British Fashion Council announces December’s Fashion Awards will be digital event

The British Fashion Council has announced that the 2020 Fashion Awards will this year be replaced by a digital event on Thursday December 3.

In more normal times, the ceremony is held in The Royal Albert Hall and is the highlight of the fashion calendar, as notable for its red carpet fabulousness as its star-studded guest list.

This year, the emphasis of the awards themselves is being reconsidered in order to honour and celebrate the designers, brands, creatives and individuals who have created positive change within the fashion industry, in a year that most will remember as the most challenging on record, both in terms of their businesses and their personal lives.

Twenty individuals and brands will be recognised and receive a ‘2020 Fashion Award’ in honour of their specific contribution – from those who devised pro-active responses to the global pandemic, showed leadership and creative resilience over the past year, to the ones who stood up against prejudice within the fashion industry and fought for change.

“This has been a year like no other. Fashion has probably been changed forever and businesses and designers have had to adapt to a new reality,” said BFC Chair Stephanie Phair in a statement. “It is more important than ever to recognise those in the fashion industry who played an important role in the fight against the pandemic, 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.”

The ‘New Wave: Creatives’ award list, now in its third year, will also make a return, and will this year focus on those designers that have shown resilience and innovation in the face of crisis and made meaningful change.

A physical Fashion Awards event is set to return for 2021 (it’s already booked in the diary for November 29, 2021), there are plans to make its next iteration more reflective of our changed society, with ‘technology and engagement at its heart.’

Caroline Rush, BFC CEO, said: “What the past couple of months have shown us, is that the fashion industry is in need of a reset. This is why this year, under unique circumstances, we felt that it was important to recognise the people and businesses who played a role in some of the most important and challenging issues of our generation and champion those who raised the bar in areas such as diversity, sustainability, and community.”