In Memory of Her Majesty the Queen, Thoughts From Our CEO, Tamara Cincik.

We are all deeply saddened by the news of the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II who has dedicated her life to serving her country, celebrated only a few months ago at her Platinum Jubilee. I attended the London Fashion Week show where the Queen came to present the Queen Elizabeth II Award for British Design to Richard Quinn. The energy in the room was effervescent, a jaded fashion audience giddy with excitement at meeting their queen, who was by far the chicest there, in her Angela Kelly designed powder blue suit. It was a joyous occasion. A real celebration of UK talent and skills.

The award was created with The Queen, recognising the role of creative talent in shaping a positive impact in terms of sustainability and community. When our Ambassador Bethany Williams won the award from the Queen Consort a year later, again I was there, celebrating Bethany's achievement. It was an incredibly exciting and worthy accolade. Both Bethany and Richard highlight what British fashion at its best can be: ethical, conscious and embedded with social purpose.

Those values have been core to the Queen's mission as our monarch. Famously frugal, reusing Christmas wrapping paper just like so many of her war generation, growing her own food, wearing clothes for years. The Queen consistently has worn, driven and promoted British brands.

The Queen's uniform has been as consistent as her calm wisdom for generations. For most of us she has been our monarch for all of our lives. Princess Anne's wedding meant a day off nursery school for me - on my birthday, which made it even more of a bonus - and I loved Anne's Medieval style dress and all the pomp and circumstance as seen on TV (which was black and white). I can remember watching her Silver Jubilee at primary school, a group of children huddled on a large carpet watching together, all very excited by all the bright outfits; and on my council estate there were street parties and real community celebrations, filled with joy. Such popularity has been a continuum for 70 years, an incredible feat and surety in such uncertain times, even meeting her new PM Liz Truss only a week ago today.

I asked Fashion Roundtable Board Member, Kate Hills CEO of Make It British for her thoughts on the Queen and her consistency in promoting British brands. Kate said: "One of the UK’s biggest supporters of British brands and for many, the ultimate symbol of Britishness. From Barbour to Burberry, Land Rover to Launer, many of the companies that the Queen gave her endorsement to, manufacture their products in the UK. But when Queen Elizabeth II came to the throne in 1952, manufacturing made up nearly 50% of the UK's output. It is now just 10%. King Charles III, a loyal supporter of the British wool industry and ambassador for the Prince's Trust, now has the opportunity to prove that the UK can once again be the standard bearer of quality manufacturing."

Reflecting on her importance to British brands, I wanted to celebrate her support of some key names:

Launer, the handbag brand are in receipt of the Royal Warrant. Made in England and the handbag of choice for the Queen for most of her monarchy and before their sad deaths her sister Princess Margaret and the Queen Mother.
Cornelia James Gloves, I frequently used their gloves in fashion shoots and quite frankly they were always the best. When Cornelia James arrived in England in 1939 as a refugee from Nazi occupied Vienna, she brought with her nothing but a suitcase and a steely determination to succeed. In 1947 the couturier Norman Hartnell asked her to make gloves to accessorise the Princess's going away outfit and in 1979 she became the glovemaker ‘by appointment’ to Her Majesty the Queen. Three generations later, the family business is still making gloves by hand in Sussex, England.
Harris Tweed, all those pictures of the Queen over the years enjoying the Highland and Braemar Games - of course she was half Scottish and loved Balmoral - wearing tweed woven in Scotland. The long archipelago on the far northwest tip of Europe is home to every weaver, dyer, blender, carder, spinner, warper, finisher and inspector of Harris Tweed cloth. No part of the process takes place elsewhere.
Barbour, while some of their manufacturing has moved off-shore, Barbour's classic wax jackets are still manufactured by hand in the factory in Simonside, Northumberland. There are many photos of the Queen enjoying country pursuits, surrounded by dogs in a sturdy Barbour jacket or gilet.

I hope that while we mourn the passing of our Queen, a bedrock of calm stability and service which has supported so many initiatives, we can also use this time to celebrate her life and her commitment to causes so many of us hold dear, such as sustainability, social purpose, localism and craft. I believe that these are more important now than ever before.