Fast and Furious: Fashion’s New Frontier (w/t) takes us inside Manchester’s bright, brand new world of ultra-fast fashion, where millennials are making fortunes overnight by supplying an ever-changing wardrobe to a new generation that idolises influencers and reality TV stars – and wants to look exactly like them, with a new outfit to show off every week. It’s a phenomenon created by the smartphone generation and it’s wiped the floor with the old chains that once dominated the high street.
The series is set within the Salford offices of “In The Style” – one of the fastest growing fast fashion brands in Britain, and the disruptor-in-chief, in what is already Britain’s premier disruptive industry.
CEO Adam Frisby left school at 15 with no GCSEs. In just five years he has built a £30million turnover company. Cameras will follow the 32 year old and his young team through six fast and furious weeks as the company competes with rival fast fashion brands to sign up the latest talent, come up with the hottest styles and supply them faster and better than anyone else, risking millions every week.
It’s a world where a shiny selfie can sell thousands of clothes on social media, of rowdy office parties and clever photo opportunities in some of the world’s most glamorous destinations, but also tricky factory negotiations, masses of returns to process in the warehouse and organised chaos in an office of young, fashion savvy people who want to get rich, have fun, and do good with an inclusive, body positive message.
With unparalleled access to Adam’s 120-strong team the series will follow the booming company’s highs and lows, revealing how their hunches pay off with an on-camera reveal of sales turnover every episode.
Glamorous photo shoots with celebrities such as Dani Dyer or Emily Atack have to be set up in time for speedy sales launches so that on-line shoppers can have the latest outfit delivered to their door hours later. Campaigns are launched to restore body confidence with an impressionable audience and continue the brand’s mission of female empowerment. There are spot inspections of their suppliers’ factories to try and ensure that everything the company supplies is not just fast and affordable, but also ethical, as Adam and the team set out to not just win, but also answer the industry’s critics by building an environmentally sustainable, ethical business.
Fast & Furious: Fashion’s New Frontier (w/t), a 6 x 30′ for the BBC, is made by Optomen. The Executive Producers are Sarah Eglin and Nick Hornby. It was commissioned by Fiona Campbell, Controller, BBC Three and Clare Sillery, Head of Commissioning, Documentaries. The Commissioning Editor is Emily Smith.