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CREATE YOUR OWN SPACE: Inspiring new design solutions for city living

  • Written byMadi Hough
  • Published date 15 September 2025

During the 2024/25 academic year, students from London College of Fashion’s BA Cordwainers Footwear and BA Bags and Accessories courses embarked on an exciting collaboration with Salomon, the globally renowned leader in performance sportswear and outdoor innovation.

Working closely with academics and the Salomon design team, students were challenged to take a radical, problem-first approach to the urban environment—reimagining how functional sportswear principles could inspire new design solutions for city living.

The partnership marked a meaningful full-circle moment. Max Virkkunen, an LCF alumnus and now a Sport Style Designer at Salomon, returned to collaborate with the college, bridging his professional experience with the next generation of designers. Over the course of the project, students engaged in a masterclass with Max, received feedback directly from Salomon at mid-point critiques, and presented their final concepts in person to the brand’s design team.

The collaboration not only gave students invaluable exposure to industry expectations but also celebrated innovation and creativity through specialist material support, cash prizes, and internship opportunities.

We had the pleasure of speaking with Grace Lant, Senior Business Development Manager at LCF, to give us an inside scoop on the project, CREATING YOUR OWN SPACE, the winner of the UAL KE Staff Awards Student & Graduate Futures prize.

To start off, how did the collaboration first come about?

Grace Lant: This was a really interesting one. The BA (Footwear) course at LCF has a long history of collaborating with industry. For the first time, the course leader asked students who they would most like to work with for an industry project, and many of them suggested Salomon.

We realised that one of our alumni, who’s now a footwear designer at Salomon, had studied at LCF and been taught by one of the course lecturers. We got in touch with him, and he was really positive about his experience with industry during his time as a student. Because he’d seen the value of those collaborations, he was motivated to take the idea back to Salomon and push for a budget to make it happen. Thankfully, it all worked out and we were able to get the first project up and running.

A woman holding a boot and smiling towards the camera with two people in the distant background and another person writing with a pen.
Student presentations. Image courtesy of Chelsea Pineda.

That’s amazing—and really nice how it’s come full circle for him. You mentioned that the students were particularly keen to work with Salomon. What made them an ideal brand partner?

From a student perspective, they want to work with brands they look up to and interact with—names with influence in the industry at the minute. Salomon fits that perfectly. Most of them have interacted with the brand as consumers. From the course side, the collaboration made sense because Salomon sits at the intersection of design and functionality. The brief asked students to balance functionality—designing with purpose and solving problems—with the lifestyle and aesthetic side of the brand. It was a great challenge for them.

Does the Business and Innovation team work with courses like this every year?

The Business and Innovation (B&I) team at LCF has existed in its current form for only about two years. Before that, there was already lots of industry engagement across courses, but not a structured framework for sponsored student projects.

When we started, there was some hesitation about charging industry partners. But course leaders now see the value—it allows us to provide extra resources, like material budgets for students, support with content creation, and showcase opportunities. Having a contract and a fee also makes industry partners more committed. Since then, we haven’t had a single project drop out, which used to be a big problem.

Mannequin wearing a sports bag clipped around the waist placed on a classroom table.
Student work exhibited in the classroom. Image courtesy of Chelsea Pineda.

That makes sense—it gives both sides a real sense of partnership.

Exactly. And it’s working. In our first six months, we ran four curriculum projects and one was retained for the next year. Last year, we ran seven, and five were retained. That’s a 70% retention rate, which shows how much value both sides are seeing.

Retention is key—the more projects that get retained, the less we have to service them so we can start building in other places. It helps projects improve each year because both academics and brands can build on past experience. For example, Salomon not only returned this year but expanded the collaboration from two courses to four: Footwear, Accessories, Textiles, and Sportswear. It shows the importance of business development and client management, because when Solomon were engaging in the project last year, we took them on a few tours around the building and introduced them to the textiles and sportswear courses. They met some of the technicians and saw the
machinery and that's when the clogs started turning.

Has the brief changed from last year?

Yes, slightly. Each retained project ends with a feedback session to discuss what worked and what didn’t. For Salomon, one element of the original brief—around product “tiers” from professional to lifestyle—proved confusing and limited creativity, so that was adjusted.

This year they’re working in mixed-discipline teams, with one student from each course in every group. While they’re still assessed individually, the aim is for each team to create a cohesive, functional “integrated system”—a full look where every element works together aesthetically and technically.

Our team helps facilitate those conversations but doesn’t interfere with the academic side. The brief belongs to the course.

Do you also collect feedback from students?

Yes. The B&I team has built a robust evaluation process across all projects. We collect feedback from students, academics, and industry partners—mainly about how the collaboration impacted learning and outcomes. The final question for industry is always: Would you want to work with us again?

These evaluations guide our retention discussions. They also protect us from misunderstandings by outlining both the industry and academic expectations in a contract with clear KPIs.

That’s really useful—to have that structure and clarity.

It is. It also gives academics some distance from the tougher conversations. Sometimes feedback can feel personal, so our team acts as a buffer. We handle the logistics, contracts, and client relationships, leaving academics to focus
on the students.

And student projects are often a great entry point for brands. Academia can be complex—lots of courses, different structures—so projects like these are a good way for companies to engage meaningfully.

Shoes, cardboard boxes, a portfolio and a laptop placed on a table.
Student presentations. Image courtesy of Chelsea Pineda.

This speaks a lot to how you build long term knowledge exchange pathways and relationships with industry partners. I also heard that students received awards and some got internships as part of this project?

Yes. We always try to include awards in the project budget—they can be contracted, unlike internships. Awards help celebrate students’ achievements and add excitement to the final presentations.

Internships depend on the company, but they’re always encouraged. Two LCF students are currently interning with Salomon and recently attended a week-long design retreat at a castle in France. They’re fully integrated into the design team, which is incredible experience.

It’s also beneficial for Salomon—they get to know the students’ personalities and working styles through the project, which you can’t get from just reviewing portfolios.

That’s amazing—almost like a built-in trial period.

Exactly. And it helps the students too—they already know the team and environment before starting.

For the awards, the selection was done collaboratively by the academics and Salomon. It wasn’t just about grades; they looked at creativity, research, and development. Salomon even took an extra week after the final presentations to decide the winners carefully.