LONDON AS A FASHION CAPITAL – REALITIES OF A THRIVING INDUSTRY A discussion on the realities of London’s Fashion Industry by key On|Off designers, industry experts and fashion scholars Wednesday, 21 September 2005 13:00 till 18:00

On|Off at The Royal Academy of Arts
6 Burlington Gardens, W15 3EX
1st Floor – Gallery Catwalk Room Outline

London’s position as a fashion capital is well established, originally in the days of Haute Couture, alongside Paris and subsequently New York, Milan,Tokyo, Sydney and even San Paolo. Fashion therefore represents a key component within London¹s creative industries. Do the realities of the London Fashion Industry reflect this position within the increasingly demanding world of global fashion? This symposium aims to address the dichotomy between the perceptions of London as both a fashion capital of creative and innovative labels and as a reflection of fashion interacting with the cutting edge world of the arts in an eclectic array of collections. This is in contrast to the reality of a nation whose manufacturing profile is in decline and whose small labels have virtually no advertising budget or local manufacturing. The symposium will take place at the Royal Academy of Arts at the culmination of the On|Off presentations during London Fashion Week.