The last 12 months have brought about a seismic change felt by all areas of the fashion industry — not least for those designers navigating the early days of a fledgling business. Yet, while on first glance 2020 issued countless challenges, these five designers are moving into the New Year with stronger businesses, defined aesthetics and a renewed energy set to see their labels continue to soar.
Over the course of this year, they have rethought strategies, switched up business models and adjusted their processes, reworking every element of their labels to better serve their customers and safeguard the future of their brands. But that’s not all. Some stepped up to create PPE for key workers, others responded to the Black Lives Matter movement by becoming out-and-out forces for change, while others benefited from the renewed focus on the concept of a creative community. Here, Miss Vogue meets five brilliant young female designers to talk through 2020’s challenges and how the last 12 months has reconfigured, and ultimately strengthened, their eponymous brands.
Bethany Williams
The London College of Fashion graduate established her label in 2017 and has since become known for her working with social enterprises alongside her design endeavours.
How did you have to shift your work plans to accommodate the impact of the coronavirus pandemic?
We have been doing a lot less travelling, which has given us much more time to think about our work and feel more rooted and connected to the work we are doing.
What kept you going and inspiring you this year?
This year it has been amazing to see the power of creativity in very turbulent times and the creativity of designers around us has kept us going. Also, the power of the collective. Working with the Emergency Designer Network was just incredible. It was an amazing moment seeing our industry come together to support our key workers in the production of PPE.
What do you think has been a positive element to come from this year in terms of your creativity and business development?
We have been able to grow the business and really consider the projects we are doing — like being able to spend more time on design and implement new systems.
What are you most proud of achieving this year?
My proudest achievement would be the collective work of the Emergency Designer Network. Working a cross industry team of over 150 volunteers to produce over 50,000 surgical gowns and 10,000 scrubs and masks for over 40 hospitals and care homes during the pandemic outbreak. We couldn’t have done anything without every single individual who has volunteered, donated, couriered, cut, sewn, stitched, ironed, washed, packed, delivered, trialed, tested, graded, priced, stored, promoted, fundraised and, ultimately, worn these garments in order to keep us safe.
How do you plan on taking the learnings from this year into 2021?
My learning for 2021 would be to be more rooted and to work to a slower pace where we can really consider our design and projects, to continue to put people before profit and to continue to support social projects with our practice.
Charlotte Knowles
Knowles graduated from Central Saint Martins in 2017 and has quickly developed a subversive aesthetic that has seen her become the international It-girl’s go-to. She designs her namesake label with her partner, Alexandre Arsenault, and has fans in Kylie Jenner, Iris Law and Bella Hadid.
How did you have to shift your work plans to accommodate the impact of the coronavirus pandemic?
We had to find a way to work remotely and adapt. Luckily, we are still a relatively small company so we had a bit more flexibility.
What kept you going and inspiring you this year?
Music, people, movies, change and challenges.
What has been the toughest decision you have had to make this year?
Investing in a new collection when no one knew what was going to happen with Covid.
What do you think has been a positive element to come from this year in terms of your creativity and business development?
We saw an increase in support from our following, more and more people wearing the clothes and wanting to be part of our world. For us that means more than anything. We spend so much time making sure the products are something people will feel proud to invest in and wear, it makes us really happy to see so many people feeling empowered wearing CK.
What are you most proud of achieving this year?
We reached 100,000 followers on Instagram, which seems so crazy. When we started the brand three years ago, we would could never have imagined so many people would have known about the brand and the Charlotte Knowles world.
How do you plan on taking the learnings from this year into 2021?
Planning ahead. Though 2020 was a hard one, we had to do a lot of projection and planning and that really helped us find our way through everything.
Priya Ahluwalia
The University of Westminster graduate established her namesake label in 2018. She was one of the eight brands awarded the prestigious LVMH Prize in 2020 and is stocked in the world’s biggest international stores. Ahluwalia was also selected to be a part of Gucci Fest earlier this year.
