Brexit strategy

When London-based designer Daniel W. Fletcher showcased his spring 2017 collection to the world last June, he did so in the format of a protest. Fletcher, a graduate of London's Central Saint Martins and former intern at Parisian powerhouse labels Lanvin and Louis Vuitton, has become one of fashion's most outspoken voices in the U.K.'s Brexit debate. His new men's-wear pieces play up the aesthetic of another notable era of civic unrest in Britain's history, the 1970s – a decade remembered for IRA bombings in London, a sluggish economy and the rise of punk.

While the clothes had a retro sensibility, they also carried a very direct message: The word "Stay" emblazoned on baseball caps and track jackets made it crystal clear where Fletcher stood on the country's referendum about its position in the European Union, which would take place one week later. "I wanted to send this message that, look, we're not prepared to bow down to this and give up," Fletcher said from Paris this January, where he was showcasing his wares to buyers during the men's runway shows.

As the founder of a new brand, Fletcher has utilized and relied on the many conveniences afforded to those in the U.K.'s fashion industry through its membership in the EU, which run the gamut from ease of travel to continental Europe (where many young designers such as Fletcher go to hone their skills in famed ateliers) to cheaper export rates. While the nuts and bolts of how Brexit will play out, and how that will affect the British fashion industry, are still unclear, there's little doubt it's poised to drastically change the U.K.'s reputation as a haven for unbridled talent and threatens to slow down the rate of growth that it's experienced lately.

According to the British Fashion Council's (BFC) website, women's-wear sales in the U.K. are worth £27-billion (about $45-billion) annually, and almost 900,000 jobs overall supported by the fashion industry. When those numbers were published in February 2016 pre-Brexit vote, the sales figure was predicted to grow by 23 per cent by 2020. Many designers based in London have enjoyed success at home and abroad over the last five years, with European luxury conglomerates such as LVMH and Kering buying shares in eccentric British brands such as J.W. Anderson and Christopher Kane. The BFC – which is mainly funded by industry patrons, the Mayor of London's office and the European Regional Development Fund (an EU body that supports cross-border economic activity) – has played a key role in upping the U.K.'s fashion profile internationally. In January, the organization partnered with American retailer Barneys New York to create a window display championing the U.K.'s many talents, including new faces such as Alice Archer and more recognizable labels such as Paul Smith and Anya Hindmarch. It's fair to assume that the BFC will eventually have to extend the scope of its sponsorship sources, much like British designers will have to devise ways to work within a new economic reality.

"Because the brand is so new, I'm still finding my feet anyway," Fletcher says about his one-year-old brand's now less-certain future. "What I've been doing since I started the company is developing relationships with suppliers in Italy where I get my trimmings, and where I get my fabrics from in Paris." The long-term benefits of those connections are now up in the air, a precarious position to be in considering he recently confirmed his first European stockist. "My price point is still quite accessible because I want the product to be worn and reach the people who want to wear it," Fletcher notes. With export taxes likely to rise once Britain leaves the EU, his product will become more expensive on the continent. "I could actually end up alienating my customers," he says, noting how dangerous that would be for such a fledgling brand, particularly in today's fashion landscape with its overwhelming abundance of choice.

The uncertainty in the U.K. isn't just a predicament for new designers. More established British brands are also feeling a sense of impending doom, a mood that materialized immediately after the referendum outcome was announced on June 24. "I was in Paris on the first day of our spring/summer 2017 showroom and the mood of those visiting us could not have been bleaker," says Cozette McCreery of the label Sibling, one of the most eclectic brands on the London Fashion Week schedule of outré labels. "Our Asian buyers were concerned with wholesale price, exchange rates and duty increases and the news didn't exactly cheer our European and American buyers who were already placing cautious orders. It wasn't the buy-Britain-cheap thumbs-up the government and some newspapers suggested."

Others within creative industries such as film and television are feeling nervous about the decision as well; Michael Ryan, chairman of the Independent Film and Television Alliance told Market Watch that the EU subsidies creative industries rely on will be sorely missed. "Historically, the U.K. is very stingy when it comes to handing out money for media and arts," he told the publication.

Indeed, the current administration has done little to ease worries since Brexit was confirmed. During the most recent London Fashion Week in September, Dame Natalie Massenet, chairman of the BFC and founder of Net-a-porter, as well as designers including Mary Katrantzou and Christopher Bailey of Burberry, attended a reception at 10 Downing St. where Prime Minister Theresa May tried to ease the industry's concerns. "The government I lead will do everything we can, including providing the right investment in training and skills, to help everyone, whatever people's backgrounds, to go as far as their talents can take them," she was quoted as saying on the BFC website. May – who made the gossip pages for wearing a £995 pair of leather trousers by London-based brand Amanda Wakeley in a photo op for The Sunday Times, sported a Black Watch plaid Vivienne Westwood suit to make her Brexit update speech last month and will be featured on the April cover of American Vogue – appears to be a champion of the country's designers, but she hasn't offered any concrete details to those desperately seeking information about how their businesses will be affected.

The BFC enjoyed a close relationship with Prime Minister David Cameron's wife, Samantha (who notably launched her own fashion label, called Cefinn, this season), but there are question marks as to whether May will boost the business prospects of British designers beyond her own wardrobe choices. In the Financial Times, the BFC's chief executive Caroline Rush was quoted as saying, "We have had reassurances that the current grant is secure. What will happen post-exit is a different matter. That will be an opportunity for lobbying government in terms of funding, and how our industries and different initiatives are supported."

The anxiety will likely be palpable in London when the fall 2017 shows kick off on Feb. 16. For now, designers must take on the daunting task of restrategizing their business plans while simultaneously crafting up the novel looks London's style landscape has become synonymous with. "For Sid and I, it's made us look at exactly what sells and what doesn't and that has reflected on our fall 2017 catwalk," says McCreery. She and her design partner Sid Bryan have refocused on different elements of the brand to weather the storm. "We have a small price-conscious jersey range on offer supported by our own tailoring – a first for us – and graphic hand-knits. We are also looking to expand into children's wear on a very small scale."

Such commercial endeavours could become a lucrative Brexit coping mechanism, though hopefully Sibling and other eclectic British brands will maintain their boisterous approach to design – something that makes the U.K.'s fashion industry so uniquely influential. For a market that pushes boundaries, quiet reserve is not an option.