UK Fashion News: British Fashion Council takes Fashion Britain beyond London with nationwide September programme

The British Fashion Council (BFC) is taking its fashion agenda beyond London this September with the launch of Fashion Britain, a nationwide initiative designed to broaden participation in the UK fashion industry and strengthen regional creative economies. 

The move comes against the backdrop of a wider political push to rebalance economic and cultural activity beyond the capital, following the Prime Minister's announcement earlier this summer of plans to establish a new government base in Manchester, dubbed “No10 North”. In this context, the BFC's decision to take fashion into cities and creative communities across the UK reflects a growing recognition that the country's creative and economic potential extends well beyond London.

The Fashion Britain programme will bring more than 1,000 cultural events and experiences to cities across the UK, including London, Liverpool, Manchester, Newcastle, Bristol, as well as Edinburgh and Dundee in Scotland. The initiative forms part of the BFC's new BFC 2030: Access, Creativity and Growth strategy and is intended to decentralise fashion by creating greater opportunities for designers, creatives, businesses, educators and audiences outside London.

Rather than positioning London and the capital's established fashion infrastructure as the sole centre of British fashion, Fashion Britain seeks to connect the country's different creative communities and highlight the contribution of regional talent to the industry's cultural and commercial landscape.

The September programme will combine public designer conversations, exhibitions, cultural collaborations, retail activations, live performances and other fashion-related experiences. More than 100 BFC designer members are involved alongside cultural institutions, retailers and other partners, underlining the Council's intention to make fashion a more accessible and geographically representative industry.

A central element will be the National Designer Panel Series, developed in partnership with ELLE UK. The series will bring designers and industry figures into direct conversation with audiences in different cities, providing insights into creative careers, regional identity and the development of fashion businesses.

Among the announced panels are a conversation between Nicholas Daley and Charles Jeffrey at V&A Dundee, an appearance by Aitor Throup at Manchester Art Gallery, and a London panel featuring Saul Nash, Clio Peppiatt and Luke Derrick at the National Gallery. In Liverpool, designers Patrick McDowell and Talia Byre will discuss their connections to the region and their creative journeys at the Walker Art Gallery.

The initiative represents a significant shift in the BFC's role. Announcing Fashion Britain in July, BFC Chief Executive Laura Weir said that participation in British fashion had for too long been concentrated in too few places. She described the initiative as a move towards recognising British creativity as a national asset and creating opportunities "wherever it exists" across the country.

Building the industry's regional infrastructure

For the fashion industry, the significance of Fashion Britain extends beyond a month of public events. The BFC says the longer-term objective is to strengthen local creative economies, develop the next generation of talent and establish pathways through which designers and creatives can build sustainable careers in their own cities.

This approach also reflects a broader effort by the Council to combine talent development with commercial resilience. Its recent programme of financial and business support has included the BFC/Vogue Designer Fashion Fund, which awarded London-based designer Bianca Saunders £150,000 in June, alongside bespoke business mentoring and professional services. Saunders' label, launched after her graduation from the Royal College of Art in 2017, is recognised for its reinterpretation of menswear through a diasporic perspective rooted in her British-Caribbean heritage.

In June, the BFC also announced the 2026 recipients of its Fashion Trust programme: Clio Peppiatt, Conner Ives, Nicholas Daley, Paolo Carzana, Patrick McDowell and Tolu Coker. The grant-giving programme is designed to support designers at pivotal stages of business growth through financial investment and tailored industry guidance. Since its launch, Fashion Trust has supported 59 designer businesses with more than £3 million in funding.

The Council is simultaneously pursuing a stronger international commercial platform for British designers. In May it announced a four-year commitment to expand LONDON show ROOMS in Paris, with the programme designed to give British designers greater access to international buyers, press and markets during the Paris fashion calendar. Confirmed dates extend through 2026 and 2027, covering both menswear and womenswear periods.

Taken together, these initiatives point to a two-track strategy: widening the domestic foundations of British fashion while strengthening its international commercial reach.

Fashion Britain therefore arrives at an important moment for the UK industry. As London Fashion Week prepares to take place from 17–21 September 2026, the BFC is simultaneously seeking to broaden the definition of where British fashion happens and who gets to participate in it.

