image of Lauren Broxton sitting down with leather cape

LETTERS FROM LAUREN: LECTURING, RENOVATING AND NETWORKING

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Read the latest from our Scholarship Winner, Lauren Broxton as she shares the exiting opportunities March brought her. From guest lecturing, to appearing on The Saddler’s post podcast and more.

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Can you believe it’s nearly April already? 

Time is moving so quickly these days, I barely have chance to stop and think. It’s a good thing though – so much has happened since my last instalment and I can well and truly say that the brand is really gaining traction now. Amidst commissions, projects and planning my next collection, I’ve also been getting everything in place to scale up the business now. It’s quite intimidating! Sometimes I think back to the early days when it was just me and a bare studio, with a handful of clients (a lot of leather offcuts!) and a whole lot of ideas. My weeks are full now with loyal customers, published articles, collaborators reaching out, bigger and better contracts and an amazing network that support me. I can’t quite believe just how fast things have happened in a couple of years – but I’m so happy.

Lauren Broxton and Jane Kane
The last few months have been insanely busy... 

I kicked off February with a visit from Abbey England – who kindly came down to my studio in Walsall to present me with my scholarship and have a good chat about all things leather, fashion, and sustainability. It was great to meet everyone and show them my collections first-hand – I’ve had so much widespread interest in my work on the back of the scholarship, so I couldn’t be more grateful!
One of my favourite moments from the past few months was taking part in The Saddler’s Post podcast, hosted by the wonderful Christian Lowe, who heard about my work through a lovely article published in Equestrian Trade News. I’ve always wanted to do a podcast, and it was great to talk in-depth about the inspirations behind my work and what drives me. You can listen to the full episode here.
 
Whilst working through a ton of commissions and bespoke renovation jobs, I’ve also had the pleasure of taking on my first teaching job as Visiting Lecturer at Birmingham City University for the School of Fashion & Textiles. Having graduated from there nearly five years ago, it’s been a real full-circle moment to be back, passing on my knowledge, skills, and experiences to the next generation of designers. I’ve been helping to deliver a project on sustainable construction and future supply chains, which has been amazing to be a part of as it’s something so new to the curriculum but so crucial to the future of the fashion industry.
Finally, probably the best thing that’s happened this month was presenting my first Pitch Deck to Graduate Fashion Foundation in London, in the hope of gaining a coveted spot on their Fashion Business Accelerator Programme! The programme pairs 10 emerging designers and creatives with a high-profile industry mentor for 10 months, equipping them with comprehensive fashion business support and assist them in scaling their business. I was delighted with how well my pitch went and I’m happy to announce that I’ve been offered a place on the programme! After a fabulous launch day in London last week, I’ll be spending the next few months developing a new collection to show at Graduate Fashion Week in June.
 
See you in April, where I’ll hopefully have more exciting news! 
 
Lauren Broxton: Fashion Designer: Leather Specialists
image of Lauren Broxton sitting down with leather cape

LETTERS FROM LAUREN: LECTURING, RENOVATING AND NETWORKING

_______________________________________________________

Read the latest from our Scholarship Winner, Lauren Broxton as she shares the exiting opportunities March brought her. From guest lecturing, to appearing on The Saddler’s Post podcast and more.

_______________________________________________________

Can you believe it’s nearly April already? 

Time is moving so quickly these days, I barely have chance to stop and think. It’s a good thing though – so much has happened since my last instalment and I can well and truly say that the brand is really gaining traction now. Amidst commissions, projects and planning my next collection, I’ve also been getting everything in place to scale up the business now. It’s quite intimidating! Sometimes I think back to the early days when it was just me and a bare studio, with a handful of clients (a lot of leather offcuts!) and a whole lot of ideas. My weeks are full now with loyal customers, published articles, collaborators reaching out, bigger and better contracts and an amazing network that support me. I can’t quite believe just how fast things have happened in a couple of years – but I’m so happy.

Lauren Broxton and Jane Kane
The last few months have been insanely busy... 

I kicked off February with a visit from Abbey England – who kindly came down to my studio in Walsall to present me with my scholarship and have a good chat about all things leather, fashion, and sustainability. It was great to meet everyone and show them my collections first-hand – I’ve had so much widespread interest in my work on the back of the scholarship, so I couldn’t be more grateful!
One of my favourite moments from the past few months was taking part in The Saddler’s Post podcast, hosted by the wonderful Christian Lowe, who heard about my work through a lovely article published in Equestrian Trade News. I’ve always wanted to do a podcast, and it was great to talk in-depth about the inspirations behind my work and what drives me. You can listen to the full episode here.
 
Whilst working through a ton of commissions and bespoke renovation jobs, I’ve also had the pleasure of taking on my first teaching job as Visiting Lecturer at Birmingham City University for the School of Fashion & Textiles. Having graduated from there nearly five years ago, it’s been a real full-circle moment to be back, passing on my knowledge, skills, and experiences to the next generation of designers. I’ve been helping to deliver a project on sustainable construction and future supply chains, which has been amazing to be a part of as it’s something so new to the curriculum but so crucial to the future of the fashion industry.
Finally, probably the best thing that’s happened this month was presenting my first Pitch Deck to Graduate Fashion Foundation in London, in the hope of gaining a coveted spot on their Fashion Business Accelerator Programme! The programme pairs 10 emerging designers and creatives with a high-profile industry mentor for 10 months, equipping them with comprehensive fashion business support and assist them in scaling their business. I was delighted with how well my pitch went and I’m happy to announce that I’ve been offered a place on the programme! After a fabulous launch day in London last week, I’ll be spending the next few months developing a new collection to show at Graduate Fashion Week in June.
 
See you in April, where I’ll hopefully have more exciting news!
 
Lauren Broxton: Fashion Designer: Leather Specialists

If you would like to keep up to date with Lauren, you can follow her on Instagram here.