Biography
Simon Collins is the founder of Fashion Culture Design and the ex-dean of the Fashion School at Parson’s New School for Design, a role which after seven years he stepped down from at the end of the Autumn semester in 2014.
A graduate of fashion from the Bournemouth and Poole College of Art and Design and Epsom School of Art and Design, Collins has advised several influential start-ups such as Byronesque and Fashion GPS. He was a judge for the Lexus Eco Challenge Award with the CFDA, the Concept Korea Award and the Samsung Designer Fund.
Collins' career within the industry of 20-plus years has seen him work at brands such as Polo Ralph Lauren , Zegna and Marks & Spencer. As creative director of Nike’s Asia-Pacific region, Collins played a pivotal role in launching collaborations with Comme des Garcons and Issey Miyake .
In April 2008, Collins was appointed as dean of Parson's New School for Design for which he oversaw the operations of the influential BFA degree program in Fashion Design, as well as the Associate AAS degree programs in Fashion Studies and Marketing and the MFA in Fashion Design and Society.
Collins introduced a number of initiatives to the school, including collaborative design competitions with Louis Vuitton and Kering and internship opportunities. He also secured a showcase at New York Fashion Week for the annual MFA collections garnering significant industry interest in both the candidates and the school at large.
In 2017, he co-founded WeDesign, a global platform offering remote design courses. He has focused expansion of the venture on China, announcing plans in 2019 to open six centres within the year.
When he is not hosting Fashion Culture Design, Collins spends his time advising brands, companies, fashion weeks and governments. He also writes for The Wall Street Journal, BoF and in 2014 published his first book 'The School of Fashion'.