In conversation with... The Fashion School founder Caroline Gration

As ‘Primark Presents The Fashion School’ begins the first of its free workshops in the brand new studio space in Primark Manchester Market Street, we spoke with The Fashion School’s founder Caroline to get to know the fashion expert spear-heading this exciting partnership.

Founded in 2011, The Fashion School was born from Caroline’s desire to create a fashion-first workshop, teaching skills all the way from design and pattern-cutting, to sewing and embellishment, but in a more sustainable way.

“I’ve always loved fashion and art, from my first doll Belinda to drawing designs inside my storybooks,” Caroline tells Primark. “Sewing wasn’t so easy for me because as a child I was taught in a very limited way by domestic science teachers during my early school days, which just didn’t fit with my bigger fashion designer aspirations! Art school was where my dreams really took off and I’ve never looked back.”

After attending the Royal College of Art, Caroline spent 30 years working in various fashion-related industries including design, forecasting, illustration and design management, before launching her own company, The Fashion School.

The founding principles behind The Fashion School are to use expert teachers and sustainable fabrics. All the fabrics used in workshops are deadstock, sourced either directly from Primark or other local businesses.

“I knew that children wanted to be part of a more sustainable world and by using fabrics that are donated deadstock sourced from my own contacts within the fashion world, they could be,” says Caroline, “ and working with Primark to bring this to more people was a no-brainer.”

Speaking about her inspiration for her tie up with the fashion retailer, she said: “During the pandemic, I saw schoolchildren visiting Primark and noticed how carefree they seemed – it was clear that they saw Primark as a place for socialising, not just shopping. The puzzle pieces came together and I realised it was exactly this demographic that we hadn’t previously been able to target with our The Fashion School workshops through local councils or paid activities.

“Both Primark and The Fashion School’s sustainability goals are really aligned, so it’s really been a match made in heaven by combining the talents from both our teams.”

Caroline loves a pre-loved item and has several go-tos from Primark in her wardrobe that she pulls out time and time again. Her favourite? A beaded bolero from the early 2000s, that still not gone out of fashion - she wears it now while playing dress up with her granddaughter.

‘Primark Presents The Fashion School’ will be running workshops monthly in the new studio space available on the lower ground floor (-1) at Primark Manchester – ranging from DIY denim to Halloween costumes. Caroline has ten expert teachers on hand, including herself to run the workshops, all of whom have enjoyed long careers in the fashion industry.

“My favourite thing about the workshops is watching how the children and our staff interact. It's a joy to watch the children change from hesitant individuals to creatively inspired youngsters due to the support of our enthusiastic and experienced tutors,” she says.

“Our teachers support every young creative, so they leave the workshop with the foundations of solid fashion skills, and working with Primark means these workshops can be accessible to more children, with no costs to families.”

Take a look behind the seams to see the workshops in action…