For regional designers and creative businesses, the test will be whether the September programme can translate visibility and cultural engagement into longer-term opportunities — including education, networks, investment, retail access and sustainable business growth. If it succeeds, Fashion Britain could become more than a nationwide celebration around London Fashion Week: it could represent a structural shift in how the UK's fashion ecosystem is developed and connected.

Interiors: Where Fabric Meets Form: Planted and Sgrinhouse Celebrate British Craft

British upholstery house Planted has collaborated with hand screen-printing studio Sgrinhouse to create Alice, a chair in which the fabric is not simply a covering but a defining element of the furniture's design.

Planted, the British upholstery house built on old skills, has launched the Alice chair
 made in collaboration with hand screen-printing studio Sgrinhouse.

The collaboration brings together two complementary craft disciplines — traditional upholstery and hand screen printing — resulting in a piece that demonstrates how textile creativity can influence furniture form as well as surface.

Named after Sgrinhouse founder Alice Smith*, the Alice chair is upholstered entirely in Sgrinhouse's hand screen-printed Stripes design, including its legs. Printed in a rich rust colourway, the pattern creates an uninterrupted visual surface around the chair, emphasising its sculptural silhouette while retaining the irregularity and character associated with a handmade textile.

The Alice chair - named after Sgrinhouse founder Alice Smith  - is upholstered entirely in the studio’s
hand screen-printed “Stripes” design.

Planted, the British upholstery house built on old skills, has launched Alice — a new chair made in collaboration with hand screen-printing studio Sgrinhouse.

For Planted co-founder Daisy, it was the quality of the fabric that provided the starting point for the collaboration. She first encountered Sgrinhouse at Chelsea Harbour in London during its Focus on Design event and immediately recognised a shared approach to craftsmanship.

“The fabric was clearly hand-printed — you could see straight away the difference that quality makes,” she says. “We recognised the same standard in each other’s work immediately.”

Fabric as a starting point for furniture design

The partnership developed as Planted was working on a contemporary, armless bedroom chair. Rather than beginning with a fully resolved furniture form and subsequently selecting a fabric, the company allowed the textile to influence the design itself.

“The fabric gave us the answer,” says Daisy. “Simple from the front, with a hidden detail in the side shape — the print shaped the proportions, right down to covering the legs.”

This approach places the textile at the heart of the design process. The scale, rhythm and repeat of the Stripes pattern become part of the chair's architecture, rather than functioning as a decorative layer applied once the furniture has been designed.

For the upholstery market, it is an interesting distinction. Patterned fabrics are traditionally selected to complement a furniture shape; in Alice, the relationship is more integrated, with the printed textile helping determine how the furniture is conceived and ultimately experienced.

Developing a fabric for upholstery

The collaboration also required Sgrinhouse to adapt its textile practice to the technical requirements of furniture.

Both studios trace the collaboration to a shared belief in traditional skill, applied with a modern eye.
See Alice chair being hand-built, from screen-printed cloth to finished chair on the Planted x Sgrinhouse collaboration page.  Click HERE.
 

The studio developed a new heavyweight fabric specifically for upholstery, while adapting the positioning of the pattern pieces to minimise waste as the chair took shape. The result is a closer relationship between textile development, cutting and upholstery than would normally be possible when working from an existing roll of furnishing fabric.

Sgrinhouse describes its approach as bringing “craft and modernity together” to create durable, timeless textiles, with designs developed and hand printed in-house.

The Stripes pattern draws on the work of artists including Anni Albers and Agnes Martin, while its rust colourway reflects the maritime landscape that informs the wider collection. In the finished chair, the graphic simplicity of the stripe provides a strong contrast with the tactile construction beneath it.

Sgrinhouse founder Alice Smith was recently recognised by Homes & Gardens as its “Best Newcomer in Fabric”, underlining the growing profile of a new generation of British textile designers working across traditional printing techniques and contemporary interiors.

Traditional upholstery meets made-to-order production

Every Alice chair is hand-built to order in Planted's Cotswolds workshop. Rather than producing furniture for stock, the company makes each piece only after an order has been placed.

Every Alice chair is hand-built to order in Planted’s Cotswolds workshop.

The construction reflects Planted's emphasis on traditional upholstery and natural materials. Each chair uses a solid FSC-certified beech frame, hand-tied springs and a natural filling incorporating latex, wool and coco fibre. Polyurethane foam and chemical treatments are excluded.

The upholstery is built from the frame upwards, with each upholsterer signing the finished piece.

