Press Release: The Government Asks Fashion To Use Its "Star Power" To Renegotiate the Brexit Deal
Alice Temperley, Designer: “For the government to come back with this, they are hiding, they are cowards. The government likes to entertain us during fashion week when we are all invited to 10 Downing Street to meet the prime minister. But now the government isn’t here to help, there is no voice, there is no guidance and there is no clarity on the situation. No one is talking about the fashion industry.”
23rd February 2021
As London Fashion Week closes today, as you are no doubt aware, the fashion industry united in signing our open letter to the Government urgently requesting a ministerial meeting. The letter, signed by over 455 industry leaders including Dame Twiggy Lawson DBE, Models 1, John Smedley, Liberty, Nick Knight OBE, Sarah Mower MBE, Roksanda Ilincic, Walpole, ASBCI, AIR, Patrick Grant, Jefferson Hack and Dame Vivienne Westwood DBE, expressed our concern that fashion was facing 'decimation' as a result of punitive Brexit regulations, while offering solutions to support business survival in a challenging market.
On behalf of the Government, Rt Hon Oliver Dowden MP (Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media, and Sport) and Paul Scully MP (Minister for Small Business, Consumers & Labour Markets) have now responded, asking us to use our “star power” to negotiate with the EU, rather than committing to our request for a parliamentary roundtable with stakeholders. Our request for a meeting to find solutions to the issues, which are impacting on our industry already, has not yet been granted. We have replied by reiterating the importance of holding a roundtable meeting with the Government, as a matter of urgency.
We include their full letter in this link here and our response here.
Fashion Roundtable’s Open Letter and #dontmakefashionhistory campaign represents the almost 900,000 creatives and business owners; the UK fashion industry has over 59,000 SMEs, plus many more thousands of freelancers. These small to medium enterprises and growing freelancer numbers are the backbone of the thriving economy across the UK. But without the right support they are the most vulnerable, as they do not have the safety net of wide margins to buffer against negative financial impacts.
The fashion industry is the largest of the creative industries, making more than the automobile, film, music and pharmaceutical industries combined, contributing £35bn to UK GDP and employs almost 1 million people, which was growing 11% year on year, at 4 times the growth of other sectors. We note the Government’s £20m commitment to help the UK’s 6m SMEs with up to £2000 to support businesses; but this is not in line with the £23m to support the fishing industries 12,000 workforce (the same number of people as Debenhams employed for reference) with their EU exports. We are concerned by a clear prioritisation of one industry above another for reasons other than economic factors. The UK fashion industry is largely composed of freelancers and SMEs. These creative innovators could be at the forefront of a post Brexit, post pandemic UK; but without Government reaction and support now, they simply won’t survive to help the UK build back better.
Alice Temperley, Designer: “For the government to come back with this, they are hiding, they are cowards. The government likes to entertain us during fashion week when we are all invited to 10 Downing Street to meet the prime minister. But now the government isn’t here to help, there is no voice, there is no guidance and there is no clarity on the situation. No one is talking about the fashion industry.”
Katharine Hamnett CBE: “The government keeps fobbing us off. It is a catastrophe for Made In Britain and the British fashion industry. Made in Britain has a supreme market quality in Japan and across Asia while the Government renegotiates the terms of the Brexit deal with the EU, our largest trading partner. We have an amazing opportunity to build on that and the Government is not working with us to understand that, it is destroying it.”
Tamara Cincik, CEO Fashion Roundtable: “My ‘star power’ from the lockdown sofa, is somewhat limited compared to that of our elected government. If the Government would like to hire me as a fashion czar: a role which Biden is looking at for the US Government, I am all for it and would happily engage at that level, as it is clear that fashion needs an approach which maps across all of the Whitehall briefs as fashion sits across business, creative and innovation, with a clear sustainable agenda to mitigate against the climate crisis. However until then, surely it is best to work with us, so we can map out our solutions to support the Government and our stakeholders in this challenging time.”
