Paul Smith's Foundation
We were commissioned by Paul Smith's Foundation to evaluate the first cohort of the Fashion Residency at Studio Smithfield, a meanwhile use initiative supporting emerging fashion designers in central London. The Residency was established in 2024 in partnership with the Mayor of London, Projekt and Paul Smith's Foundation, supported by British GQ and enabled by the City of London Corporation. It was designed to address a well-documented gap: the absence of structured business support for fashion designers at a critical early career stage.
Our task was to make sense of what the first cohort of six designers gained, and to tell that story in a way that would speak to funders, partners and the wider sector. The result is a report that works as both evaluation and advocacy, evidencing individual change while making the case for a model the Foundation believes can go further.
SECTOR
Creative and Cultural
WHAT WE DID
Framing the Work
Developed a five-outcome framework spanning two registers: the individual designer and the wider world.
Structured the evaluation to hold both the measurable difference to individual designers and the contribution to London's creative geography and the health of the sector.
Grounded the approach in the Foundation's own ambition rather than imposing an external template.
Gathering the Evidence
Drew on interviews, survey responses and the programme's own data.
Balanced quantitative signals with the narrative depth that makes findings usable.
Separated what the evidence could support with confidence from what remained early or indicative, in line with our commitment to proportionate claims.
Telling the Story
Produced a designed report that carries the evidence with clarity and warmth.
Combined headline findings with designer voices and press evidence to build a rounded picture.
Shaped the final document as a partnership tool, supporting the Foundation's search for funders and collaborators to take the model further.
Our impact
Place holder
“Working with Culture Change Works on our first Fashion Residency Impact Report gave us a clearer, more structured picture of what the programme has actually achieved. Holly and Hannah took the time to understand what we wanted from the evaluation, from making the case to funders and partners to capturing the story properly before it became harder to trace. They were a pleasure to work with throughout and the result is something we're proud to share.”
Martha Mosse
Director
Paul Smith’s Foundation