QUT Creative Enterprise Australia (CEA) has continued to support Australian creatives in the fashion industry with the return of its Fashion Accelerator program in 2017.
This year’s successful applicants of the program include four startups from Brisbane; Suzii K, Genkstacy, Gloria Dulcie and Miss Summer; and one label out of Toowoomba, Whitelane Textiles.
Now in its sixth year, the program aims to promote aspiring start-ups and entrepreneurs within the industry by giving them access to a wealth of knowledge and business experience from real-world industry mentors.
This year the program will expand from its previous five month format to a six month format which includes weekly workshops covering business modelling, e-commerce options and lessons on business finance.
The only program of its kind in Australia, it gives the participants the opportunity to receive the CEA’s Startup Fund offering up to $150,000, as well as the chance to showcase their range to a panel of esteemed fashion experts.
With Australia’s fashion industry now worth $28.5 billion, CEA CEO Anna Rooke said the program was more important than ever when it came to providing opportunities to young fashion designers.
"We’re already seeing disruption when it comes to the fashion and retail industries, so it’s important for us to make sure that the next generation of designers can really be at the forefront of these changes.
“There is more to just launching a fashion brand on social media. By building up business and technology skills for designers to learn how to scale and build their customer base, we can help young Aussie businesses develop a brand that will be more sustainable in the long term.”
2017 mentors include Australian Fashion Chamber’s Courtney Miller, fashion designer Lydia Pearson, former director of
council of Textiles & Fashion Michel Abeysekera, and CEA’s own fashion development manager Thuy Nguyen.