Note to Editors
Background
Fashion Roundtable’s Open Letter, signed by over 455 signatories, was presented to the Government on Tuesday 2nd February. A follow-up letter was sent Tuesday 9th February and again on Tuesday 16th February. We received a reply from Oliver Dowden MP and Paul Scully MP on Thursday 18th February and we replied on Friday 19th February. All of our letters request that we can organise an urgent roundtable meeting with the relevant Ministers for the fashion industry in the coming days, to work together and create solutions which will help save our industry.
The Open Letter has received cross-party parliamentary support, with signatories including Baroness Lola Young of Hornsey, John McNally MP, Martyn Docherty-Hughes MP, Lord Cashman CBE, Lord Foster of Bath, Earl of Clancarty, Baroness Bonham-Carter and Lord Taylor of Warwick. The letter has also gained the support of industry leaders across manufacturing, retail, modelling, creative business, education, brands and journalism.
Signatories include Dame Vivienne Westwood DBE (Vivienne Westwood), Jenny Holloway (Fashion Enter), Paul Barnes (Association of International Retail), Kate Hills (Make It British), Jane Shepherdson CBE (MyWardrobe HQ), Caroline Issa (Tank), John Horner (Models 1), Carole White (Premier), Nick Knight OBE (SHOWstudio), Zowie Broach (RCA), ASBCI, Patrick Grant (E.Tautz and BBC’s Sewing Bee), Camilla Lowther OBE (CLM), Bethany Williams, Phoebe English, Professor Dilys Williams (Centre of Sustainable Fashion UAL), Helen Brocklebank (Walpole), Fashion Revolution, Laura Bailey (Model and British Vogue), Dame Twiggy Lawson DBE (model), Katharine Hamnett CBE (Katharine Hamnett), Sarah Mower MBE (Vogue Runway and British Fashion Council), Julian Vogel (Modus BPCM), Ruth Chapman OBE (Matchesfashion), Isabel Ettedgui (Connolly), Yasmin Le Bon (Model), Roksanda Ilincic (Roksanda), Juergen Teller (Photographer), Jess Mcguire-Dudley (John Smedley), Sarah Coonan (Liberty), Justin Thornton (Preen), Andrea Thompson (Marie Claire), Jane Bruton (Telegraph) and Jefferson Hack (Dazed Media Group).
The Open Letter can be found here: https://www.fashionroundtable.co.uk/openletter
About Fashion Roundtable
Fashion Roundtable is the only fashion organisation that sits between the fashion industry and policy leaders: Front Row to Front Bench
We are secretariat for the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Textiles and Fashion chaired by Dr Lisa Cameron MP, with members including Dame Eleanor Laing, Lord Taylor of Warwick, John McNally MP and Baron Vaizey of Didcot.
Fashion Roundtable are also the secretariat for the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Ethics and Sustainability in Fashion, co-chaired by Baroness Lola Young of Hornsey and Catherine West MP.
Tamara Cincik, Founder & CEO of Fashion Roundtable has over 20 years’ experience in the fashion industry and has also worked in parliament. Since launching Fashion Roundtable, Tamara has spoken publicly on fashion and politics with a range of high-profile business press including SKY TV, BBC, CGTN, Telegraph, Financial Times, Times, Guardian, New York Times, Liberation, Stern, Vogue Business and Business of Fashion.
For more information please contact:
Press Release: 14 Days Since Our Open Letter To The Government Calling For An Urgent Meeting About Brexit Impacts
Sarah Reygate, Make-Up Artist for the Fashion and Music Industry: “As with many of my colleagues, my work has been deeply impacted by the pandemic. A lot of work comes from Paris. If I now have to organise work contracts and visas for each trip I am likely to lose that work to local based talent in Paris. The Government needs to commit to frictionless work travel for all creatives for the UK based fashion and music industry to continue to be a world leading industry.”
