Applications are open for 2019/20 entry.
Scroll down to the How to apply section below.
This fashion entrepreneurship and innovation course coaches creative thinkers who want to build their own new brand or develop and scale an existing fashion business. This course is building a track record in developing innovative UK and international entrepreneurs in fashion-tech, fashion media or fashion design.
This master’s programme focuses on team building, leadership skills, opportunity analysis, customer segmentation, business modelling and viability assessment. Students will be able to identify market opportunities and contribute to the development of innovative fashion concepts.
This course will be delivered at Plexal, Stratford for academic year 2018/19.
Plexal is a co-working space and innovation centre in the heart of East London, resembling a mini city and perfectly suited to the attributes of this unique course.
Find out about the local area on the Student Life pages.
The Chartered Management Institute (CMI) is recognised by Royal Charter as the professional body for managers in the UK, with qualifications designed to support the development of management and leadership skills and enable learners to identify the links between coaching, mentoring and the achievement of business goals. In line with the key teaching and learning strategy of team coaching, MA Fashion Entrepreneurship and Innovation has been accredited by the CMI giving you the opportunity to graduate with an additional qualification: the CMI Level 5 Award in Management Coaching and Mentoring.
Course Leader for MA Fashion Entrepreneurship and innovation, Chitra Buckley, discusses the course
Since graduating from MA Fashion Entrepreneurship and Innovation in 2016, California-raised, London-based alumnus Eshaan Dhingra has been making his mark as one of London’s young and defining voices shaping the future […]
Since launching her brand and line ‘Slippers by Kene’ in 2011, MA Fashion Entrepreneurship and Innovation alumna Kene Rapu has become the number one footwear brand in Nigeria, champion of […]
Designer Mehrunisa Zafar developed her brand M/7 during her BA (Hons) Fashion Design and Development final-year but wanted to master the business side of running a brand before launching it officially. She enroled […]
Congratulations to MA Fashion Entrepreneurship and Innovation student Irene-Marie Seelig who was a runner up in this year’s Mayor of London Entrepreneur Award. Irene, who won last year’s Kering Award at LCF, […]
The LCFMA17 Graduate Spotlight series turns to MA Fashion Entrepreneurship and Innovation student Sixtine Pusterle De Cidrac, who first came to LCF for a study abroad semester in her final year of […]
Last night, Kering and London College of Fashion welcomed fashion designer and sustainability champion Stella McCartney, as guest of honour at the annual Kering Talk on Sustainable Fashion. The event […]
Take a tour of LCF's world renowned fashion library, ideal for research and study.
Take a tour of lecture theatres and tutorial rooms across our central London sites.
Explore our social spaces, for collaborative study and breaks, across our six sites in London.
MA Fashion Entrepreneurship and Innovation equips fashion creatives and entrepreneurs with the essential skills and toolkit to launch and scale new businesses effectively, and offers unrivalled networks across all sectors of the fashion industry.
In-depth studies of innovative emerging designers in the UK provide an understanding of the British fashion industry while extra-curricular international study tours provide valuable insights into the global fashion market. Industry presentations and factory tours have taken place previously in Paris, Milan and Shanghai and have explored everything from French Haute Couture to Italian craftsmanship and Asia’s luxury fashion boom.
MA Fashion Entrepreneurship and Innovation is a dynamic and interactive learning experience that is built through key collaborative relationships in education (such as IFM in Paris) and industry. Through a supported and structured programme that includes entrepreneurial practice, new business models and planning and management of creative enterprise, participants are encouraged to develop new thinking and innovative concepts. Former alumni have launched their own fashion businesses or taken on entrepreneurial roles in fields such as buying, corporate sustainable responsibility and international brand building for perse fashion companies that span luxury to high street.
12 months - 3 terms - level 7 - 180 credits
Term one
Viable Fashion Ventures (20 Credits)
Building Effective Teams (20 Credits)
Leadership for Entrepreneurs (20 Credits)
Term two
Business Modelling (20 Credits)
Coaching for Entrepreneurial Leaders (20 Credits)
International Collaborative Project (20 credits) - find out more
Term three
Masters Project (60 credits)
The renowned London College of Fashion library is at our John Prince’s Street site, and you will need to travel to this site, and possibly others, during your course to use the library, which is open seven days a week in term time, and for tuition and special events.
