Guidance, Support & Opportunities

Newsletter 18th January 2023

Skills Support with the Fashion Impact Fund

Kicking off the week we were thrilled to announce our collaborative partnership with the Fashion Impact Fund.

The Fashion Impact Fund provides grants to female founders advancing equitable workforce development in the fashion industry to accelerate women’s economic empowerment and leadership. The fund supports women-led fashion initiatives advocating for gender equality through education, media, and skills programs; contributing critical system change for women in the fashion industry to earn fair wages, operate in safe and ethical working conditions and achieve effective leadership. 

Fashion Impact Fund grant support has now been allocated to offer free places to 15 women for our popular 4-Day Sewing and Upcycling course in February. Tap here to find out more about this exciting collaboration. If you would like to apply for free participation at the 4-day Sewing and Upcycling course commencing 13th February at FC Designer Workspace, 9 Durham Road, London N7, please contact: beth@fashion-enter.com  

Enrol With Us!

Both FTA Leicester and Wales are enrolling for their next cohort of Level 1 Stitching students. This 5-week course provides an excellent foundation in sewing for garment production.

In Leicester places are available on the Level 1 Award in Fashion and Textiles and the Level 2

Additionally all learners have the opportunity to also take up the FREE Level 1 Workers’ Rights course  

Deputy CEO Jackie said: “It’s great to be able to provide FREE courses to the people of Leicester. The Level 1 Award provides a great introduction into using industrial sewing machines.Then progression onto the Level 2 certificate expands into full garment construction. These courses are a great way to learn a new skill, whether its for your own personal development or for a new career pathway.”

Contact: education@fashion-enter.com if you are interested in the course, please note if you are unemployed or low income (below £23,302.50) you could be eligible to join this course for free!

Space to Rent

At the FCFTA Leicester we have a state-of-the-art, fully equipped space that can be rented from £5 per hour, £25 per day and £100 per week. Whether you are developing your own collection or working on a personal project our Academy has all the industrial machines, cutting tables, mannequins and equipment to make your designs into 3D reality. 

Contact: divya@fashion-enter.com for availability.

UK Innovate – Circular Fashion Programme

Fashion-Enter Ltd would like to say a big thank-you to the amazing consortium that partnered with us in the UK Innovate – Recycling and Sorting demonstrator bid. What we achieved in a short space of time is quite incredible – such an innovative team has been created.

This was the initial activity of a £15million UKRI Circular fashion programme. As this is the first time we have led on UKRI Programme, there has been a lot to learn, and although not successful this time – the feedback that UKI have agreed to provide will make us stronger for the second round. Exciting times ahead.

Giving Learners a Trial in the Fashion Studio

A big thank-you to the two learners who had a trial in the Fashion Studio last week.

A Level 2 provides 240 guided learning hours while a Level 1 provides 120. A total of 360 is a great start but we really need to progress our learners on to a Level 3 so they can fully embed their skills and learning, that’s why opportunities in a live working environment are so valuable.

Tap here to find out more about our various courses 

New Opportunities

We are recruiting for a Pattern Cutter and a Fashion Studio Production Apprentice. Tap here to view the posts along with other apprenticeship opportunities.

London Repair Week 20 – 26 March

We are delighted to confirm that we’re opening the FC Designer Collective shop throughout London Repair Week 20 -26 March to offer bespoke recycling, upcycling and repair classes for the local residents of Islington. A big thank-you to Islington Council for making these classes a reality – a recent study by WRAP found that if we repair / upcycle an item of clothing, we’ll typically wear and keep it for a further 1.3 years, every little bit helps!

FEL Supports GENT London and Australian Artist Tahlia Stanton

The FEL team is thrilled to support the Australian artist Tahlia Stanton with her GENT London Origins Collection design for SS23. Fashion Studio Manager, Agnes, is providing Tahlia with free pattern development work and the resulting designs will be showcased at February’s London Fashion Week. More on this unique collaboration soon.

Free Masterclasses 

So why do we do this?  Why spend time and money helping others when actually sales are the worst they’ve ever been? 

FEL CEO Jenny Holloway comments: “I don’t think there has ever been such a harsh trading environment than now. I keep saying it’s got to get better – then another curve ball comes along. The truth is we all need resilience and we need to keep to our core values of helping others to succeed. FEL has the most amazing team that have the same moral compass. We would rather provide this free support to really improve the business of the clients we serve; be that education or production. Grey clouds don’t last forever – the sunshine will break through again.”

Masterclasses and Courses

Ongoing Stitching, Patterns and Tailoring throughout 2023

25th January: 10 Step Guide to Building a Fashion Brand from Concept to Consumer with Jenny Holloway (Free)

13th February: 4 Day Beginners Sewing and Upcycling Workshop

17th February: Repair and Upcycle Workshop

22nd February: 12 Step Plan to Develop and Create a Fashion Collection including a tour of our Fashion Studio with Jenny Holloway, Claire Solley and Agnes Szepligeti (Free)

22nd March: UK V’s Overseas Sourcing, Development and Production with Jackie Bertram (Free)

10th April: 4 Day Beginners and Upcycling Workshop

26th April: 10 Strategies to Create an Ethical Brand from Yarn Sourcing to Works Rights’ with Caroline Ash (Free)

24th May: Top 10 Tips to Create a Strong Team and Partnership with Your Manufacturer with Caroline Ash (Free)

This Week on FashionCapital.co.uk

Fashion-Enter’s CEO Jenny Holloway was recently asked by Drapers to comment on the practice of ‘deep storing’, whereby a retailer will store unsold winter stock, such as heavy coats, to sell the following year. Tap here to read more.

And Finally…

It has been wonderful to encourage and support Inna with her ESOL course, her English-speaking skills have improved so much since joining Fashion-Enter Ltd and the 10-week course. Inna comments:

“I’m so pleased to be working at FEL. Coming from Ukraine has been difficult, but FEL has welcomed me with open arms and provided me with a full-time job. Now they are supporting my ESOL classes each week allowing me to take time out to complete the course. It’s great to be part of a genuine social enterprise that cares about their staff and their learners.”

Until next time, have a great week.

The Team at FashionCapital