16th February 2021
As London Fashion Week begins this week, the Fashion Industry still waits for a response from the Government to our open letter sent 14 days ago, asking for an urgent meeting to discuss Brexit impacts and the very real threat of business decimation.
The fashion industry united in signing our open letter with over 455 industry leader signatories urgently requesting a ministerial meeting 14 days ago. The Government is yet to respond. Media attention is turned to the fashion industry for the fashion week calendar, the silence from the Government is ever more worrying.
Our sector is at real risk of decimation by the Brexit trade deal and current Government policy. To reduce the negative impact to the industry, we are asking the Government to urgently meet so we can share solutions which will help save our industry before it is too late.
The fashion industry is the largest of the creative industries, making more than the automobile, film, music and pharmaceutical industries combined, contributing £35bn to UK GDP and employs almost 1 million people, which was growing 11% year on year, at 4 times the growth of other sectors. The DCMS Select Committee this week met with creatives from music and dance to discuss freedom of movement, but not from the fashion industry. We did send the DCMS Select Committee a briefing and request to give evidence. We urge that all creatives are treated and valued equally across all levels of government and parliament. To not hear from the largest of the creative industries is surely an omission? We note the Government’s £20m commitment to help the UK’s 6m SMEs with up to £2000 to support businesses; but this is not in line with the £23m to support the fishing industries 12,000 workforce (the same number of people as Debenhams employed for reference) with their EU exports. We are concerned by a clear prioritisation of one industry above another for reasons other than economic factors.
The UK fashion industry is largely composed of freelancers and SMEs. These creative innovators could be at the forefront of a post Brexit, post pandemic UK; but without Government reaction and support now, they simply won’t survive to help the UK build back better. This is why we call on the UK Government to respond to our open letter and work with us on solutions which will achieve this. We do not have 10 years to wait it out, we should not really have had 14 days. With London Fashion Week fast approaching and media attention upon us, we are still left waiting. This is not the time for inertia, or delays. A £35bn industry is waiting to hear from its government.
We asked some of the signatories to Fashion Roundtable’s Open Letter and #dontmakefashionhistory campaign who work as creatives and small business owners to share their concerns here. The UK fashion industry has over 59,000 SMEs, plus many more thousands of freelancers; these small to medium enterprises and growing freelancer numbers are the backbone of the thriving economy across the UK. But without the right support they are the most vulnerable, as they do not have the safety net of wide margins to buffer against negative financial impacts.
Sarah Reygate, Make-Up Artist for the Fashion and Music Industry: “As with many of my colleagues, my work has been deeply impacted by the pandemic. A lot of work comes from Paris. If I now have to organise work contracts and visas for each trip I am likely to lose that work to local based talent in Paris. The Government needs to commit to frictionless work travel for all creatives for the UK based fashion and music industry to continue to be a world leading industry.”
Deborah Latouche, CEO Sabirah: “I was asked recently if SABIRAH will survive Brexit and after thinking about it I realised that we didn’t just want to just survive we want to Thrive! The past year we have all been in survival mode due to the Covid crisis - All of the unnecessary red tape and costs need to be reconsidered as a matter or urgency to help the UK Fashion Industry thrive.”
Nadja Romain, CEO Everything I Want LTD: “As a small business it’s very hard if not impossible to deal on a daily basis, with the level of bureaucracy now involved in UK/EU trade. Not to mention angry customers who end up paying outrageous import taxes that we can’t even anticipate. Large businesses can absorb extra costs and paperwork a small company with less than 10 employees simply cannot. As a French citizen I came to the UK 15 years ago for the creativity combined with a flexibility that allows anyone with a good idea to create a thriving business. This is gone. As if politics has become more important than business. I am opening a branch of my business in Italy to access the EU market which remains the number one destination for luxury goods.”
