A Breakfast Club Blog – January 31st
5th February 2018
January’s fashion draped Breakfast Club presented some intriguing topics. Those that weaved around one another especially well stemmed from the importance of talent being supported and given a platform to be nurtured. Be that in the form of rising fashion designers, or the skilled individuals who manufacture the designer’s visions to exceptionally high standards, enabling them to thrive.
British Heritage, another hot talking point from the meeting, is at risk if the latter continues to be neglected and it’s worrying for the industry to think how much creative design talent would underachieve if it wasn’t for the British Fashion Council’s various grant schemes, which enable them to reach the next level of growth.
The need for education across the creative fields to be promoted, rather than pulled from the curriculum made for a passionate discussion, with Caroline Rush, CEO of the BFC highlighting the lack of a suitable system for developing pattern cutters, garment technologist and machinists in the fashion industry as a real challenge for our country. She noted how this goes back to diminishing manufacturing, which is fortunately now recovering. But that will only grow if we help build skills and if we help build education. When someone like Caroline, an expert on branding and creativity voices such a concern, it’s time to take notice.
Before that, during the Q&A segment, one guest alluded to certain school’s withdrawal of basic creative skills learning from the curriculum, like sewing, which they see as “little women, home things” something which both Caroline and our other guest speaker, Entrepreneur, Designer, Model and Fitness & Health Ambassador, Millie Mackintosh acknowledged as damaging, because without a grassroots introduction, there’ll be no interest to develop and fulfil the skilled positions.
In Millie’s case she spoke hypothetically about never having had the sewing lessons she loved so much at school and potentially not having begun the path to becoming the successful designer she is now.
Millie speaks with a calmly authoritative and authentic millennial voice and as someone who has thrived within a millennial audience, again, this is an opinion which should be heard.
It’s hard to see how British Heritage won’t suffer and lose out to manufacturers and producers from foreign territories if the education issues aren’t addressed. Caroline spoke about how the Art, skills, and craft education is basically being written out of the curriculum, and availability isn’t always the problem, but the absence of any credit to these areas means parents struggle for incentive to advise their children on an arts route.
It wasn’t all doom and gloom though and Caroline did emphasise the creative industry’s efforts to put pressure on the government to reconsider their decisions. Simply put, without an opportunity to learn these skills at school, the talent line will dry up.
Caroline and Millie were fantastic Breakfast Club guests, and we are delighted to represent both for speaking opportunities. If you’d like more information on either of them, or any of our other iconic talent, please get in touch: [email protected]
