The Carry On Touring campaign is fighting to to secure an exemption or provision for those ‘on tour’ who, now we have left the EU, will be required to obtain work permits in each European country they visit.

This briefing note includes updates on the combined impact of Covid-19 and Brexit on the UK’s £35bn GDP fashion sector.

The Covid-19 outbreak has been a catalyst of a global economic downturn. Fashion has been one of the most affected sectors. Disruptions in the supply chain, fast-changing consumer behaviour, and declining sales have left businesses in the fashion industry in dire financial straits.

A key concern for the industry is the limits placed upon freedom of movement for fashion creatives, which is antithetical to a sector that relies heavily on last-minute bookings and an ability to move freely for work. Read our position and briefing on this issue below.

Please see below the most recent updates for your business/members and supply chains.

Following Fashion Roundtable’s open letter to Government, that garnered the support of more than 450 industry-wide signatories including Vivienne Westwood, Twiggy and Katherine Hamnett, we invite you to support our campaign to save the fashion industry.

Fashion Roundtable have highlighted the key issues, impacts and unforeseen consequences of Brexit in our ​open letter​ to UK government. Read our concise roundup of the key areas threatening the UK fashion industry.

A template letter to your MP highlighting Fashion Roundtable’s plea to Government, which urges action that will protect the future of the UK fashion industry.

Helen Brocklebank, CEO, Walpole: “Prior to the pandemic, the British luxury sector was in rude health with a value of £48bn to the UK economy and strong annual growth of nearly 10%. Very much a British success story, the sector supported more than 160,000 jobs throughout the UK. However, international visitors to the UK are a crucial revenue driver, and the last 11 months has put severe pressure on their businesses. On top of the pandemic, the eleventh hour Brexit deal has compounded the sector's problems, making chances of swift recovery for British luxury recede compared to their European counterparts. With 42% of all British luxury export sales coming from the EU, the costs and administrative burdens of trading in continental Europe mean many of our members, not least the SME's, have concluded they simply can’t afford to continue selling to those countries.

Please see the latest Government updates, with some reminders of links to available guidance on Northern Ireland below.

News to Reuse, a youth-led anti-fast-fashion campaign that sits within the social enterprise “I Have a Voice”, is advocating for Government policy to be introduced that would encourage fashion companies to create product labels that inform customers about their clothes’ environmental footprint and the human rights conditions of workers in their supply chains.

The online fashion retailer Boohoo has purchased the Debenhams brand and website for £55m. However, the agreed deal will still put up to 12,000 jobs at risk— with Boohoo stipulating that they only wanted the labels, not the Debenhams high street units. This poses yet another threat to the survival of traditional bricks-and-mortar retail in the UK. At Fashion Roundtable we are incredibly concerned to hear of the continued loss of fashion retail jobs—an unemployment situation that will disproportionately affect women due to the higher number female retail workers.

We are currently collating names of signatories for our open letter to the Government regarding Brexit and the UK fashion industry. Please sign by emailing Sarah at Fashion Roundtable with confirmation of your name and job title.

The latest information and updates for your businesses or members and supply chains including hauliers. The resources cover: GB-NI trade, International Road Haulage and Rest of World trade: Sanctions.

Sojo is on a mission to help make our relationship with fashion more sustainable by ensuring that getting our clothes altered or repaired is a hassle-free process. Deliveroo but make it fashion.

Last season, we saw Fashion Week embrace a new normal— cutting down on jet setting emissions, nearly eliminating the front row, or using deadstock material. Many brands even pulled out of Fashion Week altogether. The circus that Fashion Week became is now a digital offering that is helping to nudge fashion toward a more sustainable and equitable future.

Join Fashion Roundtable as we unite the sector during these troubling and challenging times.