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UK manufacturers have warned the fashion industry could face a “severe” shortage of skilled workers if a recommendation to restrict the migration of workers comes into force after Brexit.
Tamara Cincik, CEO and founder of Fashion Roundtable, said: “Our industry is growing, but without the talent from domicile residents, the sector has relied on EU and non-EU nationals. Not only does manufacturing education need to grow here in the UK, we also need to be maintained continued access to non-UK nationals, if we are not only to maintain but also grow our fashion manufacturing business.”
"The sector is anxious and worried," said Tamara Cincik, founder of Fashion Roundtable, a consulting firm interviewed by AFP. "Until Brexit is decided, it is difficult for companies to make the necessary adjustments because they do not know what the impact will be on their business.”
"The industry is anxious and worried and uncertainty is never good for the mood of anyone, let alone an industry based on freedom of movement," Tamara Cincik, founder and CEO of consultancy firm Fashion Roundtable, told AFP.
Stylist Tamara Cincik set up Fashion Roundtable to make sure the industry’s concerns were heard. ‘Fishing makes £1.4 billion for the UK economy, fashion almost £30 billion, but we only hear about cod,’ she says. ‘I know of two long-established London brands, one in accessories, one in women’s and menswear, moving to Portugal, and a large fash-tech business looking to relocate its logistics to Italy. With a hard Brexit or no deal, swathes of fashion firms expect to leave,’
A study by consultants Fashion Roundtable found 96 percent of business leaders in the British industry voted to stay in the EU. Their almost unanimous hostility to Brexit reflects a feeling across much of British cultural life, but also the fears of a sector strongly dependent on international trade.
"The industry is anxious and worried and uncertainty is never good for the mood of anyone, let alone an industry based on freedom of movement," Tamara Cincik, founder and CEO of consultancy firm Fashion Roundtable, told AFP.
"While many brands have moved logistics beyond the borders of the UK, many others are particularly concerned about the current political chaos and are waiting to understand what will happen before making strategic decisions on relocation” - explains Tamara Cincik, founder of Fashion Roundtable, secretariat of the parliamentary intergroup for fashion textiles. [Translated]
Tamara says “If it’s difficult to get to the country, if you can’t get the access to models, to talents, the clothes, I don’t think you’d be able to justify spending the money as a young designer to showcase in London.”
“I don’t think anyone’s prepared,” said Tamara Cincik, founder and chief executive of Fashion Roundtable. “I don’t think they’re prepared, and that worries me.”
“After two years of not knowing what the outcome might be, we still today are unsure of what might happen,” said Tamara Cincik, founder and CEO of Fashion Roundtable. “Combine this with the issues to bricks and mortar retail and you have a perfect storm.”
The capital of the United Kingdom wonders about the future of fashion. Stylists and experts in the sector speak about it. And above all, the numbers of the sector speak about it.