How did you have to shift your work plans to accommodate the impact of the coronavirus pandemic?
I had plans for lots of physical events but I had to switch them so that they were online. I have actually loved this, because I was able to communicate with people globally, rather than a select few on a guest list. I felt like it democratised the whole process. I was really pushed to explore digital means of communication, something I had never really done before. If the lockdown hadn’t happened, I would have had a physical launch for my book, Jalebi, instead of a virtual one, and I don’t think the GucciFest, where I launched my first film, Joy, would have even happened.
What kept you going and inspiring you this year?
Firstly, my Mum and my team have been a great support network on a personal level and they have been key to my motivations. More broadly, the events of this year, especially the Black Lives Matter protests, have completely inspired me in so many ways. I also feel like it has given me and the brand a new sense of responsibility. I have been inspired by communities and how they have come together in these difficult times.
What do you think has been a positive element to come from this year in terms of your creativity and business development?
The first lockdown gave me time to pause and, for so many reasons, this was vital for me. I was able to really rest, think, research and strategise. Although it was daunting, I felt like I had a moment of clarity about what I want to achieve with the brand and then I almost went into survival mode to make it work.
What are you most proud of achieving this year?
In the face of such a hard year, I feel so proud of quite a few things: being a joint winner of the LVMH Prize 2020, releasing my second book, Jalebi, releasing a film with support from Gucci, and winning a Fashion Award. As well as this, I have moved into my first proper studio and expanded my team. I feel quite brash listing all of this but I am just really proud and really honoured.
How do you plan on taking the learnings from this year into 2021?
I will definitely be investing more time in my health and sense of peace. This year also shone a light on how my business model was reliant on lots of external factors but now I will be working on putting more power into the brand.
Charlotte Beecham
Beecham established her label, Charlotte Simone, in 2015, quickly becoming a cult label for those in-the-know. This year has seen the designer revamp her label and entirely reconfigure her working practice and output. Mia Regan, Lila Moss and Miley Cyrus have all recently worn designs.
How did you have to shift your work plans to accommodate the impact of the coronavirus pandemic?
I changed my business completely, I had to — it was the only way we were going to survive. Pre-Covid, my business was 70 per cent reliant on wholesale retailers and I quickly realised we needed to restructure in order to protect the brand’s future. Although I was initially filled with fear, lockdown had its advantages. The time out really allowed me to take a step back and look at the business from top to bottom. I spent a lot of time engaging with our global customer base and I told them about the challenges we now faced and asked for help. It was amazing to have the time to stop, listen and learn. Taking the time to digest all the feedback, I realised that everyone wanted near the same thing: a unique piece that they could keep forever. That’s when I realised our new brand slogan would be “get it or regret it” and that we would re-focus to create beautiful, one-of-a-kind pieces, cutting out the third-party retailer and selling direct to the consumer.
This shift gave the business the opportunity to work exclusively to a small-scale production model. For the first time, it allowed us to work to a schedule that suited us as a small and independent business, while also better servicing our customers by delivering seasonal product during the season [it was suited to] and not four to five months ahead to meet store deadlines. As a designer first and foremost, it has allowed me to be far more creative and free with my design process. I’m no longer restricted with fabric minimums and wholesale order runs. Now, I simply use what I love and know the customer will love, which in turn dictates the number of units we’re able to make. Our production is now a more considered, exclusive and sustainable approach to fashion.
What kept you going and inspired you this year?
The Instagram community that I have amassed over the past five years in business certainly helped to steer me in the right direction. I also watched a lot of old Hollywood movies — Gone With The Wind, Some Like It Hot and Casablanca to name a few. The films were filled with such vibrant shades and beauty it was hard to not be inspired… I also realised that, in the past five years of business, I had never really had the time to just sit and draw as I was always rushing from one task to another. I had, for the first time in a long time, the opportunity to just observe people and sketch and for that I feel very grateful.
