At the best of times motherhood is an all-encompassing rollercoaster of emotions – relentless, calm, joyful and exhausting – all rolled into one – and yet, it’s single-handedly the most wonderful thing I’ll ever do. Throw in a global pandemic though and things become harder to navigate.

Technology is hyped as the saviour of the pandemic, but its applications for the fashion industry do not come without risks for employees, says Camilla Rydzek

Fashion Roundtable has produced a research document to analyse the current situation related to the Shortage Occupation List (SOL) for the fashion sector in the new points-based immigration system, applying to EU and EEA workers coming in the UK starting 1 January 2020.

For luxury fashion, the key to growth will be the ability to access the Chinese market. Brands now need to pivot their strategies and start to authentically understand the Chinese consumer— as they’ve become less likely to come back to our territory in the wake of how we have dealt with the Covid-19 pandemic.

Luxury fashion label Gucci has declared the traditional fashion week calendar obsolete as it announced new plans to show “seasonless” collections twice a year. On the surface the move is a major victory for sustainable fashion campaigners. But beneath the surface, the announcement raises significant questions about how we can really build a “leaner, less wasteful fashion industry”, and what systems need to be in place to make that happen.

Styling From Home: Falling Back In Love With Your Wardrobe. Reuse, Recraft, Relove. Sustainable solutions for a lockdown style-up

We stand with Black communities, now and forever.

Whip out that sewing machine, and get crafting with this step-by-step guide!

Communities lie everywhere, now due to connecting remotely, this new way of working has brought more people to the table— from different timezones and different levels of society without elitism or snobbery. As we heard from the webinar panel, the fashion sector must continue in this trajectory where we no longer have to mask who we really are to get our foot in the door.

Representation and inclusivity are vital for our society to ensure human rights are available to everyone. In the most it is minority groups and those disadvantaged backgrounds who are unable to fully benefit and exercise their human rights. Universality is key, hence Fashion Roundtable focus on representation and inclusivity.

The Immigration and Social Security Co-ordination (Eu Withdrawal) Bill 2019-21 was introduced by the Home Secretary Priti Patel, in the House of Commons and it was given its First Reading on 4 March 2020. On the 18 May 2020, the Bill passed the Second Reading with 351 Ayes and 252 Noes. The Bill does not set out the future immigration system, which will apply to EU and non-EU citizens who move to the UK after the transition period. The future immigration system will be provided for in the Immigration Rules.

Under the government’s new policy of contact tracing, millions of people in the UK will soon be asked to monitor their movements to limit the spread of coronavirus. While this is clearly a vital step in controlling the pandemic, we should stop to assess the risks of tracking everything from where we have been to our social interactions. In a bid to decipher the key issues in this debate, we’ve asked Ivana Bartoletti, Technical Director of Privacy at Deloitte and author of the upcoming book An Artificial Revolution: On Power, Politics and AI, to share her expertise.

“From my experience in running an up-cycled children’s studio and regular mending workshops, I’ve seen micro-communities forming where people will pass on caring and mending tips. Mending has a set of values that anticipate the need to preserve and covet our belongings and knowledge – something that we have lost touch with, but now is the time to salvage these skills.”

The pandemic has given the industry an unprecedented window of time to slow down, offering a welcome respite from its break-neck speed of output. What is becoming clearer is that sustainability can’t continue to be treated as a voluntary initiative, a “nice to have”. Instead it needs to be an attitude which is reflective of acting in a responsible manner.

Kate Auguste presents key takeaways from last week's Fashion Roundtable X COVID-19 Webinar— all centred around the question, what does "The New Normal" look like for creativity?

Covid-19 hasn’t created a new existential crisis in fashion. But it has highlighted the one we were working through at our leisure. Now we have been forced to confront parts of the industry that weren’t working, weren’t efficient and weren’t creating value, at speed.

The COVID-19 crisis has seen us adopt the ‘make do and mend’ mentality our grandparents espoused in times of rationing— self-sufficiency is no longer a “woke” trend but a genuine need. When we finally find ourselves in a post-pandemic world, and are once again thinking about Brexit, it’s important to remember that the zero-waste approach must apply to people too— in all sectors.

Since the lockdown began over a month ago, the demand for loungewear has soared by 322%. As more and more of us grapple with working from home, comfort has become key. But, with many of the Autumn/Winter shows being cancelled, what does this mean for fashion going forward?

Suzi Delaney, Founder of Rplanet, presents key takeaways from the Fashion Roundtable X COVID-19 Weekly Webinar— all centred around the question, what does The New Normal look like?

For every environmentally and socially conscious Gen Z consumer, there is another shopping for fast-fashion on their phone. This need for cheap, fast-fashion is a direct result of the extreme pressures faced on social media to look good and to shop ‘new’ even in times of a pandemic. In order to change the way the next generation of consumers approach fast fashion, we must put ethics and sustainability above profit-making.