The Access Wear competition, launched in March 2024, asked students from the university to design a workwear collection for employees at The Access Group that considered diversity, sustainability, style and functionality suitable for the new world of hybrid working.
After over a year of working on their designs, 11 student finalists impressed judges with an array of smart, stylish sartorial solutions for homeworkers, events teams, office workers, and everything in between, suiting today’s modern workforce.
The winning designs will be available to purchase in the Access Store, and all proceeds will go to Young Lives vs. Cancer, The Access Group’s chosen charity of the year.
With a combined £6,000 competition prize fund, Hollie Yeomans was awarded first prize of £3,000, for her oversized red wool blazer, statement hoodie and wide-leg tailored trousers.
Chloe Chan took second place with a £2,000 cash prize for her understated grey blazer, fitted shirt trimmed with The Access Group’s colour palette and flared trousers.
In third place, Sasha Barnes Crowhurst was awarded £1,000 for her grey blazer, jersey track trousers and unisex jumper.
The judging panel included East Midland’s Today presenter Anne Davies, Emma de Sousa, Managing Director of Access Legal and Access Recruitment, Ben Whitehead, Access Early Careers Lead, and Aadil Mughal, Senior Graphic Designer. The judging panel had the difficult job of choosing the winning designs and applauded the students’ creativity, attention to detail and presentation.
Emma de Sousa commented:
“Workwear has evolved over the last few years and so the designs needed to represent the growing diversity of our workforce and new working styles whether from the office or home. It’s important that workwear offers an option suitable for everyone, which the finalists have showcased in their designs.
“This competition has not just been about aesthetics, but also about problem-solving, vision and creating designs that are empowering to make our staff not only look good but feel good.
“I’m looking forward to seeing Hollie’s winning design in production and proudly worn by our employees, and the proceeds going to our charity of the year.”
Anne Davies added:
“What a wealth of creative talent we have here in Loughborough! It has been a pleasure to be here and celebrate young talent.
“Striking silhouettes, innovation, thoughtful tailoring and intricate embellishments were all on display within the collections. The students clearly understood the workwear brief and combined it with an excellent fashion aesthetic.
“Huge congratulations to all the winners. This is just the beginning for you and your design journey is just starting. I’m confident we will see many of your names again in the exciting world of fashion design.”
Sally Wilson, Commercial Director of Loughborough University, speaking at the event, commented:
“We'd like to extend a huge thank you to The Access Group - this has been a fantastic learning experience for our students and goes a long way to illustrating how the work we do in the classroom relates directly to the world of work and business.
“Having a live commercial brief really helps boost employability skills and the students’ understanding of what is required in a professional design role.”
About The Access Group
The Access Group is one of the largest UK-headquartered business management software providers. It provides solutions that empower more than 160,000 small and mid-sized organisations in commercial and non-profit sectors across Europe, USA and APAC, giving every employee the freedom to do more of what’s important. Its innovative cloud solutions and integrated AI software experience across multiple Access products transform how business technology is used. Access employs over 8,000 people, continuously driving product innovation and customer service excellence.
For more information, visit www.theaccessgroup.com or follow @TheAccessGroup.