London College of Fashion (LCF), UAL is pleased to announce this year’s winners of its annual Enterprise Challenge; a platform that showcases the creative talents and entrepreneurial mindsets of current London College of Fashion students to the LCF community as well as key members of industry. Winners are recognised in the categories of first-place, second-place, third-place and ‘highly commended.’
The first-place winner of the 2023 Enterprise Challenge Award is Hanan Tantush, BA Fashion Design Technology: Womenswear, for her pitch on Intotum, an adaptive clothing company providing innovative solutions to common clothing problems. Tantush’ collaborations with charity organizations and the disabled community have enabled her to create a range of clothing specifically designed for wheelchair users, incorporating built-in functionalities. In recognition she will receive a share of a £10,000 prize as funding to support the realisation of their business ideas. In addition, the first-place winner will receive a one-year Soho Friends Membership from sponsor, Soho Works.
Second prize was awarded to Grace Thomas, MA Footwear, for her pitch around Forgotten No More, a creative enterprise designing and creating inclusive and expressive women’s footwear. Third-prize was awarded to Maria Tambawala, BA Creative Direction, for her pitch around LOOMS, a virtual repository of memories designed to serve as a personal history and a modern heirloom that evolves and adapts alongside its user.
Highly commended prizes went to Baoluo Ye, MA Fashion Entrepreneurship and Innovation, for his pitch on Primal Matter and to duo Martina Kocianova, BA Jewellery Design (CSM), and Julia Sadowska, Bsc Fashion Management, for their pitch around Martina Kocianova Jewellery.
The LCF Enterprise Challenge, now in its seventh year, culminates every June after an open call for submissions to LCF students across all year groups for ideas for an innovative product or service that they feel could make a real difference to a community, client or consumer group.
This year’s final took place on 15 June at Soho Works 180 Strand in London, where the five LCF students short-listed as finalists ‘pitched’ their ideas to a judging panel of esteemed industry representatives comprised of Linda Roberts, Head Judge: Director LCF Graduate Futures and Business and Innovation, Liam Osbourne: Managing Director at Dazed Studios, Kristina Brjazgunova: Head of Product Innovation at YOOX NET-A-PORTER GROUP, Angela Baidoo: Freelance Fashion Forecaster and Senior Strategist at WGSN and Ioan Williams: Regional Manager Soho Works.
Hanan Tantush, the winner of this year’s Enterprise Challenge, said: “I’m extremely excited to have been given the opportunity to grow Intotum and to see real social change for the disabled community. I must thank Frances, Mirela, Aasia and the entire Graduate Futures team at London College of Fashion for their guidance and support”
Linda Roberts, Director of Graduate Futures, Business and Innovation at London College of Fashion, UAL, said: “Each year, London College of Fashion’s Enterprise Challenge showcases the entrepreneurial spirit within our student community. It’s remarkable to witness how the business ideas being presented are increasingly shaped to create a tangible impact on both our industry and society. This year’s finalists have key themes of inclusion, wellbeing, and sustainability at the forefront of their pitches, and with the invaluable support of our industry partners and collaborators, the LCF Enterprise Challenge remains an exceptional platform for propelling budding ideas forwards with a genuine potential to effect positive change.”
The Enterprise Challenge is organised by London College of Fashion’s Graduate Futures team who, in addition to the Enterprise Challenge also engage with students who are seeking business advice through 1-2-1s, skills building sessions, the London venture bus crawl, LCF Founders Club and over 700 hours of curriculum time to date. They have supported over 60 businesses and worked with over 600 students. Previous recent Enterprise Challenge winners include LCF alumna Olivia Weber (2019) for Trashion Factory, a non-profit community interest company with the aim of spreading upcycling and longevity in clothes, and alumna Chamiah Dewey (2020) for, Chamiah Dewey Fashion, the UK’s first sustainable, adaptive womenswear brand for women of short stature and/or with Dwarfism. The 2022 winners of the Enterprise Challenge were duo Alice Simpson and Emily Taylor co-founders of SAGES, a company creating natural dyes derived from food waste products.
