It was all the way back in March that the British Fashion Council first announced the BFC Foundation Fashion Fund, a £1m pot of cash dedicated to helping independent British fashion businesses weather the storm brought on by the coronavirus and lockdown. In May, grants were awarded to 37 different designer businesses, including Bianca Saunders, Chopova Lowena and Charles Jeffrey LOVERBOY, helping some of the brightest members of the independent fashion community keep afloat.
Not wanting to cut off their support there, the BFC pledged to keep the fund running, re-opening it to a fresh batch of applicants each time they managed to fundraise a further £500k. Today, thanks to donations from Alexander McQueen, Amazon Fashion, Browns, Cadogan, Clearpay, The Coach Foundation and John Lewis & Partners, that milestone has been reached. This means that if you’re an independent fashion designer with a business registered in the UK, you can apply for a slice of this most generous of pies here up until 7 August.
In the meantime, it should be noted that, as substantial a sum as it may seem, it’s but a drop in the ocean when the size of our fashion economy is taken into account. “The BFC estimates that £100m of support in different forms will be needed to help protect this decade’s generation of talent over the next 12 to 18 months,” read a statement from the organisation when the previous round of funding was announced. If, therefore, you’re reading this and are a business owner with a decent amount of pocket change to spare, for the love of fashion, consider sending some the BFC’s way.