Debra Bourne

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Debra Bourne

MBE
Debra parliament.jpg
Debra Bourne accepting her SMK Award at The House of Lords, 2016
Born
Debra Lysette Bourne MBE

Nationality British
EducationInstitute of Psychosynthesis Middlesex University (1992–1995)
Occupation(s)Communications Expert, Brand Consultant and Campaigner
Known forCo-Founder of All Walks Beyond The Catwalk
SpouseDavid Rosen
ChildrenJohnny Bourne-Rosen
Awards Sheila McKechnie Award for Creating Change Within Business (2016)
Website debra-bourne.com

Debra Lysette Bourne MBE is a communications expert, brand consultant and advocate [1] for diversity in fashion. She co-founded All Walks Beyond The Catwalk, is a brand consultant, a former board director at Lynne Franks PR and Executive Fashion Editor at Arena Magazine and Arena Homme Plus.

Contents

Personal life

Bourne has a son, Johnny, and is married to David Rosen, [2] senior partner and self-proclaimed 'building detective' [3] for London property behemoth Pilcher Hershman.

In 2017, Bourne was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the New Year Honours for services to diversity in the fashion industry.

Lynne Franks PR

At the age of 20, Bourne started working as an intern for leading consumer PR consultancy Lynne Franks (the inspiration behind Absolutely Fabulous character, Edwina) before becoming a board director at the age of 27. Clients included Jean Paul Gaultier, Swatch, Knickerbox, Pepe Jeans, Ghost, John Richmond, and Procter & Gamble.

All Walks Beyond The Catwalk

Launched during London Fashion Week in May 2009, when Susan Ringwood, [4] the then chief executive of Beat, asked:

"Was it possible to show fashion on a range of inspiring bodies?"

It was the mix of Bourne's experience in the fashion industry and her longstanding commitment to psychotherapy training that lead her towards developing the idea for All Walks with Caryn Franklin and Erin O'Connor as a campaign vehicle to inspire and empower change in the fashion industry.

Before fashion and diversity became hot topics for big business and consumers alike, All Walks shared the vision to encourage the shift towards a more enlightened position, through highlighting the responsibility that the fashion industry had in recognising the psychological impact of its messaging upon the minds of young women and men.

Notable collaborators include William Tempest, Giles Deacon, Vivienne Westwood, Hannah Marshall, David Koma, Jade Parifitt, Mark Fast, [5] Georgia Hardinge, Rankin [6] and i-D magazine. [7]

Bourne was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2017 New Year Honours for services to diversity in the fashion industry. [8] [9]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fashion</span> Popular style or practice in clothing, personal adornment, or decorative arts

Fashion is a form of self-expression and autonomy at a particular period and place and in a specific context, of clothing, footwear, lifestyle, accessories, makeup, hairstyle, and body posture. The term implies a look defined by the fashion industry as that which is trending. Everything that is considered fashion is available and popularized by the fashion system.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lynne Franks</span>

Lynne Joanne Franks founded a public relations consultancy in the early 1970s and is a communications strategist, writer and spokeswoman on women's issues, sustainability and consumer lifestyles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Erin O'Connor</span> English model

Erin O'Connor, MBE is a British fashion model.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">London Fashion Week</span>

London Fashion Week (LFW) is a clothing trade show that takes place in London twice a year, in February and September. Showcasing over 250 designers to a global audience of influential media and retailers, it is one of the 'Big Four' fashion weeks, along with New York, Milan, and Paris.

<i>Project Catwalk</i> British TV series or program

Project Catwalk is a competitive reality television show focusing on fashion design. In the UK it is shown on the digital station Sky One. The show follows a group of fashion designers as they compete against each other to avoid being "the next fashion victim" and win the competition. The programme is based upon the US reality show Project Runway. The show was cancelled after the third series.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Caryn Franklin</span>

Caryn Franklin MBE is a British fashion and identity commentator and visiting professor of diverse selfhood. She was former fashion editor and co-editor of i-D magazine in the 1980s and long-time presenter of BBC television's The Clothes Show from 1986 to 1998. She has been a commentator on fashion, image and identity politics for more than 40 years. She regularly blogs from her website.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Plus-size model</span> Type of model