“Each upholsterer builds a piece from the frame up, and signs their name to it,” says Daisy. “That’s the accountability we build every piece on.”

The approach also makes the chair suitable for future reupholstery. Rather than treating the finished product as disposable, Planted designs Alice to be recovered and passed on.

There is, inevitably, a trade-off. Producing a bespoke chair around a hand-printed fabric is slower and more costly than purchasing an existing stock fabric and manufacturing furniture to a standard production specification. But it also gives the designer considerably greater control over the relationship between textile, construction and finished form.

In this case, the amount of fabric required is determined by the chair itself, rather than the chair being designed around an existing industrial production system.

A wider British craft movement

The Planted/Sgrinhouse collaboration sits within a broader UK interiors landscape in which hand-printed textiles and traditional upholstery are being brought together to create highly individual furniture.

Pukka Print Linen, for example, has collaborated with British furniture maker Boura & White, whose sofas, armchairs and footstools are crafted in the UK. The partnership places Pukka Print's hand block-printed linens and woven fabrics directly onto the furniture, demonstrating how a strongly crafted textile can alter the character and visual language of an upholstered form.

Another example is Bonfield Block Printers, whose West Dorset workshop produces furniture upholstered in its own hand block-printed linens. The company combines the printed textiles with traditional upholstery techniques and natural materials such as horsehair and calico, producing highly individual pieces rather than standardised furniture.

At a larger design-house level, Soane Britain similarly brings furniture, upholstery and textile design together. Its fabrics are produced in British mills and workshops using traditional techniques including block and screen printing, while its custom service allows designers to commission fabrics for specific projects.

The UK also retains a small but significant network of specialist textile printers. Rapture & Wright, for instance, is among the British studios continuing to use hand-printing techniques for interior textiles, while Thorp of London produces hand screen-printed fabrics in small batches from its Norfolk workshop, alongside woven jacquards produced in Suffolk.

For designers and specifiers, such practices offer something increasingly valuable: textiles with a visible relationship to the hand, rather than anonymous surfaces produced solely for volume manufacture.

For Planted and Sgrinhouse, the significance of Alice ultimately lies in the connection between the two disciplines.

For an industry increasingly interested in provenance, materiality and the value of skilled making, Alice illustrates another important proposition: when textile design and furniture design begin with each other rather than operating separately, the fabric can become the architecture of the product.

* Sgrinhouse founder Alice Smith was named “Best Newcomer in Fabric” by Homes & Gardens in 2025 for her textile design work.

 

International Trade Fair: Première Vision Paris signals fashion's next transformation through AI, advanced materials and beauty convergence

When Première Vision Paris opens its doors from 1-3 September 2026, the world's leading textile and fashion sourcing event will be presenting far more than the trends for Autumn/Winter 2027-28. The exhibition offers a snapshot of an industry undergoing profound technological and commercial transformation, with artificial intelligence, material innovation and cross-sector collaboration becoming central to future competitiveness.

Bringing together almost 900 international exhibitors to Parc des Expositions in Villepinte, this September's edition reflects how fashion's priorities are shifting beyond seasonal collections towards smarter product development, greater supply chain transparency and new business partnerships. The result is an event that increasingly serves as both an innovation platform and a sourcing marketplace.

The exhibition's Innovation-Tech theme underlines the industry's transition from traditional manufacturing towards digitally enabled production and product creation. Artificial intelligence, advanced software, automation and sustainable technologies are no longer presented as future possibilities but as practical business tools capable of shortening development cycles, improving forecasting accuracy and reducing waste throughout the value chain.

For brands facing rising production costs and increasingly complex consumer demands, these technologies represent opportunities to improve efficiency while responding more quickly to changing market conditions.

One of the strongest messages emerging from this edition is that innovation in materials has become inseparable from sustainability. Rather than focusing solely on recycled fibres, exhibitors are showcasing a broader generation of alternatives including leather made from food waste, mycelium-based biomaterials, PLA fibres, closed-loop recycled polyester and plant-based substitutes for fur.

The emphasis reflects growing investment across the textile sector in developing commercially viable materials capable of reducing environmental impact without compromising performance or aesthetics.

Equally significant is the continued emphasis on transparency and circularity. As regulatory requirements continue to evolve, particularly within Europe, manufacturers and brands are increasingly seeking systems that enable product traceability, certification management, digital product information and the recovery of surplus materials. Première Vision's exhibitors demonstrate how digital technologies are becoming essential in helping companies meet both regulatory obligations and consumer expectations.