The information outlined is an indicative structure of the course. Whilst we will aim to deliver the course as described on this page, there may be situations where it is desirable or necessary for the University to make changes in course provision, for example because of regulatory requirements or operational efficiencies, before or after enrolment. If this occurs, we will communicate all major changes to all applicants and students who have either applied or enrolled on the course.
Please note that due to staff research agreements or availability, not all of the optional modules listed may be available every year.
In addition, the provision of course options which depend upon the availability of specialist teaching, or on a placement at another institution, cannot be guaranteed. Please check this element of the course with the course team before making a decision to apply.
We will update this webpage from time to time with new information as it becomes available. In the meantime, if you have any questions, please contact a member of the course team.
Viable Fashion Ventures (20 credits)
The highly competitive, yet established global fashion industry, currently faces unprecedented disruption from shifts in consumer behaviour and expectations, polarisation into high end and value segments, new technologies and continuous changes in the fashion system. In order to discover or create opportunities in this ‘predictably unpredictable’ market, entrepreneurs need to analyse current trends impacting the fashion sector. At the same time, entrepreneurs need to evaluate opportunities, be agile and be equipped with the skills and tools to create and deliver value for their target customers. This unit explores the process and practical steps in the foundation of a viable fashion venture through a “learning by doing” methodology. Working with team entrepreneurs, you will apply theories of opportunity analysis, client segmentation, viability assessment and entrepreneurial strategy to form or sustain a new venture in fashion design, media or tech. You will participate in shared training sessions that provide practical, in-depth analysis of the key issues encountered in the projects that support the groundwork in founding a new fashion venture. The shared training sessions are supported by the team coach, stakeholder and peer feedback.
Building Effective Teams (20 credits)
The extensive growth of the global fashion industry, in recent years, has been driven by disruptions in the fashion system. Disruptions include: value chain improvement and digitisation, accelerated industry pace, new and innovative business models, and the expansion of business to consumer fashion brands, and have increased the complexity and interconnectedness of the challenges faced by all fashion entrepreneurs. Therefore, new ways of thinking and working are needed to find useful solutions; effective teams have more potential than individuals to find solutions and face current and future challenges. Effective teams constitute a ‘learning system’, which increases the capacity and capability of each team member as well as continually developing collective performance, capacity and capability. This unit aims to explore the process of team learning and effective team formation. At the start of the course, you will be allocated into a cross-disciplinary group of independent thinkers. The process of team learning and formation will be assessed in practical activities such as: managing business challenges, running entrepreneurial projects, research and critical reflection. Your team learning and development is supported by the team coach, stakeholder and peer feedback in shared training sessions. As team fashion entrepreneurs, you will lead the training sessions to learn new ideas and share experiences.
Leadership for Entrepreneurs (20 credits)
Entrepreneurial leaders have disrupted traditional fashion companies with distinct visions of innovation and created start-ups, which offer product sharing services, data driven subscriptions or peer-to-peer selling. Entrepreneurial leaders demonstrate agile thinking, emotional intelligence, persistence, resilience, proactivity, and openness to learn to get people on board to add to the vision. Due to the increasingly urgent need for product and process innovation across the fashion industry, the qualities of startups are being emulated by larger fashion companies. This unit explores the foundations of leadership for entrepreneurs including personal mastery, emotional intelligence, developing entrepreneurial skills and mindset. The process of acquiring leadership attributes will be assessed through self-awareness, reflection, skills audit and the development of individual learning goals in the context of team entrepreneurship. Your learning in this unit will be supported by a team coach, stakeholders and team entrepreneurs.
Business Modelling (20 credits)
Launching and scaling up a fashion venture, collection, brand or service is challenging. Whether your venture idea is in the earliest phase of development or needs to accelerate, it requires intense focus, discipline, courage and crisp execution. Building on the foundation in entrepreneurship from the Viable Fashion Ventures unit, you will practice your analytical skills in more depth to evaluate and sustain the survival and growth of new and existing businesses. You will learn how to apply key entrepreneurial tools, metrics and frameworks from the Lean Start up perspectives, Business Planning and Capital Raising and Pitching. This unit is underpinned by a team coaching approach where you will actively support and contribute to the learning of your team members.members.
