Sian Eleri Angharad Westerman (born 1962) is a British banker and co-chair of the BFC Fashion Trust. She is a trustee of the Royal Academy Trust which supports the

Royal Academy of Arts The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House in Piccadilly London, England. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its ...

, and a past trustee of

English National Ballet English National Ballet is a classical ballet company founded by Dame Alicia Markova and Sir Anton Dolin as London Festival Ballet and based in London, England. Along with The Royal Ballet, Birmingham Royal Ballet, Northern Ballet and Scott ...

Early life and education

Westerman was educated at

Manchester High School for Girls Manchester High School for Girls is an English Private schools in the United Kingdom, private day school for girls and a member of the Girls School Association. It is situated in Fallowfield, Manchester. The head mistress is Helen Jeys who took ...

and has a degree in English law with French from the

University of Birmingham The University of Birmingham (informally Birmingham University) is a Public university, public research university in Birmingham, England. It received its royal charter in 1900 as a successor to Queen's College, Birmingham (founded in 1825 as ...

, for two years of which she studied in

Limoges Limoges ( , , ; , locally ) is a city and Communes of France, commune, and the prefecture of the Haute-Vienne Departments of France, department in west-central France. It was the administrative capital of the former Limousin region. Situated o ...

Career

Westerman initially worked as a trainee solicitor at

Slaughter and May Slaughter and May is a British law firm headquartered in London, England. Founded in 1889, it has offices in Beijing, Brussels and Hong Kong in addition to London. History Slaughter and May was founded on 1 January 1889 by William Capel Slaug ...

but has said that she "felt quite far down the food chain and it seemed to me then that everything happens before the lawyers get pulled in". She moved into banking, joining

Rothschild Rothschild () is a name derived from the German ''zum rothen Schild'' (with the old spelling "th"), meaning "to the red shield", in reference to the houses where these family members lived or had lived. At the time, houses were designated by signs ...

and was Managing Director Global Financial Advisory from 2003 to 2013. She is now a senior advisor at Rothschild, specialising in the retail and luxury sector. She joined the board of fashion accessories designer

Anya Hindmarch Dame Anya Susannah Hindmarch, (; born 7 May 1968) is an English fashion accessories designer who founded an eponymous company, of which she is CEO. Hindmarch published her first book, ''If In Doubt Wash Your Hair'' in May 2021, a ''The Sunda ...

in 2005 for six years, and after the

2008 financial crisis The 2008 financial crisis, also known as the global financial crisis (GFC), was a major worldwide financial crisis centered in the United States. The causes of the 2008 crisis included excessive speculation on housing values by both homeowners ...

became involved with 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 ...

, advising young designers on financial matters. After a time living in Hong Kong she returned to the UK and became co-chair, with

Tania Fares Tania Fares is a Lebanese fashion writer based in London with homes in Lebanon and Los Angeles, United States. In 2011, she founded and co-chaired, with Sian Westerman, the BFC Fashion Trust, a charity supported by the British Fashion Council. ...

, of BFC Fashion Trust, a charity set up by the BFC to support young British designers. She is a board member or mentor to several fashion companies.

References

External links

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Photograph of Westerman
1962 births Living people People educated at Manchester High School for Girls Alumni of the University of Birmingham British women bankers {{UK-business-bio-1960s-stub