Caroline Rush, The Force Behind A New Generation of Designers

Caroline Rush is a name that not many people know off. So who is she? She is the big boss lady behind the British Fashion Council. The Chief Executive making the decisions about London Fashion Week. The force behind a new generation of fashion designers.

The British Fashion Council (B.F.C) supports many different aspects of the UK’s fashion industry; from further education to apprenticeships, emerging talent to global brands, fashion weeks for menswear and womenswear and also international showroom initiatives; so why not include Fashion Technology into that fray.

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As we all know, London Fashion week is one of the Big Four. It is imperative that the city remains at the forefront of fashion when it comes to advancement and the direction that the industry is going. This is something that Rush has proved capable of doing. She was the first to introduce live streaming back in 2009. This decision was followed three years later when LFW partnered up with YouTube. She gave British designers a platform to live stream their collections. Also, collaborating with leading bloggers, Rush ensured that fashion news was made live in London’s underground stations.

With 20 year’s experience, Rush was first appointed to the BFC back in 2009. She got the nod of approval from the fashion movers and shakers when she successfully brought Burberry, Mulberry, Preen and Matthew Williamson back to London Fashion Week. Her support of British designers has proved to be endless. She has tirelessly ensured that designers are introduced to new markets in Paris, New York, LA and Hong Kong. Another feather in her cap comes in the shape of BFC/Vogue Designer Fashion Fund and BFC Fashion Arts Foundation. We love her drive and it is this drive that I would love to see applied to bringing Fashion Tech to London Fashion Week.

Caroline Rush With Anna Wintour, Julia Carey and Natalie-Massenet
Caroline Rush With Anna Wintour, Julia Carey and Natalie-Massenet

Bringing tech to the runway is possible, it just needs the backing of Rush. She is a woman who released the first ever in-depth statistic-based reports on the fashion industry and also launched UK’s menswear industry London Collections: Men. She successfully presides over the launch of talent initiatives including Hedonism, a millinery initiative; Rock Vault, a fine jewellery initiative, and BFC Fashion Film.

Named on Evening Standard’s Power 1000 List in 2012 and 2013, Rush is the person that has the power to bring Fashion Technology to the runway. She is unafraid to go against the grain, to mould, encourage and make technology the norm within the fashion industry. The first small step this season is that Intel was announced as a patron of the BFC, with Rush stating: “It is important for the British fashion community to drive forward sales and increase their profiles on the global stage. Innovating with wearable technology and smart garments is a fine way to achieve this.” We couldn’t agree more, designers should be aware that the future of fashion will soon evolve around weaving the latest smart products into garments, designs and accessories. We say hail Caroline Rush CBE, she is proving to be the force behind a New Generation of Designers. Next season we expect to see a little bit more innovation and less talk about being innovative because in our eyes the future of Fashion Technology is now.

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