Coaching for Entrepreneurial Leaders (20 credits)
Entrepreneurial leaders are frequently faced with limited financial resources and operate in volatile, uncertain markets. In order to inspire others to work with them to build on and add to their vision, entrepreneurial leaders require skills in coaching and strategic thinking. This unit explores the practice of coaching for entrepreneurial leaders. It is concerned with understanding and using a range of coaching tools and techniques in coaching interventions to build commitment to the process and achievement of the strategic objectives in team projects and/or their own Masters Project. The practice and theory of coaching will be assessed through reflection and self-awareness of the coaching cycle, the use of appropriate coaching tools and techniques to develop the coaching relationship, assessment of coachees engagement and lastly the development of coaching interventions to achieve specific strategic objectives. Your learning in coaching theory and practice is supported by a team coach, stakeholders and team entrepreneurs. This unit offers optional professional recognition of your competence in coaching. You may have the opportunity to submit your work for the CMI Level 5 Award in Coaching practice and theory.
International Collaborative Project (20 credits)
International collaborations to improve value chains and ‘born global’ sales strategies are key to building stronger fashion enterprises, which are able to sustain the pace and complexity of global expansion. Increased international connectivity provides opportunities for local SMEs to reach global scale and become ‘micro-multinationals’. The growth of platforms provides opportunities for fashion companies to collaborate and to survive in the digital world. International collaborations provide powerful networks that transcend geographic boundaries and embrace diverse opinions to solve global business problems. Learning how to collaborate by using each party’s strengths can result in a better customer proposition. This unit aims to explore the process of team learning in international collaborations. Your team will collaborate with an international partner for a particular purpose that uses your strengths for mutual benefit. The process of team learning in international collaboration will be assessed in practical activities such as: building professional networks and strategic alliances, negotiating contracts, setting up communication channels, agreeing team objectives, research and critical reflection. Your team learning is supported by the team coach, stakeholder and peer feedback in shared training sessions. As team fashion entrepreneurs, you will lead the training sessions to learn new ideas, share experiences and coach each other.
Master’s Project (60 credits)
The Master’s Project is an important piece of work central to achieving the course aims, which will provide an opportunity for you to demonstrate your knowledge and skills in relation to the course learning outcomes. Throughout the Master’s Project, you are guided and supported by tutorials and peer and staff evaluation at interim stages. You will be allocated a supervisor for your project and will complete a learning contract outlining how you intend to develop and deliver your project. The Master’s Project may take a variety of forms by negotiation and is assessed by presentation in an agreed format
All students are advised to set up a profile on portfolio.arts.ac.uk, UAL’s new portfolio platform, which can be done at any point during your time at LCF and will last for up to 12 months after graduation. This platform is often used to source student work for promotional use on the website, social media and for print and can be a great way of getting your work seen. You may also be asked to have a portfolio profile for the selection process when it comes to degree shows.
Chitra Buckley is course leader for <A Fashion Entrepreneurship and Innovation. Read Chitra Buckley's full profile here.
Pierre-Jean Hanard is a lecturer.
Johnny Martin FCA is Entrepreneur in Residence at London College of Fashion. He is professionally, The Numbers Coach – an experienced director who now passionately explains business numbers and jargon to help young businesses find their business model. He is a British Library Business and IP Centre partner and runs regular workshops, as well as being a mentor for the Royal College of Art Innovation Unit.
We are committed to making university education an achievable option for a wider range of people and to supporting all of our students in achieving their potential both during and after their courses.
We welcome applications from people with disabilities. If you have a disability (e.g. mobility difficulties, sensory impairments, medical or mental health conditions or Asperger’s syndrome) we strongly encourage you to contact us on disability@arts.ac.uk or +44 (0)20 7514 6156 so that we can plan the right support for you. All enquiries are treated confidentially. To find out more, visit our Disability & Dyslexia webpages.
The standard entry requirements for this course are as follows:
Applicants who do not meet these course entry requirements may still be considered in exceptional cases. The course team will consider each application that demonstrates additional strengths and alternative evidence. This might, for example, be demonstrated by:
Each application will be considered on its own merit but we cannot guarantee an offer in each case.
IELTS level 7.0 with a minimum of 6.0 in reading, writing, listening and speaking. Please check our main English Language Requirements .
When you are submitting your application form, you will also need to provide the following pieces of documentation in support of your application:
You will be required to submit a Curriculum Vitae (C.V.) in support of your application. This should include your full education and employment history.
