Tuesday, 12 October 2010

Applications now open for London Fashion Week 2011

The British Fashion Council (BFC) today (12 October) announced it is opening applications for designers to participate in London Fashion Week (LFW) February 2011. There are seven categories for application including catwalk, presentation, digital presentation, the exhibition, Estethica and its internationally recognised talent support scheme NEWGEN sponsored by TOPSHOP and NEWGEN MEN, sponsored by TOPMAN. LFW is one of the world’s leading designer showcases alongside New York, Paris and Milan. Last season LFW generated over £70 million worth of press coverage in the UK alone. The audience is made up of UK and International press, buyers and industry professionals including key opinion formers. The London Fashion Week (LFW) Exhibition showcases 200 of the industry’s most creative UK and International designer businesses. The BFC aims for the exhibition to mirror the energy on the catwalk and presentation schedule. Estethica is the BFC’s eco sustainable initiative sponsored by Monsoon. All potential Estethica designers must adhere to at least one of the three principles of fair-trade and ethical practices, organic and recycled materials and are selected for both their ethical credentials and design excellence. The BFC ‘NEWGEN’ scheme, currently sponsored by TOPSHOP was set up in 1993 with the mission to support the growth of original new collections which have the potential to make a mark on the international scene. Designers who have been in business for three years or less and are eligible to apply for the NEWGEN scheme and those selected will receive sponsorship and mentoring tailored to the scale and positioning of their products and businesses. Judging is undertaken voluntarily by a panel of Britain’s top editors, buyers and talent scouts who compare entrants against the standards of excellence attained by former winners including some of Britain’s highest profile designers including Alexander McQueen, Matthew Williamson, Julien Macdonald and more recently Giles Deacon, Gareth Pugh, Christopher Kane, Marios Schwab, Richard Nicoll and Todd Lynn. Sarah Mower is the BFC’s Abassador for Emerging Talent and is the chair of this committee. NEWGEN Men, sponsored by Topman, launched with success in September 2009. It provides menswear designers with business support, funding and the opportunity to use the official BFC venue, Somerset House, to host a catwalk show during London Fashion Week’s Menswear Day. The closing date for applications is 18th October 2010 for the LFW Exhibition and Estethica, 15 October 2010 for NEWGEN and 22 October 2010 for NEWGEN MEN.