Right now, we are taking a long, hard look at all the aspects of how we can educate ourselves to live an anti-racist life. We are questioning every element of the ways we can show our allyship to black people, beyond a performative blackout post on Instagram. Don’t let there be tumbleweed. Everything leads back to the fact that actions speak louder than words, and putting your money where your mouth is is one way you can act.
This Saturday marks another Black Pound Day, a solution-based approach to support the UK Black economy. Taking place on the first Saturday of each month, it is a practical - and, crucially, consistent - call-to-action to encourage shoppers to buy from black-owned brands and therefore help to address the indisputable economic imbalance.
At the top of the industry, fashion has always been disproportionately managed by older, white men. From the high street to high end, creative directors, designers and CEOs haven’t been representative of who they are creating for. Isn’t it odd (that’s putting it politely) that the people who actually make the clothes, sell them in shops and ultimately buy them are women? In the past few years diversity has been a buzzword among brands and many are taking baby steps towards inclusivity, especially outwardly facing in advertising campaigns - but obviously this needs to be magnified across the industry from boardroom to design studio and every stage in between. We’ve watched as authentic support - or lack of - unfurls and those that aren’t doing anything or actively remaining silent are agonisingly obvious. While brands must try harder, it’s shoppers who hold the ultimate power to raise up a label or shut one down. Since George Floyd’s murder, the stories of black-owned brands have been amplified and we are stepping up our support. This list, by no means definitive, includes plenty of smaller businesses which often face higher hurdles to overcome in setting up their brands, particularly at the time of the Covid crisis.
Before you add to basket, train your mind to think about who you are supporting with your hard earned cash. Actively search out black-owned and designed brands. These are labels to support for more that just this week. Next season, next year, next decade…
Let’s raise these brands to become fashion’s household names that resonate into next century and beyond.
Daughter of Bohemian
Creating upclycled individual pieces from pre-loved fabrics, designer Nuala Ferrington is a former High Street fashion buyer. The vintage kimonos and hand-painted sportswear are stand-out pieces.