The industry body for the UK luxury sector announced its selections for the business programme on Thursday evening in London.Brands of Tomorrow is now in its 13th year. All 12 participating brands will receive 12 months of mentoring, the opportunity to attend a series of practical workshops on key business development topics, and access to Walpole’s membership of over 270 British institutions. Programme partner Mishcon de Reya also provides each of the brands with a legal mentor

The class of 2020 includes performance outerwear designer Shackleton, children’s clothing boutique Pepa & Company and Hedoine, a brand of ladder-resistant tights. London-based apothecary Anatome and made to measure furniture specialist Matthew Cox complete the list alongside Simpsons Wine Estate, Scottish textile firm Araminta Campbell, beauty booking service Ruuby and luxury travel magazine Suitcase.

Walpole has also added two new chairs to the programme. Balthazar Fabricius, founder of bespoke bookmakers Fitzdares has been appointed as chair, and Chris Downham, advisory chief financial officer of Boat International is joining as deputy chair.Helen Brocklebank, Walpole CEO said the programme is designed “to help give early stage luxury brands the best chance of success as they build their growth”. In fact, Brands of Tomorrow is one of the most successful early stage business incubator programmes, with nearly 95% of participants still trading. Additionally, brands that have completed the programme have seen a three-fold increase in total revenue, and many of these brands have gone on to find international success, including Orlebar Brown, Bremont, Emilia Wickstead, and Astley Clarke. The combined total revenue of all Brands of Tomorrow since 2017 is around £300 million.Balthazar Fabricius, chairman, Brands of Tomorrow commented: “Starting a business is hard, producing goods and services of quality is even harder. Passion, vision, energy and daring to risk are some of the rare commodities that fuel this epic endeavour.”