The personal statement is your opportunity to tell us about yourself and your suitability for the course that you intend to study.
Some key points to consider:
Write a 500 word essay (excluding references/bibliography) on the following topic:
‘Define and discuss the role of Entrepreneurs in the creative industries’ management in the 21st century.’
Your study proposal should be a maximum of 300 words (excluding research sources, bibliography and appendices). The proposal should include the following:
If you’re a designer, you may submit a digital portfolio containing six images. Ensure all work is carefully labelled.
You may include examples of:
You may include a URL link to your portfolio within your personal statement.
The course team seeks to recruit students who can demonstrate:
If you have achieved or expect to achieve the standard entry requirements, then your application will be reviewed by the course team who will select applicants to attend an interview. Interviews may be conducted in person, via telephone or via Skype. Please note that not all applicants are invited to attend interview. When you have attended your interview we will advise you of your outcome through your UAL portal.
This section includes all the information you need on how to apply and how your application is considered, and what happens next.
UK/EU students can apply to a postgraduate course at LCF by completing a direct application.
There are no official deadlines to submit your application. Applications are accepted, and offers are made throughout the year. The course will be closed once spaces are filled so we advise that you apply early.
London College of Fashion does not accept applications for deferred entry. You should therefore apply in the year you wish to study.
All application forms, personal statements and relevant documents are read and considered by the course team against the selection criteria listed in the Entry requirements and Selection Criteria sections. The course team will select applicants to attend an interview. Interviews may be conducted in person, via telephone or via Skype.
If you are successful at the interview stage you will be offered a place. Please note that applicants are not guaranteed an interview.
Please note that if you are unable to attend, the College may not be able to re-schedule.
The result of your application will be communicated to you through your UAL Portal. If your application has been successful, you will receive a full offer pack including details of accommodation, fees, and other important information.
This section includes all the information you need on how to apply and how your application is considered, and what happens next.
There are two ways international students can apply to a postgraduate course at LCF:
For further advice on how to apply please visit the UAL International Application page.
There are no official deadlines to submit your application. Applications are accepted, and offers are made throughout the year. The course will be closed once spaces are filled so we advise that you apply early.
London College of Fashion does not accept applications for deferred entry. You should therefore apply in the year you wish to study.
All application forms, personal statements and relevant documents are read and considered by the course team against the selection criteria listed in the Entry requirements and Selection Criteria sections. The course team will select applicants to attend an interview. Interviews may be conducted in person, via telephone or via Skype.
If you are successful at the interview stage you will be offered a place. Please note that applicants are not guaranteed an interview.
Please note that if you are unable to attend, the College may not be able to re-schedule.
The result of your application will be communicated to you through your UAL Portal. If your application has been successful, you will receive a full offer pack including details of accommodation, fees, and other important information.
After you’ve submitted your application, you’ll receive a confirmation email providing you with your login details for the UAL Portal. We’ll use this Portal to contact you to request any additional information, including inviting you to upload documents or book an interview, so please check it regularly.
Once we’ve reviewed and assessed your application, we’ll contact you via the UAL Portal to let you know whether your application has been successful.
£10,890
This applies for the 2019/20 academic year.
UAL Home/EU alumni receive a £1,000 discount.
Course fees may be paid in instalments.
£19,930
This applies for the 2019/20 academic year.
UAL International alumni receive a £1,000 discount.
Course fees may be paid in instalments.
In addition to tuition fees you are very likely to incur additional costs such as travel expenses and the cost of materials. Please read the information on our additional costs page.
Find out about the accommodation options available and how much they will cost.
There are a number of scholarships and awards available to students on this course. Use our search tool to find out more information.
Postgraduate loans of up to £10,000 are now available for eligible UK and EU students. A full list of eligibility criteria and information on applying can be found on the postgraduate loans webpage.
All our postgraduate courses offer career development, so that you become a creative thinker, making effective contributions to your relevant sector of the fashion industry.
LCF offers students the opportunity to develop Personal and Professional Development (PPD) skills while studying through:
Examples of expected Graduate destinations:
Graduates of MA Fashion Entrepreneurship and Innovation have gone on to work in many roles within the industry, including Innovation team at Swarovski, Future Academy resident at AKQA and VIP Communications at David Morris.
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