British Fashion Council Announces Clearpay as Principal Partner of London Fashion Week

Two-year partnership to support the British fashion and retail industry, economic recovery and more consumer access to fashion

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The British Fashion Council (BFC) announces today that Clearpay will become the Principal Partner of London Fashion Week, starting from February 2021. This new two-year partnership will champion British fashion, support the UK retail industry, and give consumers more access to the designers and brands they love. Known for its exceptional creative talent, from young designers to global luxury brands, London Fashion Week will work with Clearpay, a leader in responsible “Buy Now, Pay Later” payments known as Afterpay outside of the UK, to enable growth for the British fashion industry.

While the retail industry and consumers have been greatly impacted by the global pandemic, consumers have consistently shown strong support for local and small businesses in their communities which has been so critical during these challenging times. Specifically, in 2021 Clearpay will partner with the BFC to integrate inclusive shoppable moments and dynamic interactive concepts – bringing the best of the British fashion industry to a wider group of consumers. Together, they will help ensure British designers continue to lead in innovation, creativity, accessibility and have the ability to build responsible and sustainable businesses. Core to Clearpay’s business is supporting new and emerging local brands, with the ultimate goal of accelerating the fashion and retail industry in 2021.

Clearpay have been a patron and partner of the BFC for two years, contributing £25,000 to the BFC Foundation Fashion Fund for the Covid Crisis in 2020. This year’s partnership will also underwrite all of the BFC’s talent support initiatives for 2021/22, including NEWGEN, the BFC/Vogue Designer Fashion Fund, the BFC/GQ Designer Menswear Fund and the BFC Fashion Trust, which recognise excellence and provide support to the best British designers. Each year the BFC contributes over £1million to designers through the BFC Foundation (Reg. Charity 1185152), which brings all of the BFC’s charitable initiatives under one umbrella to enable the growth and success of the British fashion industry. Clearpay is the first partner to support all of these initiatives in addition to London Fashion Week.

Caroline Rush, Chief Executive British Fashion Council commented: “London Fashion Week is one of the ‘Big Four’ leading creative showcases in the world. As we entered a significant period of change last year, and in light of the challenges brought by COVID-19 and Brexit, we pivoted and adapted the event very quickly, moving to a digital platform accessible to both industry and public with evergreen content published throughout the year. We look forward to working with Clearpay to continue developing London Fashion Week, opening it up to a broader range of consumers and adapting it to the designers’ needs.”

Nick Molnar, Co-Founder of Clearpay said: “We are thrilled to engage in a deeper partnership with the BFC to support the future of British fashion. Fashion and retail are deeply embedded in Clearpay’s roots, and through this partnership, we will continue to support British designers and the broader retail economy as we emerge from this terrible pandemic. Equally, we are excited to work with the British Fashion Council to make London Fashion Week more accessible, inclusive and sustainable for consumers and retailers in the coming months and years.”

The generosity and commitment of our partners, suppliers and supporters is more vital than ever. Please help us by acknowledging their support for LFW February 2021. Official Partners: British GQ, Evening Standard, FASHION ZOO, IBM, JD.COM, INC, TONI&GUY and Vanish. Official Suppliers: Fashion & Beauty Monitor, Fora, Getty Images, JOOR, Launchmetrics, The May Fair Hotel. Official Supporters: The Department for International Trade, The European Regional Development Fund, The Mayor of London.

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ABOUT BRITISH FASHION COUNCIL

The British Fashion Council (BFC) was set up in 1983 to promote British fashion internationally and co-ordinate this promotion through fashion weeks, exhibitions and showcasing events. BFC now supports designers beginning at college level and extending to talent identification, business support and showcasing schemes. The BFC promotes British fashion and its influential role at home and abroad, helping British designer businesses develop their profiles and business globally. BFC Foundation (Registered Charity Number: 11852152) was created for charitable purposes and grant giving; attracting, developing and retaining talent through education and business mentoring. BFC Colleges Council offers support to students through BA and MA scholarships and links with industry through design competitions and Graduate Preview Day. Through grant-giving and business mentoring the BFC support designers through four talent identification and business support schemes: BFC/Vogue Designer Fashion Fund, BFC/GQ Designer Menswear Fund, NEWGEN which includes womenswear, menswear and accessories, and the BFC Fashion Trust, a charity supporting UK based designers. The BFC showcasing initiatives and events include London Fashion Week, London Fashion Week Men’s, LONDON show ROOMs and the annual celebration of creativity and innovation in the fashion industry: The Fashion Awards.

ABOUT CLEARPAY (Afterpay Limited)

Afterpay Limited (ASX: APT) is transforming the way we pay by allowing customers to receive products immediately and pay for their purchases over four installments, always interest-free. The service is completely free for customers who pay on time – helping people spend responsibly without incurring interest, fees or extended debt. As at September 30, 2020 Afterpay is offered by nearly 64,000 of the world’s favourite retailers, and more than 11 million customers globally have transacted in the past 12 months.

Afterpay is currently available in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United States and the United Kingdom, where it is known as Clearpay. Afterpay is on a mission to power an economy in which everyone wins.
The partnership with the BFC represents a pivotal move for Clearpay as the business claims its stake with the global fashion industry. This follows their Australia Fashion Week title sponsorship announced in October 2020.