ASOS & The Prince’s Trust ‘Get Started with Fashion’ Programme

A jam-packed schedule with the ASOS team will take the group on a journey across various key sectors of the business from editorial to design and styling to customisation. The group will also attend a tour of the Fashion Enter factory to see the manufacturing process first-hand. The week-long programme will culminate in each individual giving a personal presentation on the experience.

The 15 young adults attended a taster day last week and were keen for the programme to commence. Cressida from ASOS said; “We have a good group of young people with a nice mixture of characters, they’re all really excited about the programme so I think we’re in for  a fun week.”

ASOS became a patron of The Prince’s Trust in March 2010. Working with the Trust to create ‘Get Started with Fashion’ (GSWF), a series of courses designed to build confidence and give skills to young people, launched in April 2010.

Since its launch, 46 young people have attended GSWF courses in London and Barnsley learning how to convert vintage or charity shop ‘finds’ into goods they can sell on ASOS Marketplace. A leading luxury retailer subsequently took on three young people from the 2012 London course. One participant joined ASOS as a Buyer’s Administration Assistant and subsequently won a 2012 Prince’s Trust ‘Flying Start’ Award.

In 2012, 10% of ASOS employees volunteered with The Prince’s Trust, either on the GSWF course, by fund raising or by helping young people on the Prince’s Trust Team Programme to develop CV and interview skills.

ASOS also host networking events for small, local retail or manufacturing businesses that were supported by the Prince’s Trust