UKFT MADE IT Masterclass at Winchester School of Art
28/11/2020
UKFT held a production and sourcing masterclass for undergraduate students at Winchester School of Art on 25th November to provide a better understanding of real-life production and sourcing in industry, and highlight the benefits and opportunities of working with UK manufacturers.
Sharon Williams, Teaching Fellow, Fashion & Textile Design within Winchester School of Art at the University of Southampton, said: “I wish I left university with the pack and information presented at the masterclass. My first design role out of university was to create the first ever clothing collection for a well-known bike brand. This included sourcing manufacture and working with an agent for supply. I had to build relationships with manufacturers in four different countries and my role involved all the areas you have covered.
“I had no idea that I would take something like this on so early in my career and it was definitely a huge learning curve which would have been made so much easier with the insight given today.”
The masterclass is part of UKFT’s MADE IT programme, which will see UKFT delivering a masterclass to students at five universities and offer one student from each participating university a fully financially-supported internship opportunity within a fashion or textile production environment in the UK. At De Montfort, second year BA Fashion Design students can apply for the internship.
The masterclass at the De Montfort University was delivered by Daliah Simble-Hearn, a product lifecycle management consultant who has worked with brands including Jigsaw, Roland Mouret and Chinti and Parker, and Elliott Barlow, UKFT’s manufacturing consultant. The masterclasses would normally be delivered face-to-face but due to the current restrictions, the first in this year’s programme was delivered online.
The session gave students an overview of how to build the right sourcing strategy for a business, while helping them to understand and identify the hidden costs attached to sourcing.
It also helped students to understand sourcing terminology used in industry, as well as exploring different options for building a supply chain strategy. It examined various issues around ethical and sustainable sourcing, and presented the business case and opportunities for working with UK manufacturers today.
“On behalf of WSA I would like to thank you for an excellent delivery of the masterclass,” said Reem Alasadi, MA Coordinator of MA Textile Design and MA Fashion Design at Winchester School of Art. “Daliah had fantastic energy online, the masterclass was clear, informative and well covered. It was exactly what we’re looking for and we had a brilliant turn out, with more than 100 students. Thank you again and we look forward to a face to face delivery next time.”
Linda Mackie, Senior Teaching Fellow Fashion Marketing with Management, said: “We have lots of great feedback from students in tutorials after and the timing was perfect in relation to our module activities now.
“The knowledge was invaluable on so many levels and related directly to our teaching on Product Management.”
The masterclass outlined the different areas of specialism of UK manufacturing including knitwear in Scotland; the north of England for wool textile weavers, outerwear and technical textiles; the Midlands for knitwear, jersey and footwear; luxury ready-to-wear and fast fashion in London; silk in the South East; and lingerie from the South Coast and in Yorkshire. It also helped students to understand how to approach manufacturing in the UK, with real-life examples of developing long-standing relationships with suppliers.
Cecilia Langemar, Programme Leader BA Fashion Design, said: “Our students and staff really enjoyed the professional insights and advice shared. Looking forward to phase two and meeting in person!”
MADE IT is a three-year project and UKFT is working with Plymouth College of Art, Winchester School of Art, De Montfort University and Bucks New University and the University of Salford for the 2020-21 academic year.
Find out more about MADE IT here
In addition to the MADE IT programme, UKFT offers a variety of Masterclasses for Academic and Education settings and industry. Find out more below.