A Change is Gonna Come
05-05-2024
Newsletter 24th April 2024
Policies and Products of Change
Yesterday, 23rd April, FEL CEO, Jenny Holloway joined Mark Edridge from Bluesign Technologies for a highly informative Products of Change webinar. Mark presented a deep dive into all the relevant and upcoming legislation surrounding the UK and European fashion, apparel, and textiles scene. It feels like it’s been a long time coming…but the industry is on the brink of some major changes.
According to EU Regulations: “By 2030 all textile products placed on the EU market are durable, repairable and recyclable, to a great extent made of recycled fires, free of hazardous substances and produced in respect of social rights and the environment.”
The industry; retailers, brands and suppliers need reevaluate their business models and prepare to adapt to all the regulations and policies that are in the pipeline. This sentiment was echoed at last week’s informal roundtable with Labour MP Catherine West and at 10 Downing Street and the UK brand and manufacturers matchmaking event.
Four key elements: EU Green Deal Legislation
- Green Claims Directive – any environmental claims must be: “verified by an impartial, third-party assessment body” and “formally accredited by a nationally recognised certifying entity.”
- Textile Labelling Rules – Aligns rules and diverging labelling requirements to: ensure accurate, intelligible and comparable information to consumers.
- Waste Framework Directive – A mandatory and harmonised Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) for textiles and provide incentives for producers to increase the circularity of products and introduce rules to manage textile waste.
- Eco-design or Sustainable Products Regulation – Certified reporting of circularity and environmental impacts inform the consumer to make better choices and return end-of-life materials to the supply chain.
Tap here to find out more about the Products of Change community.
FEL Shout Out at Positive Fashion Forum
Last week, 18th April, at the fourth annual Institute of the Positive Fashion Forum hosted by the British Fashion Council, speaker Simon Platts, CEO at Recomme gave FEL a special mention. He said: “Jenny at Fashion-Enter (for example), she’s invested in Galaxius which pays a rate beyond minimum wage and she also uses Style3D and Kornit Digital printing. She’s got a whole new model. And intake wise it is different. You can do on demand, but you can also do, to demand.”
Thank-you Simon for spreading the word.
AI in Fashion Webinar
Last Friday 19th April, we were pleased to moderate the AI in Fashion webinar in partnership with InnovateUK and Style3D. The free webinar provided a sample of the presentations and information that was shared during our full-day conference earlier in the year. The session attracted attendees from across the globe from both industry and education, and also provided various grant funding options for early adopters of AI within their business. Tap here to find out more.
SALE This Saturday
Come along to Fashion-Enter’s HQ on Crusader Estate in Haringey this Saturday 27th April from 10am – 3pm for a Super Sale. Thanks to investment from the Postcode Innovation Trust, FEL is restructuring the factory into a fully equipped into a repair, recycle and reprocessing unit alongside its manufacturing facilities. We are therefore selling off surplus machines, tables, fabrics and more. Perfect for home sewers, small brands and designers. The sale is open to all.
Super Sale, Saturday 27th April from 10am until 3pm at Fashion-Enter Ltd, Unit 14 Crusader Estate, 167 Hermitage Road, N4 1LZ nearest tube Manor House.
To Be Announced…Fashion Apprenticeships
Fantastic news for those wanting to take the apprenticeship route we have had further engagement from retailers and brands to facilitate a range of fashion and textile apprenticeships starting soon. More on this in due course.
This is what former Level 2 Sewing Machinist Apprentice, Iona had to say about her apprenticeship with us:
“Overall my apprenticeship training experience has been good for me and I really appreciated the one-to-one learning I had with Jenny in particular, who became a bit of a mentor to me personally too. She came to see in me in Wales regularly and during that time you get to know a person. I felt as though she was there for me personally and my career.
“I am now working as a teaching assistant as this works with my life / work balance and my daughter but I am still using my stitching skills and want to go back to stitching and teaching when the Fashion Technology Academy opens in Wales with Newtown College.”
Current Job Vacancies
Would you like to join the FEL team? We are recruiting for:
All the details can be found in the links.
Courses and Workshops Coming Up…
Repair and Upcycling:
Date change – 14th May: Free Repair and Upcycle Drop-In workshop – FC Designer Collective shop, Fonthill Road, Islington
Stitching:
29th April – 2nd May: 4-Day Beginners Stitching course – £75 – FTA Leicester
20th May: Introduction to Sewing evening class– £35 – FC Designer Workspace, Islington
22nd May: Introduction to Sewing evening class– £35 – FC Designer Workspace, Islington
28th – 31st May: 4 Day Beginners Stitching course – £150 – FC Designer Workspace, Islington
Pattern Cutting:
18th May: Saturday Pattern Cutting Class (Made to measure skirt) – £35 – FC Designer Workspace, Islington
28th – 31st May: 4 Day Beginners Pattern Cutting course – £150 – FC Designer Workspace, Islington
Support and Advice:
30th April: Strategies to Create an Ethical Brand from Yarn Sourcing to Workers’ Rights Zoom masterclass – free
Style3D:
Please contact education@fashion-enter.com for the next session
Tap here for more dates and classes
This Week on FashionCapital…
Cara Imbrailo, Partner (Real Estate) and Ilona Bateson, Associate (Commercial) from law firm Charles Russell Speechlys, discuss the benefits and pitfalls of brands selling via pop-up shops: The Power of the Pop-Up
And Finally…
It is fantastic to welcome cycling brand Rapha to the United Repair Centre community. Rapha has been offering in-house repair options for years, so in the spirit of making a bigger positive impact the brand has partnered with the United Repair Centre to grow their repair service.
Check out this short YouTube video on United Repair Centre London in conjunction with Fashion Revolution Week 2024.
Until next time, have a great week.
From the Team at FashionCapital
