly difficult to go through a day without using technology. Responding to the challenges and opportunities created by the fourth industrial revolution, the government launched the UK Industrial Strategy in 2018. (Image via Black Neon Digital.)

“The business model behind fast fashion is broken, damaging the environment and exploiting those who make our clothes. Our report set out practical steps that the Government should take to help fix the fashion industry. I’m astounded that the Government has refused to adopt any of our 18 recommendations. It shows they are out of step with the public, who want clothes that are socially, ethically and environmentally sustainable, and an industry that is ready to change.” says Mary Creagh MP

It didn’t take long for May’s colleagues to declare their candidacy. The moment the No10 door closed behind her after her resignation speech, tweets were flying around congratulating May while at the same plotting their own leadership bid.  

"The 18 Recommendations of the Environmental Audit Committee's Fixing Fashion Report provided clear guidelines to a government that admitted to a climate emergency only last month. It is disappointing that despite this, the government has not taken up any of the recommendations as a benchmark for real change in their response." Image via parliament.uk.

As well as submitting evidence to the Environmental Audit Committee’s Sustainability of the Fashion Industry Inquiry, Fashion Roundtable attended all of the fashion related committee meetings that the EAC hosted across Parliament and at the V&A. Image via Tolly Dolly Posh.

After a series of debates, meetings, headlines and speeches monitoring Theresa May’s progress in deciding the fate of Europe and the UK, the Prime Minister announced her resignation as Party Leader after three years in office on the 24th of May.

April marked the first Extinction Rebellion occupation, with Rebels setting up camp in Oxford Circus, Marble Arch, Waterloo Bridge and around Parliament Square. What is interesting about the group and their demands is that they are predominantly policy facing rather than consumer-oriented, demanding truth and legislation from politicians, and the creation of a Citizens’ Assembly to deliberate on climate change proposals.

This season designers pulled it out the bag. They were on fire, showing their power and consistency of design as well as their place in the global market.

The television event of the summer begins tonight. At 9pm on ITV, millions of viewers will tune in to watch oiled, sleek singletons compete for one another’s affections. Ah, modern romance. Although tremendously popular, (last year’s season premier was watched by almost 3 million people), the show has attracted criticism on a variety of fronts. One issue in particular that has been highlighted is that of the unrealistic beauty standards portrayed in the show.

On Saturday 25th May, Fashion Roundtable hosted Democratising Fashion Sustainability, a morning at Mortimer House. The event looked to join the dots between what we wear and how we can be truly ethical. It intended to deconstruct why fashion is a global conversation, the threads of colonialism and workshop solutions and commitments to be more empowered in democratising our choices as consumers. Attendees enjoyed an intimate Q&A session with Clare followed by a series of workshops.

On 23rd of May, the Fashion Roundtable team descended on a floral wonderland in Elizabeth Street, Belgravia.  Every spring, when Chelsea Flower Show takes place, this area of London bursts into life. Intricate floral displays adorn the boutiques, turning the already photogenic neighbourhood into a fashionista’s paradise.

On 20th May, Fashion Roundtable were delighted to participate in the ‘Fashioning the Future’ panel discussion hosted by the Young Fabians Arts and Culture Network. Our CEO and founder, Tamara Cincik, spoke on the panel alongside prominent voices in the field. These included Mary Creagh MP, who chairs the Environmental Audit Committee, and conducted the Sustainability of the Fashion Industry Inquiry.  Edwina Ehrman, the curator of the Victoria and Albert Museum’s stunning Fashioned From Nature exhibition, was also speaking. The other speakers were Jenny Holloway, CEO of FashionCapital and Fashion Enter Ltd, and Vanita Badlani, founder of the vegan fashion house LaBante.  Mhairi Tordoff chaired the discussion, which explored the relationship between fashion and nature, and steps to take going forward in the industry.

The APPG for Textiles and Fashion will join policy leaders, retailers, and academics to discuss how to navigate the changing retail environment. The retail sector experienced a harsh 2018, marked by closures, fall in spending and a shift to the online shopping space. Government, media and organisations were quick to respond, with the Housing, Communities and Local Governments Committee launching and concluding an inquiry into the High Streets and Town Centres in 2030. 

Charles Eames once said, “innovate as a last resort.” As I sit amidst a swarm of fashion, beauty and tech window displays at Leonardo da Vinci-Fiumicino Airport in Rome waiting to board my flight to Delhi, Charles Eames’s famous quote seems redundant. I see hundreds of passersby stood by these windows either wishing they could afford a particular new item in store or contemplating their next buy based on advertisements that “pretends to perpetuate the illusion that something is new, innovative and exciting when it isn’t.” Focusing on “style rather than substance executed under instruction by others,” the impact this cyclical action has on our planet is not unknown.

If fashion is a global conversation, for many within this interconnected international community, its heart beats in Paris. Since the courts of the French kings, couturiers and ateliers have crafted the sublime into exquisite excess for Parisian style leaders such as Louis XIV and Marie Antoinette, whose milliner and dressmaker Rose Bertin continued to make items for the queen, including her mourning outfit when her husband Louis XVI was executed, even while she was imprisoned before her execution by guillotine in 1793.

True to Fashion Roundtable’s style, their first workshop on Fashion Politics and Empowerment was presented on the 7th floor of London’s fashionable Ace Hotel surrounded by spectacular vistas of the city. With a better understanding of what is going on in the political landscape and how that impacts our personal and professional lives, we left with tools to increase our agency and feel more empowered, via policy and via fashion. #FrontRowtoFrontBench is Fashion Roundtable’s rallying cry for the fashion industry to be heard seen and properly represented.  So get involved through following on social media, attending events and signing up for their regular newsletters. 

Speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live last week, the Tories vice-chairman James Cleverly revealed the government will not be reappointing the role of Disabilities Minister until the current Brexit impasse has been resolved. The previous Minister of State for Disabled People Sarah Newton resigned last month to vote against a no-deal withdrawal from the EU. But with no end point for Brexit on the horizon and a potential lengthy delay until we leave the EU, what impact will this have for the 13.9 million disabled people in the UK?