Innovation Funding for UK Fashion and Textiles Report

An Overview of R&D mechanisms to support collaborative, industry-led academic research

‘Innovation Funding for UK Fashion and Textiles’ explores the collaborative R&D mechanisms that powered innovation across the Creative Industries Clusters Programme (CICP), with a spotlight on two key fashion and textile clusters: the Business of Fashion, Textiles and Technology (BFTT) and Future Fashion Factory (FFF).

The Creative Industries Clusters Programme (CICP) is an £80 million initiative associated with the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund, delivered by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) on behalf of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).

Data presented in this report was derived from both formal and informal project reports. It includes a mixture of interviews with programme management participants, feedback from participating businesses at the time of project delivery, reflections from members of both investment committees and funding recipients post-delivery. Critically, the report contains key recommendations in the areas of:

Investment mechanisms for multi-disciplinary innovation.

Overcoming engagement barriers in future R&D programmes.

Business support strategies to maximise commercial impact.

Structuring funding for real-world application and scalability.

Balancing revenue and capital funding access.
Encouraging end-to-end supply chain collaboration.
Evolving sector skills to meet future demands.

Read the full report here: Innovation Funding for UK Fashion and Textiles Report

Acknowledgments

This collaborative research project was delivered jointly by academic colleagues from the Future Fashion Factory (FFF) and Leeds University Business School (LUBS) at the University of Leeds, with academics at the Business of Fashion, Textiles and Technology (BFTT) University of the Arts London.  FFF and BFTT are both part of the Creative Industries Clusters Programme, an £80 million initiative led by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC), part of the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund.

The Future Fashion Factory (FFF)

The Future Fashion Factory (FFF) is a £6.1M industry-focused collaborative R&D programme led by Leeds Institute of Textiles and Colour (LITAC), University of Leeds. It brings together designers, manufacturers and retailers, to co-develop and implement new advanced textile and industrial digital technologies (IDTs) to create new products and enable shorter lead times, increased global competitiveness and sustainability.

The Business of Fashion, Textiles and Technology (BFTT)

The Business of Fashion, Textiles and Technology (BFTT) is a £5.5m project led by the University of the Arts London (UAL) in collaboration with Loughborough University, University College London, the University of Leeds, Queen Mary University of London, the University of Cambridge, and the Victoria and Albert Museum.

Key industry partners include leading fashion and textile brands, including their extended supply chain, online retailers, emergent design companies and over 40 F&T business trade associations. Bringing together design, STEM, cultural anthropology and business practices to deliver sustainable innovation across the entire fashion, textiles and technology value chain.

With special thanks to all the fashion and textile businesses who gave their time to take part in this research and provided so many valuable insights.

Businesses featured in case studies listed in alphabetical order below with corresponding web addresses.