News reports on our Fashion Industry Report
Women’s Wear Daily
Women’s Wear Daily wrote up our report under the headline ‘U.K.’s Fashion Industry Faces ‘Substantial Challenges’ Post-Brexit, New Report Finds’. Brexit has prompted trade, talent and operational issues within Britain's fashion industry, they note.
Fashion Capital
Fashion Capital write that the report draws on extensive research and consultations between 2018 to 2024 from a broad range of stakeholders including Fashion-Enter Ltd. The findings reflect a bleak picture with businesses stating they could no longer trade with the EU, that new talent and skilled workforce members have been severely diminished, and sales and trade have declined to the point of having to move or close their business.
Industry voices have made their concerns clear and have proposed the following recommendations:
Improved trade and customs agreements
Enhanced mobility for creatives and youth
Reinstatement of the VAT retail export scheme
Enhanced support for SMEs
Increased domestic production and alternative market opportunities
Fashion-Enter Ltd’s Founder and CEO Jenny Holloway comments:
“This commission reflects the reality of what the industry has been going through since leaving the EU. In 2019 industry colleagues and I have voiced our concerns and recommendations to government, now, post Brexit, Covid and economic downturn we are in 2024 and it seems, a lot of talk with very little action. The industry is now in dire need of supportive strategy from government to ensure it survives and adapts.”
The Industry Fashion
In their write up they agree that Brexit's impact on the British fashion industry has seen new challenges arise - from trading overseas, workforce shortages and operational logistics. Fashion Roundtable's recent report sheds light on the specific obstacles UK fashion businesses face. It also offers actionable recommendations to sustain the sector’s growth.
"Brexit has reshaped the UK fashion industry, but with collaborative efforts, we can mitigate its most challenging effects. While the current trade and workforce issues are considerable, there are viable pathways forward that could reinvigorate this crucial sector of the UK economy," said Alix Coombs, Policy Researcher at Fashion Roundtable and Bath Spa University’s National Centre for Fashion and Sustainability.
The report can be read here.