Christopher Bailey, the chief creative and chief executive officer of Burberry, and Victoria Beckham have been appointed the first patrons to the annual fashion students’ showcase, Graduate fashion week.
Graduate fashion week takes place in London in June and is now in its 25th year. The involvement of these stellar fashion names is bound to boost its profile.
Bailey is one of Graduate fashion week’s most famous sons, having won the top Gold award when he showed at the event in 1991.
“Graduate fashion week is an incredibly valuable platform because it provides graduates with vital recognition for their talent, and in so doing it can become the catalyst to start an exciting career path,” he said. “That was certainly my experience, and I have seen it do the same for many others since.”
Other Graduate fashion week alumni include Stella McCartney, Antonio Berardi, Marchesa, Julien MacDonald, Christopher Raeburn, Agi & Sam and Sophie Hulme.
“In Britain there is always a hunger for new ideas that break with convention,” added Bailey. “The British fashion school system has created an environment that drives young designers to try new ideas without feeling like they have to fit into a predetermined way of doing things, and that is a very exciting environment to learn in.”
Graduate Fashion Week is sponsored by George at Asda, with fashion retailers Karen Millen and Boohoo also funding prizes. Contact with – and the support of – established names and brands in the industry has become increasingly important for students as they negotiate spiralling living costs and tuition fees.
The most recent Graduate fashion week event was held at the Old Truman Brewery, in east London, with 30,000 guests attending over four days. The winner of this year’s George Gold award, Hannah Wallace from Manchester School of Art, took home the £10,000 prize for a quirky collection of padded jackets inspired by skiwear.
Bailey and Beckham’s appointment was announced on Thursday night at a catwalk show and reception at the Houses of Parliament. There, Wallace showed her work alongside that of highly commended students from the 2015 show, including Ella Nisbett of Nottingham Trent University, the winner of the knitwear award, and Melissa Villevieille, who won the womenswear award.
