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The UK fashion industry has succeeded in increasing diversity on the catwalk and in campaigns, but behind the scenes — particularly in decision-making roles — it’s a different story.
Just 9 per cent of executive roles in the British industry are held by people of colour, the inaugural UK Fashion DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) Report shows. It also reveals a lack of diversity across the wider workforce, which the authors say is hindering business success and profitability.
The findings are based on 1,529 responses to the UK’s first-ever fashion industry census survey, launched last year by the British Fashion Council (BFC), The Outsiders Perspective and Fashion Minority Report with support from McKinsey, as well as leadership interviews and in-depth studies of around 70 fashion companies, including Yoox Net-a-Porter, Jimmy Choo, Farfetch and Burberry. The research will be updated in two years.
The report reveals a discrepancy in how people perceive diversity in the industry. Of the white men who responded to the nationwide survey, only 14 per cent said they believe the industry is “not” diverse; this rose to 46 per cent for women of colour and 52 per cent for people with disabilities. Half of the people working in fashion do not believe DE&I is a priority to their leaders, and 64 per cent of people do not believe their company allocates sufficient resources to DE&I.
“The UK Fashion DEI Report has made it clear that those in power don’t think there is an issue, while diverse groups working in the industry are revealing the actual magnitude of the issue. This is a wake-up call for all of us,” Caroline Rush, CEO of the BFC, tells Vogue Business. “We must harness our positions to dismantle barriers, foster inclusivity while also ensuring we are truly listening to and amplifying underrepresented voices. By leveraging our influence, networks, resources as well as vital data, we can ensure businesses understand the results and undeniable benefits of having a diverse workforce.”
One of the biggest surprises was that even some of the biggest fashion brands don’t have basic data on their workforce, such as gender and age, says Jamie Gill, founder of The Outsiders Perspective and non-executive director at the BFC.
The UK fashion industry saw a spike of interest in DE&I in 2020, but over the last two years that energy has died down. Amid economic headwinds, budgets have been cut particularly within DE&I functions, and there’s growing polarisation and exhaustion around issues related to diversity.
There is a clear business case for improving DE&I, the report argues. Across industries, a diverse workforce improves decision-making up to 87 per cent of the time, and the top quartile of companies in terms of female and ethnically diverse representation are 39 per cent more likely to financially outperform, according to McKinsey research cited in the report.
DE&I can help employers to attract and retain top talent (with a 50 per cent reduction in employee turnover); increase productivity and employee engagement (leading to a 56 per cent increase in job performance); increase cultural sensitivity and awareness; increase creativity and innovation by around 60 per cent due to increased diversity of thought; improve customer acquisition by 38 per cent; and improve decision-making processes, per McKinsey. Some 39 per cent of global job seekers turn down jobs because of a perceived lack of inclusion.
This is also growing demands from investors and regulators surrounding ESG, diversity policies and targets.
“This is a serious business imperative that’s integral to the success of your organisation,” says Gill. “Your biggest cost is your people, so you’ve got to get it right, and to do that we need serious accountability at leadership and board level[...] and robust data on our people.”
“Through more representation, [fashion companies] can offset some of the macroeconomic headwinds facing the industry, keep step with their customers and operate to their potential in driving performance,” Anita Balchandani, senior partner at McKinsey, says in the report.
The report details three strategic levers for UK fashion companies to pull: lead from the top (with executive and board level commitments); gather data on the diversity of the workforce; and review systems and pathways (such as conducting pay audits, understanding biases within the recruitment processes, develop sponsorship programmes and engage middle managers to implement the broader DE&I strategy).
“The problem is there are still a number of people who feel as if [DE&I] isn’t their problem,” Daniel Peters, founder of Fashion Minority Report, tells Vogue Business. “It’s about it being not just an opportunity, but a responsibility to foster change, because I should care how my colleagues feel in the workplace. DE&I shouldn’t feel like a burden or extra work, it should be about embodying compassion and empathy on a daily basis.”
According to the report, when employees believe their company allocates sufficient resources to DE&I, they’re more than twice as likely to agree that their work environment allows them to thrive. Employees within a company with a clear DE&I strategy are 26 per cent more likely to say they can show up as their authentic selves at work. Just 17 per cent of companies have an external quantitative DE&I target, suggesting a lack of formal data or tracking. The report also calls out the lack of resources and agency that DE&I teams are provided.
To drive progress, companies need to create a culture where people feel comfortable talking about their experiences, and about DE&I as a topic itself. “What has been a challenge is openness to speak about this topic, because it’s seen as extremely sensitive,” says Gill. Fundamentally, DE&I benefits everyone — not just those from marginalised groups, he says. “Everyone who’s working in the fashion industry will benefit from having an inclusive workforce where they’re able to thrive and innovate and push the industry forward.”
“In the next five years, I think we will start seeing the UK fashion industry embrace DE&I as a lever for advantage — with businesses better aligning their external messaging and internal practices,” says Rush. “The key lies in representation at the top, investing in education, fostering knowledge-sharing programmes and implementing long-term training initiatives on both individual and company-wide levels.”
Maliha Shoaib reviewed an early draft of the UK Fashion DEI Report.
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