What has been the toughest decision you have had to make this year?
The toughest decision was having to restructure my team. I knew I had to downsize in order to survive but it was still a tough pill to swallow.
What do you think has been a positive element to come from this year in terms of your creativity and business development?
The positive for 2020 has definitely been honesty and communication. It led us to really look at what we are doing and ask questions: How can this be better? What impact do we want to have, not only on our customers but also the fashion industry? For me, it’s the small-scale approach which will have the most impact, not just for me creatively, but it will also allow us to move into the next phase of the brand leaving a considered, authentic and honest footprint.
What are you most proud of achieving this year?
I’m proud of my grit and determination to not only stay in business this year but to completely rebuild my brand, introduce a new business model, exit long-standing retail partnerships and go it alone through our own e-commerce. This year, despite everything, we have still managed to sell two brand new capsule collections, continually grow our global customer base and maintain the excitement of the brand.
How do you plan on taking the learnings from this year into 2021?
I plan on continuing to take the time to reach out to my customers to learn what it is they want or are waiting for! We’ve actually built a tab on our website where we encourage customers to now email us their thoughts, sketches, upload images — I love it! It’s a melting pot of ideas from our Charlotte Simone community.
Alicia Robinson
Having worked as a freelance knitwear designer for Kanye West’s Yeezy, Missoni and A Cold Wall, Robinson — a Chelsea College of Art graduate — started her own label, AGR Knit, last year. Her designs bring a vibrant, contemporary edge to the knitwear space.
How did you have to shift your work plans to accommodate the impact of the coronavirus pandemic?
At the beginning of the pandemic, I moved my whole studio back to my mum’s house in Croydon and set up shop from there. I was lucky enough to have the space there that meant I was able to keep on working throughout. I also tried to utilise my skills in some way to help, thus the introduction of the AGR masks. They were really an unexpected hit and I was inundated with orders for the whole of the peak of the pandemic.
What kept you going and inspiring you this year?
For me, it was people’s positivity and desire to help that lifted my spirits. I also used the down time to really get back to making, which can get quite lost when you move into being a brand. That’s what I used to really love about being freelance, the “making” of pieces for clients. I’m really into processes and building something beautiful, which sometimes can get lost amongst all the emails and factory visits.
What has been the toughest decision you have had to make this year?
I think the toughest decision was probably expanding during these uncertain times, but, then again, I’ve always been about taking risks. So fingers crossed, hey?!
What do you think has been a positive element to come from this year in terms of your creativity and business development?
As far as business development goes, the time during the pandemic definitely allowed me to get back on top of the infrastructure of the business and I definitely intend to keep this up going forward. Sometimes, it’s hard to find time when you’re a one man band to keep on top of the boring bits! My creativity levels have definitely increased and this has allowed me to fall back in love with certain things that I had lost touch with. Also, this time of uncertainty has definitely made creatives come together more and work together rather than always competing, which I really love and would like to continue.
What are you most proud of achieving this year?
Launching AGR with Browns, for sure, and, in general, just getting the last collection finally out of the factory. We make a lot of our knitwear in the UK and the area where our factory is based went into lockdown twice so it proved very very challenging to keep working. But, we got there in the end. The AGR campaign shoot that we produced alongside this launch is something I’m also extremely proud of. It was my first campaign and so I learnt a lot, especially with there being nine models. It was amazing to work alongside Troy Casting, photographer Britt Lloyd and, of course, my stylist, Jake Hunte. It made such a nice change to our usual fly-on-the-wall documentary style shoots and I think we really smashed it.
How do you plan on taking the learnings from this year into 2021?
I plan to keep having massive dreams and goals and striving towards them. This year I checked off a lot of things on my bucket list and achieved things I thought were not possible. I’ve learnt a lot about myself and confirmed how resilient I am and so will be moving forward with confidence!
