First Make it British Forum links brands with manufacturers

By

Barbara Santamaria

Published
Nov 1, 2016

Make it British, the go-to resource for information on UK manufacturing and British-made brands, founded by Kate Hills in 2011, held its first forum for UK fashion brands in Leicester on 26 October.

The sell-out conference at De Montfort University featured a special programme of talks by high-profile industry insiders, including Fiona Lambert, famed for launching Asda’s fashion brand George; Justine Tabak, previously creative director at Boden and founder of her own eponymous label, and Adam Mansell, CEO of UKFT, who highlighted the £9bn worth of textiles that are made in Britain every year.

Kate Hills, founder and CEO of Make it British, explains: “This one-day event was aimed at businesses that wanted to find out more about manufacturing fashion and textile products in the UK. We tackled fundamental issues, such as the likely impact of Brexit on the UK textile industry as well as how to attract more fashion graduates into manufacturing."

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The event was attended by over 250 delegates from start-up brands to big retailers, as well as students and lecturers from De Montfort University and other fashion courses around the country.

“The big message for me that came out from the day was that partnerships between brands, universities and manufacturers are key in order to continue the growth of the UK textile sector,” continued Hills.

Preparations are underway to take the event to other parts of the UK, adding to the work of the annual tradeshow and conference Meet the Manufacturer in London in May.