Yoox and The Prince’s Foundation unveil new trainee artisans for The Modern Artisan launch

Fashion retailer Yoox Net-a-Porter, together with The Prince’s Foundation, has announced the new artisans taking part in its responsible luxury training programme, The Modern Artisan project. Eight artisans have been selected to participate from a pool of applications, including four British fashion and textiles graduates and four Italian graduates from Politecnico di Milano.

The Modern Artisan programme, which commenced in September, grants participants with a collaborative ten-month paid training programme, including design training guided by Yoox Net-a-Porter experts and industry mentors. The artisans will learn about luxury production methods and craftsmanship skills, as well as the process of bringing a luxury collection to the global market.

Its conclusion comes in the form of a womenswear capsule collection, debuted on the Net-a-Porter site in Summer 2022. Profits from the collection will be donated to The Prince’s Foundation to support the nonprofit’s efforts in delivering training programmes that hope to preserve traditional textile techniques.

“The first edition of The Modern Artisan project culminated with the launch of the Yoox Net-a-Porter for The Prince’s Foundation collection in November 2020, which sold around the world and attracted global media attention for the artisans at the very beginning of their career,” said Jacqueline Farrell, The Prince’s Foundation’s education director, in a statement.

She added: “Since graduating from the programme, all the trainee artisans from the UK and Italy have used the experience as a springboard to secure employment in the industry or start their own fashion and manufacturing businesses. We are very much looking forward to working with this year’s intake of talented artisans and seeing where the project takes them.”

The new set of artisans were introduced to one another at an event hosted by the UK Government’s Department for International Trade in Milan, which looked to emphasise the programme’s focus on sustainability in fashion.

Additionally, both current and previous artisans will be speaking about their experiences at One Year On this week, an event hosted by The Prince’s Foundation as part of London Craft Week. Four artisans will discuss their experiences with the programme in a panel talk, with the past collection showcased alongside the event in a free exhibition by the charity.