Artificial intelligence continues to emerge as one of the defining themes throughout the exhibition. From trend forecasting and demand prediction to 3D design, virtual sampling and supply chain optimisation, AI is moving beyond experimentation into everyday commercial application. Solutions presented by technology specialists illustrate how brands can accelerate product development while reducing sampling costs and improving decision-making across the design process.

Performance textiles also remain firmly on the agenda. Responding to continued growth in sportswear, outdoor apparel and technical clothing, exhibitors will present innovations including PFAS-free membranes, bio-based fibres, responsibly sourced down and advanced performance fabrics engineered to improve breathability, waterproofness and durability. These developments reflect the increasing demand for materials that combine technical performance with more responsible manufacturing practices.

Simultaneously, Première Vision Paris is expanding its role as a knowledge-sharing platform through an enhanced conference programme featuring more than 100 international speakers across dedicated Innovation & Technology and Fashion & Beauty stages. Sessions will examine the commercial implications of emerging technologies, changing consumer behaviour, sustainability, creativity and future market developments.

Among the presentations are discussions exploring subjects such as When Technology Shapes the Silhouette: Between 3D Printing and Material Craftsmanship and Agentic Commerce Is Already Shopping for You, highlighting how automation and AI are beginning to reshape both product creation and the retail experience.

Perhaps the most strategically significant development this season is Première Vision Paris's growing commitment to strengthening links between the fashion and beauty industries.

Building on its partnership with COSMETIC VALLEY, the exhibition is launching the Cosmetic Village, a dedicated area bringing together laboratories, manufacturers, packaging specialists, research and development teams and beauty innovators. The initiative recognises that fashion and beauty increasingly share common priorities around colour forecasting, consumer lifestyle trends, sustainability, branding and technological innovation.

The partnership with Kolmar Korea, one of the world's leading cosmetic manufacturers, further reinforces this convergence. Within the Prospective Area, the company will present its vision for cosmetic innovation while unveiling an exclusive make-up palette and lipstick inspired by Première Vision's Autumn/Winter 2027-28 colour forecasts.

The collaboration illustrates how trend intelligence is increasingly extending beyond apparel into adjacent creative industries, creating new opportunities for brands to develop more cohesive lifestyle propositions.

Speaking ahead of the event, Florence Rousson, Managing Director of the Fashion Division at GL events, said the exhibition reflects "the spirit of innovation currently driving the fashion and creative industries", pointing to the expanded conference programme, new partnerships and the technologies being presented by exhibitors as catalysts for business transformation.

As global supply chains continue to evolve, Première Vision Paris is positioning itself not simply as a venue for sourcing fabrics and components, but as a strategic forum where fashion, technology, sustainability and beauty increasingly intersect. For companies preparing Autumn/Winter 2027-28 collections, the event offers valuable insight into the innovations likely to influence both product development and future business strategies.

Photos by Lucia Carpio at Première Vision Paris February 2026 edition

Design Graduates: TEX+ winners secure Première Vision Paris showcase as charity celebrates UK's emerging textile talent

Three of the UK's promising emerging textile designers will exhibit at Première Vision Paris this Autumn, from 1 - 3 September, after being awarded the TEX+ International Exhibition Prize during the TEX+ Showcase at Chelsea College of Arts in London on 15 July 2026.

Left to right:  Lili Mizuno, Twig Searle and Christie Shannon
Credits: Tex+

The international exhibition awards were presented to Twig Searle,  of Falmouth University, Christie Shannon from Glasgow School of Art and Lili Mizuno of London College of Fashion, UAL.  They are all 2026 graduates.

The trio will exhibit at the influential Paris textile trade fair alongside previous International Exhibition Prize recipients Ruth Kent and Nikki Kewley (2024 cohort) and Freya Booth (2025 cohort), providing them with an opportunity to present their work to an international audience of fashion and textile buyers.

The announcement formed part of the annual TEX+ Prize Awards, which recognise exceptional creativity, technical excellence, innovation and craftsmanship among the UK's graduating textile designers. As well as celebrating emerging talent, the awards provide financial support, professional development opportunities and valuable industry connections designed to help graduates establish careers within the textile and fashion sectors.

