Life at Colyton Grammar

Alumni Carry Somers' journey in fashion started during her Masters in Native American Studies when she witnessed the preparation of natural dyes in Ecuador and discovered the traditional hats of Ecuador. This is where the first ever fair-trade transparent fashion company, Patchacuti, came from, highlighting where the raw products of these Panama hats can be sourced through to the craft people making them. It was the first product to be verified by Fair Trade in fashion. 

Carry is passionate about recognising and questioning the fashion industry around safety following the Rana Plaza factory disaster in Bangladesh, founding Fashion Revolution on the anniversary of the tragic event. She uses research and evidence to lobby internationally on the topics of where do our clothes come from and who makes them, unravelling the impact that the Fashion industry has on the environment and safety. Fashion Revolution established the transparency index, and industry-specific audit, looking at policies (such as child labour and chemical waste) focusing on what should be done to improve these areas and ensure the safety of the workers. This work has gained her Business of Fashion 500 recognition and she was also featured on the Nasdaq billboard for Concious Fashion Week 2022. 

In 2020, Carry took part in Expedition, where she sailed with an all-female crew from the Galapagos to Easter Island to research the impact of plastics on our oceans.