Karen Binns, Fashion Director and Brand Consultant: “There is a huge fear for independent designers and brands about the high rise in cost to get their shipments coming in and going out abroad. This is the biggest threat to young and independently owned brands, as this is the sort of escalating costs and delays to market that can shut their businesses down completely.”
Tamara Cincik, CEO of Fashion Roundtable: “Silence is not golden, 14 days is 13 days too long to wait for a government commitment to meet with us and our signatories. I have even offered to arrange this meeting for them, all they would need to do is commit to dialling in. A webinar which was not widely circulated or known about by our 890,00 fashion workforce is simply not enough support or mitigate against the tsunami of challenges this complex and vast sector faces. I have more than twice urged DCMS to allow us at Fashion Roundtable to also offer stakeholders a webinar, to ensure information in this challenging time is accessed by as many stakeholders as possible, as well as this urgently needed sector-facing roundtable meeting.
Surely a £35bn industry is worth an hour of their time? We have London Fashion Week around the corner, a time when the world’s media is shining a light on our brilliant talent, yet my inbox is filled with stories of brands relocating, or stopping their direct to EU consumer (B2C) sales, due to escalating Brexit costs. The music industry, the acting industry, the dance industry, the arts, creative and design industry are all in alignment and we all feel overlooked and undervalued. We echo the points made by other creatives and are in solidarity with those organisations who are sharing their concerns. We are committed to offering solutions so we can find a way out of this mess and implore the Government to commit to meeting with us very soon. What is a country without creativity and innovation at the heart of its DNA?”
Note to Editors
Background
Fashion Roundtable’s Open Letter, signed by over 455 signatories, was presented to the Government on Tuesday 2nd February. A follow-up letter was sent Tuesday 9th February and again on Tuesday 16th February. All three letters request that we can organise an urgent roundtable meeting with the relevant Ministers for the fashion industry in the coming days, to work together and create solutions which will help save our industry.
The Open Letter has received cross-party parliamentary support, with signatories including Baroness Lola Young of Hornsey, John McNally MP, Martyn Docherty-Hughes MP, Lord Cashman CBE, Lord Foster of Bath, Earl of Clancarty, Baroness Bonham-Carter and Lord Taylor of Warwick.
The letter has also gained the support of industry leaders across manufacturing, retail, modelling, creative business, education, brands and journalism.
Signatories include Dame Vivienne Westwood DBE (Vivienne Westwood), Jenny Holloway (Fashion Enter), Paul Barnes (Association of International Retail), Kate Hills (Make It British), Jane Shepherdson CBE (MyWardrobe HQ), Caroline Issa (Tank), John Horner (Models 1), Carole White (Premier), Nick Knight OBE (SHOWstudio), Zowie Broach (RCA), ASBCI, Patrick Grant (E.Tautz and BBC’s Sewing Bee), Camilla Lowther OBE (CLM), Bethany Williams, Phoebe English, Professor Dilys Williams (Centre of Sustainable Fashion UAL), Helen Brocklebank (Walpole), Fashion Revolution, Laura Bailey (Model and British Vogue), Dame Twiggy Lawson DBE (model), Katharine Hamnett CBE (Katharine Hamnett), Sarah Mower MBE (Vogue Runway and British Fashion Council), Julian Vogel (Modus BPCM), Ruth Chapman OBE (Matchesfashion), Isabel Ettedgui (Connolly), Yasmin Le Bon (Model), Roksanda Ilincic (Roksanda), Juergen Teller (Photographer), Jess Mcguire-Dudley (John Smedley), Sarah Coonan (Liberty), Justin Thornton (Preen), Andrea Thompson (Marie Claire), Jane Bruton (Telegraph) and Jefferson Hack (Dazed Media Group).
The Open Letter can be found here: https://www.fashionroundtable.co.uk/openletter
The template letter to your MP can be found here.
