Weekendin Singapore Jan '14 | Issue 10 | Page 66

intheLOOK intheLOOK Barbara Wilson Fashion Advisor of UK Trade & Investment Barbara Wilson, the Fashion Advisor of UK Trade & Investment, focused on raising the profile of fashion within UKTI throughout her 10 years there. Her job requires her to be in touch with luxury designer brands and lesser-known ones likewise. Here, Barbara shares more about Digital Fashion Week and the brands she fancy. Q: How do you find Singapore? A: I love Singapore. It’s my third visit; my first time was when I was 22, so it has changed a bit. It’s an exciting city, and it’s very fashionable so I love it. I’m very happy to be here. Q: Any cuisine that has captured your fancy here? A: I like chilli crab and prawns, Chinese fried prawns, and lots of other dishes. There are a lot of different cuisines and it’s very exciting. The food is wonderful. Q: What shows have you watched so far at DFW? A: Yesterday I saw Thomas Wee and Topshop and I thought they were both great. And I saw Max Tan who is very striking, so I actually saw quite a lot of clothes that I would like to order though I’m not sure if sizes in Singapore are good for Western people. I might be doing some shopping for the next few days! Q: Any shows you’re looking forward to watch? A: Yes, I’m looking forward to Nokia today, and I’m very much looking forward to Holly Fulton because I know her and I watched her develop and it’s great to have her in Singapore. I think we will love to watch her work and she’ll also feel our support. Q: What do you think of digital fashion? A: I think it’s very interesting because digital fashion reaches a much wider audience all around the world and it also reaches a much younger audience. London Fashion Week is now streaming live around the world so it’s something we’re all going to do and we’d like to make fashion more global—it’s exciting. Far rig ht: Barbara Wilson Photo by: DFW Creative PR Weekendin 66 Q: As a Fashion Trade Advisor, what is your scope of work? A: I work with the government to decide how we should support fashion. I look at various initiatives around the world and recommend how we advocate our market. I work with British Fashion Council and also with the UK Fashion Textiles. We give grants to the companies who are going to trade with us. I work very hard to get as much money as I can for the fashion industry. That’s very important. Q: What is your favourite part of the job? A: I think my favourite part is meeting designers and developing new markets overseas. Looking into which markets are suitable can also be interesting. Q: How do you spend your weekends? A: I like to get up later; about an hour and a half later, not too long. I go to the gym on Saturday mornings and sometimes I go shopping on Saturday afternoons. If I’m lucky, my husband takes me out for dinner. If I’m not lucky then I cook dinner. I cook some stirfrys, which is Asian style. I also cook roast dinners, English style. Q: Where do you like to shop? A: I like to shop at boutiques, something a little interesting. We don’t have many shopping malls in England, we have more streets and boutiques. I used to work for Selfridges and I love Selfridges. Q: Could you run us through your weekday routine? A: I get up early and look at my emails from Asia, because I can still reply to them. I do that, and then I usually have breakfast after. Then I go to my office or I attend meetings—I have a lot of meetings outside my office. I have meetings with British Fashion Council, with the trade association, and with various designers. Then I have a quick lunch in the afternoon before working on emails, reports, or sometimes have a meeting with a designer. I love designers. I keep In touch with about 30 brands and people like Alexander McQueen, Stella McCartney, Mary Katrantzou, or lesser known brands. It’s a very exciting job and I’m lucky to have it. 67 Weekendin