October 15, 2020 |
Breaking: The Fashion Awards are getting a radical, Covid-era re-think. This year, there will be no red carpet at the Royal Albert Hall on the 3rd December. Instead, the flagship event is going digital. In response to what the British Fashion Council described as an “extraordinary year,” a short film will announce the 2020 winners.
The usual winning categories including Brand of the Year, Best British Womenswear Designer and Designer of the Year, have all been ditched. Instead, the winners will be 20 brands and individuals who have inspired with their leadership, innovation and humanitarian response, not just to the pandemic but to social justice and positive change. The total reset of the event puts diversity, sustainability and community at the heart of the awards and follows a year when many designers and brands, at all levels of the industry, pivoted towards making PPE, advocated for Black Lives Matter and pushed the sustainability agenda even further.
Alongside the 20 winners who will be handed a special 2020 Fashion Award, the BFC will also announce a list of New Wave: Creatives, throwing the spotlight on up-and-coming fashion talent. Stephanie Phair, BFC chair said, “Fashion has probably been changed forever and businesses and designers have had to adapt to a new reality. It is more important than ever to recognise those in the fashion industry who played an important role in this extraordinary year, proving the compassion and resilience of our industry. This is what the Fashion Awards 2020 have set to do, by spotlighting those who have shown leadership and creative resilience over the past year.” She vowed that the awards, which are a huge part of the BFC’s fundraising efforts, would return to a physical format at the Royal Albert Hall in 2021, but promised the ceremony would be completely reimagined.
Image: Dilara Findikoglu AW20 by Jason Lloyd-Evans. The Fashion Awards will be broadcast online in a special film premiering December 3rd, 2020.
