Source Fashion sets UK manufacturing forum for 4 November

By Rebecca Stone

Source Fashion, Fashion-Enter Ltd and the Association of Textiles Manufacturers and Fashion will stage a one-day UK manufacturing forum at Manchester Hall on Wednesday 4 November.

Named Manchester Made & Regions, the event asks: What will it take to make UK production work commercially for more brands and retailers? The announcement discloses no ticket price, attendance target, confirmed order, factory capacity or cost saving. It presents the forum as a test of commercial conditions, not an announcement of a production award.

Manchester Made & Regions will bring together manufacturers, brands, retailers, sourcing professionals and industry leaders. Source Fashion says discussions will span reindustrialisation, public procurement, pricing, capacity, skills, consumer expectations and the commercial realities of closer sourcing. A separate agenda strand asks how domestic production can deliver speed, flexibility, quality, resilience, sustainability and closer supplier relationships.

What must change before onshoring creates meaningful orders?

The opening session, “What Will It Take? Reindustrialisation of the UK,” examines how onshoring ambitions and public procurement can become meaningful orders for British factories. Fashion-Enter CEO Jenny Holloway will moderate.

Panelists include Snahal Patel, CEO of 23 Foxes; Cheryl Chung of The Garment Workers Trust; and Professor Jess Power, Chair of The Textile Institute.

The panel will consider factory conditions, a unified industry voice, and how government, brands and retailers can turn reshoring ambitions into commercially meaningful orders. The announcement specifies no procurement budget, order volume or factory allocation.

Source Fashion’s Suzanne Ellingham will lead a panel on domestic sourcing beyond unit price, including risk mitigation, margin protection and long-term growth.

Ellingham said: “There is a lot of conversation about reshoring and buying British, but if we genuinely want to see more production taking place here, we have to move beyond ambition and build the commercial case for it.”

She added: “That means addressing the realities of cost, capacity and lead times, while recognising the value UK manufacturing can offer through speed, flexibility, quality and resilience.”

Ellingham also put reindustrialisation, public procurement, changing demand and the business case for sourcing closer to home on the agenda. She said the forum should turn growing interest in British manufacturing into practical commercial action.

Can domestic production protect margins and meet price expectations?

Patrick Grant, CEO of Community Clothing, will discuss the commercial realities of domestic production in a fireside conversation. The session challenges the perception that a profitable British brand cannot reach a price consumers will pay. Other sessions will ask how local manufacturing ecosystems can become visible and compete through speed, flexibility, quality and close customer relationships rather than cost alone.

Just Style’s senior news editor, Isatou Ndure, will lead a panel of British manufacturers and sourcing experts. The scheduled participants are:

• Michael Conway, CEO of CLOTHES2ORDER
• Sajid Esa, Director of 5th Avenue Clothing
• Simon Platts, Founder of Simon Platts Consulting and former Sourcing and ESG Director at ASOS

The panel will address rising costs, tighter margins, minimum order quantities, lead times and long-term supplier viability. Buyers must test whether a nominally domestic supplier can support the required volume, timing and price. Source Fashion has released no cost premiums, MOQ benchmarks, lead-time ranges or supplier payment terms.

Which 2026 demand signals should shape sourcing decisions?

Marguerite Le Rolland, Global Insight Manager, Fashion at Euromonitor International, will present “Fewer, Better, Closer: What’s Driving Fashion Demand in Europe in 2026.” Her session will draw on the latest market data and consumer research to examine forces reshaping European fashion demand.

Jack Stratten, Head of Trends at Insider Trends, will examine the commercial value of quality, trust and products designed to last. His session links younger consumers, technology and changing perceptions of luxury to brands’ reconsideration of durability and longevity in product strategy. Source Fashion has disclosed no demand forecast, market-size figure or margin assumption behind either session.

What has the announcement actually secured?

The announcement provides an event plan, not a production commitment. No brand or retailer has announced an order, price, margin, minimum volume or delivery schedule. It names no factory capacity, certification standard, production timeline, public spending amount or party responsible for those costs. It also provides no comparative data on domestic speed, flexibility, quality or resilience.

The next proof point comes on 4 November, when speakers must move from general ambition to disclosed capacity, cost, certification, lead-time and purchasing terms that brands can use in sourcing decisions.