Building on the 50-year legacy of Texprint, the TEX+ charity brings together education and industry through exhibitions, mentoring, networking and career development initiatives. Former participants have gone on to work with leading brands including Chanel, Nike and Liberty.

Jeremy Somers, Chair of TEX+, said: "The TEX+ prizes recognise the outstanding creativity, innovation and technical excellence emerging from the UK's textile graduates today. We're incredibly grateful to our sponsors and supporters, whose generosity enables us to celebrate exceptional talent while providing meaningful opportunities that help graduates take the next step in their careers."

2026 TEX+ Prize winners (for details of the winners, click HERE)

Among the principal awards, Maia McLaren received the Pentland Prize, worth £1,000 together with a work placement.

The two Liberty Fabrics Studio Prizes, each worth £500, were presented to Grace Holden and Xavier Theobald.

Lisa Rogerson won the Worshipful Company of Weavers Prize (£1,000), while Roisin Foster received both the Juliet Vogel Colour Prize (£1,000) and the Pattern Cloud Support Award, which includes one year's complimentary access to The Pattern Cloud Plan.

Molly White and her printed textile designs.
Photo: Lucia Carpio

The Bay & Brown Support Award, comprising a Beginners Complete Surface Textiles Print Online Course, an Online Floral Print Course and a portfolio session with Tracey Brown, was presented to Molly White.

Printed textile designs by Harriet Letts.
Photo: Lucia Carpio

Harriet Letts received the Sahara Prize, including £500, a one-month placement at Sahara and a potential design purchase opportunity.

The Inge Cordsen Craftsmanship Prize (£1,000) went to Zoe Noble, while Lili Mizuno also received the TEX+ Industry Prize for Technical Excellence (£1,000).

The TEX+ Sustainability & Ethical Practice Prize (£1,000) was awarded to Ruby Bolt.

The Helga Goldman Legacy Prize, recognising Innovation and Creativity and accompanied by a £1,000 award, went to Belén Fernández, while Twig Searle also collected the John Miles Legacy Prize (£1,000).

Additional industry awards included the Kvadrat Prize, a trip to the company's Wooltex mill in Huddersfield, presented to Lola Bate, and the London Embroidery Studio Prize, a six-month studio residency, awarded to Kate Crilly.

Supporting graduates into industry

Tex+ 2026 Finalists
Credits: Tex+

This year's awards come as many textile graduates continue to face significant barriers when entering the creative industries.

Research commissioned by TEX+ found that 56% of textile graduates are not currently working in a full-time textile role, while 36% are balancing multiple jobs. More than half (51%) have relied on financial support since graduating.

The findings highlight the continuing importance of initiatives such as TEX+, which connect emerging designers with employers, mentors and industry professionals through practical career development opportunities that help bridge the gap between education and employment.

Through its network of designers, educators, industry partners and alumni, TEX+ continues to strengthen pathways into the textile industry, ensuring that the next generation of creative talent gains the experience, confidence and professional connections needed to build successful careers.

Trade Fair Report: Scoop strengthens its international credentials with landmark Italian Trade Agency partnership

As UK retailers continue to look beyond volume sourcing in favour of originality, craftsmanship and premium quality, Italy remains one of Britain's most influential fashion trading partners. Worth an estimated £3–4 billion annually*, UK imports of Italian clothing, footwear, textiles and leather goods continue to perform strongly, driven by sustained demand for luxury womenswear, premium footwear, leather accessories, sustainable textiles and high-quality fabrics.  Against this backdrop, Scoop International's latest collaboration with the Italian Trade Agency (ITA) reflects both the continuing appeal of 'Made in Italy' and the growing appetite among British buyers for distinctive international brands.

From Italy, clockwise from top left: Ripani, Serienumerica, Sayyou
Credits: Scoop International

The partnership marked one of the standout features of Scoop International's Spring/Summer 2027 edition, held at Olympia National, London, from 19–21 July 2026, and completed the show's major trade calendar following its whimsical Autumn/Winter 2026 edition earlier in the year.

Jewellery from Angela Caputi Giuggiù of Italy at SCOOP International
Photo: Lucia Carpio

Making its Scoop debut, the Italian Trade Agency presented an exclusive collective of 32 contemporary Italian designers and brands spanning womenswear, knitwear, accessories and lifestyle collections. With the majority of the exhibitors not yet represented in the UK, the showcase provided buyers with a rare opportunity to discover a new generation of Italian labels seeking distribution within one of Europe's most influential fashion markets.

