It's that time of year again – the annual London Venture Crawl 2025. The Graduate Futures team, with a group of entrepreneurial students and graduates, joined this unique partnership between London College of Fashion (LCF), UAL and over 20 London universities designed to allow students to observe and connect with real-world businesses, industry thought leaders and founders as they explore startup ecosystems around the city. Stopping at four unique businesses, the crawl presented students with a series of steps their future entrepreneurial journeys could take.
Showcasing the full scope of a well-loved and thriving global fashion brand, the day started with an exclusive tour at AllSaints head office, to inspire attendees with their own brands' future potential. Design Director, Rebecca Nye, shared insights into the creative backbone of AllSaints, from material innovation and catwalks, through to exciting brand campaigns and work with artists.
What I found most valuable was seeing their brand ethos and how they kind of moved from their initial target market to making it broader and incorporating a kids line. So, I found that very interesting to see what their brand ethos is.Martina Lebron, BA (Hons) Fashion Imaging and Illustration
What I found most valuable was seeing their brand ethos and how they kind of moved from their initial target market to making it broader and incorporating a kids line. So, I found that very interesting to see what their brand ethos is.
Martina Lebron, BA (Hons) Fashion Imaging and Illustration
Giving a flavour of every aspect of the business, the tour showcased AllSaints’ product development, complete with samples and fabrics; and their photography studios in action, filled with stylists, make-up artists, designers, merchandisers and digital teams. Students left inspired by the seamless collaboration within the company and the innovation driving its success.
A real taste of industry – fab to see someone that’s all in-house, all in the UK… I just feel the collaboration is off the charts. I feel like they have such a clear voice because they can just collaborate so much easier.Sophie Templar, BA (Hons) Fashion Marketing and Content Creation
A real taste of industry – fab to see someone that’s all in-house, all in the UK… I just feel the collaboration is off the charts. I feel like they have such a clear voice because they can just collaborate so much easier.
Sophie Templar, BA (Hons) Fashion Marketing and Content Creation
Leaving AllSaints motivated, attendees arrived at not just a shop full of aspirations to start their own ventures. The support not just a shop provides is significant. A vital platform for entrepreneurial students, this space exemplifies how UAL supports student and graduate businesses. Originally a fine art gallery set up in 2017, and after a successful pop-up showcasing space for student and graduate works, not just a shop is now a permanent feature of UAL’s High Holborn site and online. Manager, Natalie Stevens, shared how their mission is to offer an accessible selling space, both online and in-store, for UAL’s student and alumni community. By taking low margins, they allow sellers a larger profit than most Highstreet sellers - making it an ideal starting point for creative entrepreneurs. The initiative goes beyond retail, providing workshops, 1-2-1 support, competitions and launch events to help students and graduates develop their business ideas.
The third stop of the day at WeWork in Aldwych, gave a glimpse into today’s dynamic co-working culture. The flexibility and networking opportunities available within WeWork’s shared-work environments fosters creativity and collaboration, holding events to help members connect and engage with each other. The space's relaxed atmosphere, designed to foster collaboration, stood out for many attendees as a viable option for launching a business post-graduation. Plus, the free drinks on offer are always a bonus!
This emphasis on building professional relationships resonated comments from earlier in the day, when Jordan Henderson, Talent Acquisition Business Partner at AllSaints expressed “I think it would kind of be persevering and making sure that you’re really building those networks and speak to people outside of your own bubble. I think having those networks is a good thing to have, so coming to these kinds of days is a good way to reach out to people already in the industry”
Described by Co-Founder and Chief Executive of Holition, Jonathan Chippindale, as “sitting between arts and science”, the final stop of this year’s Venture Crawl took students to multi-award winning Creative Studio Holition. Exposing attendees to the world of digital storytelling; Jonathan spoke on the impact of the digital space and the concept of "Digital Anthropology", diving into the intricacies of the relationship between humans and technology. Hearing how tech companies and CEOs are shaping consumer experiences and solving global challenges in ways that governments can’t, emphasised how anyone working in the digital space could become revolutionaries in bettering everyone’s futures!
Rather than just being passive observers, students actively engaged with Holition’s teams and projects, gaining valuable insights into the power of augmented reality (AR) and hyper-personalisation in beauty marketing through a masterclass by Tara Simmonds, Producer at Holition, on Beauty by Holition. The crawl concluded with an in-depth tour of the Jo Malone Townhouse Experience, an innovative digital marketing solution developed by Holition in response to changing consumer behaviors during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The London Venture Crawl concluded with an exciting Pitch Off at King's College London, where students from 12 universities competed to showcase their business ideas to a packed audience. While LCF didn’t claim the crown, final year BA (Hons) Fashion Design and Development student, Daisy Royle, made history by receiving the first-ever ‘Highly Commended’ award. A testament to her exceptional pitching skills and entrepreneurial spirit! Reflecting on the event, students emphasised how transformative the experience was, broadening their understanding of different business models, company structures, and career possibilities. This year, the London Venture Crawl emphasised that learning isn’t just about observing – it’s about bravely envisioning possibilities, making meaningful connections, and stepping confidently toward future ambitions.
It was truly an experience different from any I have ever had! Hopping about from an established brand like AllSaints to not just a shop, common working spaces with WeWork and ending at Holition. My key takeaway from the entire day was learning a lot about different companies and their structures as well as functioning, especially seeing the variation in corporation structures like WeWork and small retail spaces such as not just a shop, there was something to learn from all of the ventures!Aavantika Chheda, MA Fashion Entrepreneurship and Innovation
It was truly an experience different from any I have ever had! Hopping about from an established brand like AllSaints to not just a shop, common working spaces with WeWork and ending at Holition. My key takeaway from the entire day was learning a lot about different companies and their structures as well as functioning, especially seeing the variation in corporation structures like WeWork and small retail spaces such as not just a shop, there was something to learn from all of the ventures!
Aavantika Chheda, MA Fashion Entrepreneurship and Innovation