The UK Fashion and Textile Association (UKFT) launched its new community, the Small Marketing Team Network, on Tuesday 29 April 2025 with an event hosted at the UKFT Atrium in London. Maximum impact, minimal resources: Strategies for small marketing teams brought together small marketing departments from across the UK fashion and textile industry. Attendees included over 30 brands, textile companies, mills, manufacturers and other organisations.

UKFT designed the Small Marketing Team Network in response to a growing number of member enquiries regarding the support available to marketing professionals working within small departments. With many businesses operating with limited internal marketing resources, this new initiative offers support to address the specific challenges facing these teams.

At the launch event, UKFT welcomed expert speakers who offered insight and practical marketing tips. Attendees heard from Laura Kadhani, Marketing Manager at Rheon and formerly at UKFT member LLUK, Lara Muchin-Shaw, Head of Sales and Marketing at Donna Wilson, and Artemis Doupa, Author of Design and Growth and Founder of maake and maake Academy.

Attendees then worked together during a collaborative session aiming to address some common challenges in the sector, including:

• Limited budget and resources
• Managing multiple channels with a small team
• Content creation and maintaining quality
• Difficulty proving marketing ROI to leadership
• Keeping up with trends and industry developments

The afternoon session featured a workshop led by Artificial Intelligence (AI) specialists Push Group. Co-founders Steve Hyde and Ricky Solanki, alongside New Business and Growth Marketing Director Jai Khan, showcased practical ways to leverage AI tools for marketing. The workshop offered a hands-on introduction to emerging tools and techniques accessible to smaller teams.

About the Small Marketing Team Network

The Small Marketing Team Network is new community bringing together one-person and small marketing teams (max. four people) from across the UK fashion and textile industry. The network includes regular in-person and digital meetings throughout the year, and aims to:

• Address current challenges specific to small marketing departments
• Find solutions to some of these challenges through workshops and group discussions
• Stay up to date with recent industry development and new marketing trends
• Build a supportive network of like-minded marketers

Marketing Mornings with UKFT

UKFT will also launch ‘Marketing Mornings with UKFT’ a 30-minute monthly online meet-up tailored exclusively for UKFT members working in small marketing teams.

These sessions will offer the opportunity to:

• Catch up on marketing trends in fashion and textiles
• Share challenges and crowdsource solutions
• Swap tips, tools and creative wins
• Build meaningful connections with fellow members

Marketing Mornings with UKFT will take place on the first week of each month. To sign up, UKFT members can get in touch at info@ukft.org.

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