Scoop International July 2026 edition featured a vintage circus theme for the Spring/Summer 2027 showcase.
Featured were fun-house mirrors, mannequins on rope swings, and a red-and-white striped Big Top Café.  Entertainment was provided by live piano music and an onsite tarot card reader.
Photo: Lucia Carpio

The initiative also demonstrated Scoop's growing role as a gateway for emerging and family-owned Italian manufacturers looking to expand internationally. Many of these businesses produce collections distinguished by exceptional design, craftsmanship and manufacturing expertise, yet often lack the commercial infrastructure and distribution networks needed to establish themselves overseas.

The collaboration represents a natural evolution for Scoop according to Scoop founder and Creative Director Karen Radley. Throughout the show's history she has successfully introduced carefully curated Italian collections to the UK market, and the partnership with the Italian Trade Agency enables Scoop to showcase the depth and diversity of contemporary Italian creativity on a significantly larger scale. It also lays the foundations for an even stronger Italian presence at the show's Autumn/Winter 2027 edition, which returns to London's Olympia National from 7–9 February 2027.

From France, clockwise from left: Vanessa Bruno, Aurège and Zag Studio.
Credits: Scoop International

While the Italian contingent attracted considerable attention, it formed part of an increasingly international exhibitor line-up. French brands including Vanessa Bruno, Aurège, Zag Studio, Ma Petite Capsule, Travaux En Cours, Minuit Douze and Julie Sion exhibited alongside Spanish labels Dr Bloom, Sophie + Lucie and Rita Row, Scandinavian names Masai and A-View, together with British designers and brands from Australia and the United States.   New exhibitors this season included JC Sophie, Resume, MRP Star, Alessandra Salvatore and Kore Collections.

Jewellery made in Paris by Julie Sion.
Photo by Lucia Carpio

The show's international appeal was reflected in the calibre of buyers attending. Retailers including Liberty London, Fenwick, Cream, The Dressing Room, Galeries Lafayette, El Corte Inglés and Printemps were among those searching for fresh collections and new brand discoveries.

 Anna Berkeley hosted daily Style Spotlight presentations at Scoop.
Photo: Lucia Carpio

Alongside the buying opportunities, Scoop's content programme added further value for visitors. Stylist and former fashion buyer Anna Berkeley hosted daily Style Spotlight presentations together with her Behind the Curtain sessions, guiding buyers through key Spring/Summer 2027 trends and helping retailers translate seasonal direction into commercial buying strategies.

With its expanding international exhibitor base, influential retail audience and successful debut partnership with the Italian Trade Agency, Scoop has further strengthened its position as one of the UK's leading contemporary fashion trade events. The collaboration not only showcased the enduring strength of Italian creativity but also highlighted the growing importance of international partnerships in connecting emerging brands with new markets. Those relationships are expected to continue developing when Scoop returns to Olympia National for its Autumn/Winter 2027 edition from 7–9 February 2027.

*HMRC commodity data

Announcement: British Fashion Council unveils provisional London Fashion Week September 2026 schedule. McQueen, Mulberry and Marks & Spencer among highlights of London Fashion Week SS27

 The British Fashion Council (BFC) has unveiled the provisional schedule for London Fashion Week (LFW) September 2026, which will take place from 17-21 September and feature a mix of established British fashion houses, emerging designers and retail activations.

The SS27 edition marks the return of several major names to the official schedule, including Alexander  McQueen, where creative director Seán McGirr will stage his first London runway presentation featuring both menswear and womenswear collections. Mulberry also returns to the schedule, with Christopher Kane set to present his debut collection for the British leather goods brand.

Other established labels confirmed for the week include Barbour, Burberry, Emilia Wickstead, Erdem, Harris Reed, Richard Quinn, Roksanda and Simone Rocha. Contemporary designers Aaron Esh, Ashley Williams, Chopova Lowena, Knwls and Paolo Carzana are also among those showing.

The schedule continues to highlight emerging talent through the BFC NEWGEN programme, supported by Pull&Bear. Newcomers Francesca Lake, Gui Rosa and Petra Fagerström will make their London Fashion Week debuts as NEWGEN recipients, joining returning designers Charlie Constantinou, E.W. Usie, Liza Keane, Octi, Oscar Ouyang, Pauline Dujancourt, The Ouze and Yaku.

