Marvel launches collection in collaboration with The Prince’s Trust

Marvel has teamed up with aspiring designers aged 18 to 30 to create a collection inspired by The Avengers in collaboration with youth charity The Prince’s Trust.

The gender-neutral collection features clothing, accessories and stationery and takes inspiration from American street culture and sports and the teamwork of Marvel’s superheroes.

The collaboration is part of a three-year mentoring partnership between the Prince’s Trust and Disney, which owns Marvel, to help young people break into the world of fashion and product design. The programme launched in spring 2021, with participants working with Disney designers, marketers and retail teams to learn about the product design industry.

This is the first collection from the partnership and features sweatshirts, hoodies, backpacks, varsity jackets, beanies, T-shirts, basketball-inspired tops, as well as notebooks, pens, paperweights, and a pin set, created by young designers Aaron Asante, Joe Orebiyi, Zahrah Sheikh, Aisha Qureshi, and Charlotte Ross.

Disney unveils Marvel-inspired collection designed during mentoring programme with The Prince’s Trust

Frances Milner, director of fundraising and marketing at The Prince’s Trust, said in a statement: “We’re thrilled to join forces with Marvel on this unique partnership, creating opportunities for young people that support them to realise their potential.

“The Get Started in Product Design with Marvel course has brought together young people with a diverse range of skillsets and backgrounds to harness their creativity and build their confidence and self-belief. The course has also given young people invaluable mentorship and work opportunities, and some of them have now begun exciting careers in the industry.”

Zahrah Sheikh, aged 29, who designed the satchel backpack and knitted beanie, added: “The whole programme helped me to create my product. From the development day in Disney Stores to having the time to research online trends and work with the others to create ideas. To see what we’ve designed on paper turn into a real-life product was an incredible experience – mind-blowing in fact!”

To support the three-year partnership, Disney is also donating 100,000 pounds to The Prince’s Trust each year of the programme and has confirmed that it is following up this collection with one celebrating female superheroes across the Marvel universe in spring 2022.

Mike Stagg, senior vice president of Disney consumer products, games and publishing EMEA, said: “We are so impressed and proud of the designs produced by these young people. It has been truly inspiring to see the products come to life from their initial sketches. We know how hard the fashion and design industries can be to break into, and our partnership with The Prince’s Trust offers such an invaluable experience which we look forward to continuing.”

The Marvel and The Prince’s Trust collection is available from The Disney Store and online in the UK and across Europe. Prices range from 18 to 70 pounds.