About Fashion Roundtable
Fashion Roundtable is the only fashion think tank that sits between the fashion industry and policy leaders: Front Row to Front Bench
We are secretariat for the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Textiles and Fashion chaired by Dr Lisa Cameron MP, with members including Dame Eleanor Laing, Lord Taylor of Warwick, John McNally MP and Baron Vaizey of Didcot.
Fashion Roundtable are also the secretariat for the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Ethics and Sustainability in Fashion, co-chaired by Baroness Lola Young of Hornsey and Catherine West MP.
Tamara Cincik, Founder & CEO of Fashion Roundtable has over 20 years’ experience in the fashion industry and has also worked in parliament. Since launching Fashion Roundtable, Tamara has spoken publicly on fashion and politics with a range of high-profile business press including SKY TV, BBC, CGTN, Telegraph, Financial Times, Times, Guardian, New York Times, Liberation, Stern, Vogue Business and Business of Fashion.
For more information please contact:
PRESS RELEASE: Fashion Roundtable To Host a Roundtable at Push PR 13/12 3.30pm -5.30pm. It's Time To Talk The Fashion Industry and Brexit
For an industry, which conservative estimates say voted 95% Remain, the need for dialogue around Brexit and the potential impacts to the fashion sector are clear.
A sector based on global trade and talent, with creative exchange and international travel at the heart of it's business model: how does it survive and indeed thrive through the upcoming UK and EU trade deals, as they begin in earnest next month in Brussels?
For an industry, which conservative estimates say voted 95% Remain, the need for dialogue around Brexit and the potential impacts to the fashion sector are clear.
A sector based on global trade and talent, with creative exchange and international travel at the heart of it's business model: how does it survive and indeed thrive through the upcoming UK and EU trade deals, as they begin in earnest next month in Brussels?
The UK fashion industry is founded on Heritage brands: from Charles Worth, to Barbour, launching digital global leaders: from Net-a-porter to Asos and world class designers and innovators: from Phoebe Philo, to Phoebe English.
How do we maintain that international reputation and continue to excel once the UK leaves the EU? Where are our opportunities for growth and on-going recognition?
What more can we do to achieve UK fashion excellence across bricks and mortar retail, online platforms, regionally and into which global markets?
These challenges and questions will be a part of the conversation of the first Fashion Roundtable tomorrow, since our recent launch.
Confirmed speakers are:
Nick Vinson writer, editor and creative consultant and in whose monthly Wallpaper*magazine column has written on Brexit and will share his concerns for the fashion industry and design sector: from SME, to global businesses.
Jack Karet from DCMS will present on where DCMS have been working hard on Brexit strategy.
Derin Adebiyi from ISM will present on #freemovecreate which Fashion Roundtable have joined and are supporting and will explain what this is about to support the creative sector and fashion industry though Brexit visa policy lobbying.
Jack Tindale from Policy Connect will present on the work of the Design and Innovation APPG and how that can link in with fashion industry strategy for Brexit and business.
Kate Wicklow Senior Policy Advisor for Guildford HE will present on the unintended consequences of the Ebacc in our education exam system and make the case for the need for STEAM not STEM education, for our post Brexit workforce and fashion talents
Confirmed Attendees Include:
Nick Vinson, Sarah Mower MBE, Katharine Hamnett CBE, The Design Council, The Right Project, Richard Malone, Karen Binns, Bev Malik, Valery Demure, LCF, BEIS, Black Neon Digital,
Tamara Cincik: Founder and CEO of Fashion Roundtable says: " I am excited to join the dots between policy makers and fashion industry visionaries, I have made in my work across both the political and fashion sectors. This first roundtable, as well as our next London one on 17/01/18, will offer us a key opportunity to make insightful recommendations to Government, while the UK enters the key trade deals next month, which we hope will benefit the fashion industry for sustained and long-term growth."
Ends.
#dontmakefashionhistory #tamaracincik #fashionroundtable #fashionindustryonBrexit #fashionandBrexit #Brexit #fashionandpolitics