Caroline Rush

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(née Larner; born July 1971) is a marketing professional who is Chief Executive of the

British Fashion Council The British Fashion Council (BFC) is a non-profit organization that aims to enable sustainable growth of British fashion in the global fashion economy. Founded in 1983, the BFC organizes biannual Women's wear and Men's wear showcases, London F ...

.British Fashion Council official website
''Caroline Rush and Simon Ward'', June 2010. Her role is to promote the British fashion industry, particularly through organising

London Fashion Week London Fashion Week (LFW) is a clothing trade show that takes place in London, England, twice a year, in June and September. Showcasing over 250 designers to a global audience of influential media and retailers, it is one of the 'Big Four' fash ...

and the

British Fashion Awards The Fashion Awards, known as the British Fashion Awards until 2016, is an annual ceremony established in the United Kingdom in 1989 to showcase both British and international individuals and businesses who have made the most outstanding contrib ...

Early life and education

Caroline Larner was born in

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

, the middle of three daughters, and spent her early childhood in

Bishopbriggs Bishopbriggs (; ) is a town in East Dunbartonshire, Scotland. It lies on the northern fringe of Greater Glasgow, approximately from the Glasgow city centre, city centre. Shires of Scotland, Historically in Lanarkshire, the area was once part of ...

. Her father is an accountant and her mother is a teacher. Her father's job took the family to England, first to Derbyshire and then to

Chorley Chorley is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Chorley in Lancashire, England, north of Wigan, south west of Blackburn, north west of Bolton, south of Preston and north west of Manchester. The town's wealth ca ...

, Lancashire.

Career

Rush began working in public relations and marketing in about 1992. Her association with the British Fashion Council started in 1998, when she was employed by Annette Worsley-Taylor Associates, who were the creative and marketing consultants for the London Fashion Week. She started

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

-based PR agency Crush Communications in 2002, and became managing director.entertainthekids.com
''Holidays, My Castle or Yours'', 2006. The British Fashion Council appointed this company as the press office for all British Fashion Council initiatives, including the London Fashion Week and the British Fashion Awards, with Rush as a public relations strategy adviser to the British Fashion Council. Rush was appointed British Fashion Council joint chief executive in March 2009.British Fashion Council official website
''BFC Restructure Announcement'', 12 March 2009.Scottish Fashion Awards
, ''Caroline Rush''. As joint Chief Executive, she oversaw the Council’s move into

Somerset House Somerset House is a large neoclassical architecture, neoclassical building complex situated on the south side of the Strand, London, Strand in central London, overlooking the River Thames, just east of Waterloo Bridge. The Georgian era quadran ...

in 2009.The Edit
, issue 02, ''Over coffee with British Fashion Council's chief executive, Caroline Rush'', 2012. In a restructuring, Rush became sole chief executive in June 2012. Rush "played a key role in attracting brands such as Burberry and Pringle and British designers such as Antonio Berardi and Jonathan Saunders back to London."

Hilary Alexander Hilary Alexander (5 February 1946 – 5 February 2023) was a New Zealand-born British journalist and past fashion director of the ''Daily Telegraph''. She was twice named Journalist of the Year (1997 and 2003) in the British Fashion Awards. S ...

credited Rush with changing London Fashion Week from being a 'poor cousin' compared with Paris, Milan and New York, "and showing that Britain is really where it all begins". Caroline is currently represented by talent & rights management agency Kruger Cowne.

Personal life

Rush lives in London. Her ex-husband

Matthew Matthew may refer to: * Matthew (given name) * Matthew (surname) * ''Matthew'' (album), a 2000 album by rapper Kool Keith * Matthew (elm cultivar), a cultivar of the Chinese Elm ''Ulmus parvifolia'' Christianity * Matthew the Apostle, one of ...

is a physical education teacherThe Independent
''Winning formula: How can Britain produce Wimbledon champions?'', by Liz Lightfoot, 18 June 2009. and former professional footballer for

West Ham West Ham is a district in East London, England and is in the London Borough of Newham. It is an inner-city suburb located east of Charing Cross. The area was originally an ancient parish formed to serve parts of the older Manor of Ham, a ...

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of the county of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. It lies by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. The population of the Norwich ...

and

Oldham Oldham is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies amongst the Pennines on elevated ground between the rivers River Irk, Irk and River Medlock, Medlock, southeast of Rochdale, and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative cent ...

. Their daughter Lana competed in junior Wimbledon 2012 and 2013 and is now a marketing executive in fashion.International Tennis Federation website
''Lana Rush''. Rush was appointed

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(CBE) in the 2015 New Year Honours for services to the British fashion industry.2015 New Year Honours List
/ref>

References

External links

WWD breaks news that Caroline Rush will step down in 2025
Living people 1971 births British businesspeople in fashion Commanders of the Order of the British Empire People from Bishopbriggs People from Chorley Scottish businesspeople in fashion 21st-century Scottish businesswomen {{Authority control