A plus-size model is an individual size 12 and above who is engaged primarily in modeling plus-size clothing. Plus-size clothing worn by plus-size models is typically catering for and marketed to either Big & Tall or Tall or Overweight men and women. Plus-size models also engage in work that is not strictly related to selling clothing, e.g., stock photography and advertising photography for cosmetics, household and pharmaceutical products and sunglasses, footwear and watches. Therefore, plus-size models do not exclusively wear garments marketed as plus-size clothing. This is especially true when participating in fashion editorials for mainstream fashion magazines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fashion show</span> Event of displaying latest clothing and apparel collection

A fashion show is an event put on by a fashion designer to showcase their upcoming line of clothing and/or accessories during a fashion week. Fashion shows debut every season, particularly the spring/summer and fall/winter seasons. This is where designers seek to promote their new fashions. The four major fashion weeks in the world, collectively known as the "Big 4", are those in Paris, London, Milan, and New York. Berlin fashion week is also of global importance.

Dame Commander Patricia Ann McGrath is a British make-up artist. She has been called the most influential make-up artist in the world by Vogue magazine and other commentators. In 2019 she was included in Time's 100 most influential people list. She is the first make-up artist to be made a Dame Commander of the British Empire.

Luella Dayrell Bartley is an English fashion designer, magazine editor and former journalist based in the UK.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alice Temperley</span> English fashion designer

Alice Temperley MBE is an English fashion designer based in Ilminster, Somerset, England. Her fashion label, Temperley London was launched in 2000.

Kelly Knox is a British fashion model represented by Zebedee Management. She has been voted one of the most influential disabled people in the UK, and is one of the few fashion models in the world with a physical disability. Knox became one of the first models with a disability to star at London Fashion Week in 2017.

George Barnett is the English drummer of the band These New Puritans. He is also a male model, having appeared in campaigns for brands such as Burberry, Lanvin and Valentino.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Caroline Rush</span>

Caroline Rush CBE is a marketing professional who is Chief Executive of the British Fashion Council. Her role is to promote the British fashion industry, particularly through organising London Fashion Week and the British Fashion Awards.

Imran Amed is a Canadian-British fashion businessman, and founder and editor-in-chief of The Business of Fashion.

Fashion East is a non-profit designer support and showcasing scheme, a project established by the Old Truman Brewery and Lulu Kennedy MBE in 2000. Designers can apply for support across three different programmes. Each programme offers fashion week showcasing opportunities, business mentoring & financial sponsorship for menswear and womenswear designers. Designers are selected by Lulu Kennedy and a panel of industry people.

Craig Green is a British fashion designer specialising in menswear.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">All Walks Beyond the Catwalk</span>

All Walks Beyond The Catwalk is an initiative founded by Caryn Franklin, Debra Bourne and Erin O’Connor in 2009 to challenge what it considers the fashion industry's dependence on unachievable and limited body and beauty ideals. It has contributed to a variety of parliamentary campaigns, and has presented its education program at 33 colleges and universities.

Melanie Veronique Eusebe is a British entrepreneur and author, known for co-founding the Black British Business Awards in 2014. She has written for publications such as The Huffington Post and Management Today. She serves on the board of the Creative Industries Federation and teaches as a professor at the Hult International Business School in London.

Roosmarijn"Roos"de Kok is a Dutch fashion model, best known for her work for Victoria's Secret.

References

  1. "Things I've Learnt From 5 Years Campaigning for Diversity in Fashion". i-D Magazine. 1 December 2015. Retrieved 1 December 2015.
  2. . The Evening Standard (10 October 2013)
  3. . Mr Porter (2 March 2011)
  4. Ringwood, Susan (25 May 2012). "There's no point shaming people about their body shape". The Guardian .
  5. "London Fashion Week: catwalk Grow over size 14 models = Fisher, Alice". The Guardian . 20 September 2009.
  6. "Rankin's Women".
  7. "All Walks Beyond The Catwalk". i-D Magazine.
  8. "No. 61803". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 December 2016. p. N16.
  9. "New Year's Honours list 2017" (PDF). Gov.uk . Government Digital Service. 30 December 2016. p. 48. Retrieved 31 December 2016.