What do fashion councils actually do?

Start your own brand after fashion school – a tale as old as time in a capital like London, Milan or Paris. In times of hyper-capitalism, mega-brand groups and working around the clock, independence sounds like a very attractive option. Although the saying «sell your soul to the system, or try it your own way,» might suggest an easier way, the option that sounds the most attractive is the one that might be the most draining – at least financially. Some countries, including the UK, Germany or even Austria have a fashion council, a force to help the industry within their specific countries. When you are a young designer trying to get funding, you can contact one of the fashion councils, but it’s not as easy as picking up the phone. 

Fundings  

Fashion councils are no-profit organisation created to help promote the development of the fashion industry in their respective country. Whether that's connecting creatives, creating funds or fostering education – they are meant to help. Oftentimes sold to the public with a philanthropic approach, at first glance they seem to be very useful. But looking at them more closely, it is worth wondering how they actually support the current fashion system. There are many fashion councils in Europe, one of them being in Germany. «They are really nice and try to be there for you when you are a part of them. Of course, being in Berlin, Germany, there isn’t this immense fashion power like in Paris or London, so it’s a way smaller circle,» says a designer who wishes to remain anonymous. She is currently part of the Fashion X Craft programme, which allows her to exhibit her work at Berlin Fashion Week and getting invited to events with networking opportunities. The council, she says, is not funding her label, giving her money to source sustainable materials, or ensuring she has enough funds to pay staff and provide stable working conditions. «They only pay for travel costs and accommodation during the residency and workshops,» she states. They could sponsor a show for her, but for now she is only allowed to use a room in their offices as a showroom for free. «You can apply for funding for a show, but I have not done that yet. For this, I would need to be based with my brand in Berlin,» she adds. With this point, she is highlighting one of the many issues in the German Fashion Council. The council is trying to put Berlin on the map as a global fashion city, therefore only giving Berlin-based labels the sufficient funds.

Business advice 

Luis Dobbelgarden founded the label No Faith Studios in the countryside of Germany, near Cologne, and is now showing in Paris. It would be great if fashion councils would also support talent not based in the capitals, since they are evidently missing out on a great deal of creativity this way. Starting your own brand costs a lot of money, and it would be financially more sustainable if the councils would focus on this, rather than pushing young people to move to expensive cities.  Nevertheless, a lot of fashion councils provide business advice, which is great. This has been confirmed by two designers who worked with the German as well as with the British Fashion council. If you are starting out fresh in your career, it is great to have someone who can give you support on the business side, which can seem daunting in some parts. Despite this, most younger brands still operate on the tired backs of unpaid interns. Most small brands barely make enough money to pay all their staff – a huge systematic issue, which could be tackled by fashion councils. A student who received a scholarship from the British Fashion Council says that the council was super approachable. They gave her money for her final year of school, but she is not allowed to disclose how much. After talking with her peers, she found out that most of them got different amounts. Even though councils tend to give money to young designers, there is no transparency about how much.

Protecting the youngest fashion generations

If the fashion world is a battleground, fashion councils are portrayed as the safety net shielding designers from all potential threats – from bankruptcy to irrelevancy. But a lot of these councils are focused on youth. But is launching a brand without having managerial skills sustainable? Of course, the council can help, but only to a certain extent. If you look at the UK, or the brands that came out of the BFC Newgen initiative, you will quickly find that a lot of them have ceased to exist. Why? You do the math. Fashion councils are an extremely hard and precarious subject. Their main scope may be philanthropic, having been founded with the intention to disrupt the fashion system's exclusive and classist glass ceiling, but today's economically trying times are hindering their progress. Designers are now dealing with the rise of production costs and consumers' ever-decreasing willingness to shop. There is no clear solution to the problem, obviously. But for a start,  councils could stop pushing young designers into the deep end. Launching a fashion brand should be about a slow and steady process, rather than a free dive into the unknown.