Fashion East will once again present its showcase following the BFC's recent commitment to increase investment in the talent development initiative. The programme will also feature a showcase from Birmingham City University, reflecting the organisation's continued focus on supporting creative talent from across the UK.

Several brands will appear on the official schedule for the first time, including British menswear label Geordie Campbell, womenswear designer Joyce Bao, Indian fashion label Lovebirds and demi-couture brand Onalaja.

Alongside runway shows, the SS27 season will feature a series of presentations, installations and cultural events. J.L-A.L will unveil its latest collection through an immersive presentation, followed by an event celebrating the launch of its collaboration with Puma. Meanwhile, Paul Smith Foundation designer-in-residence 5000 will present its new collection through a sound bath experience combining fashion, music and art.

Retail brands continue to play an increasingly prominent role during London Fashion Week. Marks & Spencer will make its LFW debut by presenting its first exclusive runway collection, adopting a "see now, buy now" format for menswear and womenswear as part of the retailer's centenary celebrations. Dover Street Market will host an in-store jewellery showcase, while H&M is collaborating with photographer Nick Knight and SHOWstudio on a reimagined fashion presentation. eBay will return with its Endless Runway pre-loved fashion show, which will be shoppable via eBay Live, and Selfridges will spotlight London Fashion Week designers through dedicated in-store installations and curated retail edits.

Commenting on the programme, British Fashion Council chief executive Laura Weir said the September schedule reflects the "confidence and momentum" of British fashion, bringing together established brands, emerging designers and industry partners while reinforcing London's position as a centre for creativity, innovation and commercial opportunity.

London Fashion Week September 2026 runs from Thursday 17 to Monday 21 September.  

Click HERE to explore the London Fashion Week September 2026 Schedule.

Awards: British Fashion Council strengthens support for emerging fashion designers and businesses with 2026 funding awards

The British Fashion Council (BFC) has announced the recipients of its 2026 designer support programmes, with Bianca Saunders, LABRUM and six independent fashion businesses receiving funding to accelerate growth and strengthen the UK's creative fashion sector.

Bianca Saunders has been named the winner of the 2026 BFC/Vogue Designer Fashion Fund, receiving a £150,000 grant alongside a tailored programme of business mentoring and professional services. The award, delivered in partnership with British Vogue, supports established British designers with the potential to achieve long-term international growth.

Since launching her eponymous label following graduation from the Royal College of Art in 2017, Saunders has earned widespread acclaim for redefining contemporary menswear through the lens of her British-Caribbean heritage. Her collections explore identity, culture and masculinity, combining innovative tailoring with thoughtful storytelling.

The BFC has also named LABRUM as the recipient of the 2026 BFC/GQ Designer Fashion Fund. Founded by Foday Dumbuya in 2014, the menswear label will receive a £100,000 grant, a year-long business mentorship programme, pro bono legal support from Sheridans and access to a network of specialist business advisers.

Drawing on Dumbuya's upbringing in Sierra Leone, Cyprus and London, LABRUM has established a distinctive identity by blending African cultural narratives with British tailoring. The brand has gained international recognition for collections that celebrate migration, identity and the African diaspora while presenting a contemporary vision of British menswear.

Alongside the two flagship awards, the BFC has revealed the latest recipients of the BFC Fashion Trust, its grant programme designed to support designers at key stages of business development. The 2026 recipients are Clio Peppiatt, Conner Ives, Nicholas Daley, Paolo Carzana, Patrick McDowell and Tolu Coker.

Established in 2011, the BFC Fashion Trust has distributed more than £3 million through the BFC Foundation, supporting 59 designer businesses with investment across areas including production, merchandising, e-commerce and product development. The initiative was recognised at The Fashion Awards 2025, where founder Tania Fares received a Special Recognition Award celebrating 15 years of the programme.

Commenting on the announcements, BFC chief executive Laura Weir said the awards reflect the organisation's commitment to supporting commercially resilient British fashion businesses through its BFC 2030 strategy. She described Bianca Saunders and LABRUM as designers whose creative vision and cultural storytelling exemplify the strength of British fashion, while noting that the Fashion Trust continues to play an important role in helping independent businesses scale sustainably.

The BFC's portfolio of prizes and funding programmes forms part of the BFC Foundation, which provides financial support, mentoring and business development opportunities to designers at different stages of their careers, with the aim of strengthening the long-term competitiveness of the British fashion industry.