What’s the real cost of that £8 shirt? Fashion is often branded as the second most polluting industry in the world after the oil and gas sector. All stages of the clothing production process can incur serious environmental impacts throughout the product lifecycle – pre and post-consumer – so fashion’s collective ecological footprint is undoubtedly big.

Starting a clothing line is no simple task; it takes both creativity and business acumen to make the brand work and turn a profit. A creative flair will allow you to create products that interest your target market, while your business sense will see you through the difficult early stages and allow you to grow your start-up into a healthy, thriving and successful brand.

Denim jeans have become an integral part of everyday life, so much so that most of us never stop to question where our favourite pair came from, how they were manufactured, nor their history.

In the textile industry, cloth is the collective term for fabrics and materials used in the production of clothing. Raw fibres go through a process of being twisted together to create threads. These threads are then woven or knit to create a workable material which can then be cut, stitched and turned in to garments.