Kwantlen Polytechnic University Foundations in Design Program Chair Natasha Campbell was nominated for an Industry Originator Award in the teacher category at this year’s Vancouver Fashion Week 2024 (VFW).
The award recognizes veterans in the fashion industry who have contributed to advancing the local market. Its categories are retailer, teacher, stylist, journalist, photographer, designer, wholesale/distributor, hair and makeup, and special recognition.
Campbell and the other nominees were invited to attend a gala during September fashion week, where she had the opportunity to connect with her old colleagues from the Vancouver fashion world.
“It [means] recognition of time,” says Campbell, who is also a marketing instructor at KPU’s Melville School of Business. “It’s appreciation for the contribution that I have given to the industry in relation to teaching.”
As an industry innovator, Campbell says she is most proud of her accomplishment working as an entrepreneur in her early 20s, when she dove into the unknown world of creating fashion shows. She chose to do so in Vancouver — a city that did not have a large fashion industry at the time.
Campbell says she chose this path in her early career because she enjoyed the work and worked hard to make the most out of an opportunity she created for herself. She adds the landscape of the fashion industry in Vancouver has changed a lot since she began her career.
Vancouvers always had a really strong technical apparel market, but I think we have moved from being regionally, Canadian recognized to now being recognized on a brand level [at] a global scale — and that is really amazing to see,
Natasha Campbell — Foundations in Design Program Chair
Despite being a relatively small city, Vancouver makes a lot of impact, Campbell says.
“The creative entrepreneurs, they are the ones who have put Vancouver on the map … and have allowed Vancouver Fashion Week to be what it is.”
Her creative production company served clients in Vancouver, New York, and China for 15 years before she made the transition into teaching.
“I’m really proud of my students because I’ve seen them come out of programs I’ve run or courses I’ve done and become really prominent entrepreneurs and do great things,” Campbell says. “It is wonderful to see that kind of growth and to see that dedication.”
One of her former students, Sarah-Audrey Mome, put Campbell’s name up for the award nomination. Mome attended KPU in 2018 and took courses in the fashion marketing department at the Wilson School of Design.
Campbell was a teacher and mentor to Mome while she navigated the early days of her fashion entrepreneurship career. The two have kept in touch in the six years since Mome left KPU.
“I was and have always been passionate about fashion, but Natasha filled the blind spots that I was missing,” Mome wrote in an email statement to The Runner. “As a Black woman in Vancouver who grew up in California, I spent a lot of years unsupported when I moved here. I was desperately seeking a mentor or a kind advisor. Natasha was that teacher for me,” she wrote.
Mome adds that along with being a phenomenal educator, Campbell goes above and beyond to place her students in rooms with possibilities. She pushes her students while recognizing when they are burnt out, and ensures they are aware of the blunt realities of the fashion industry.
“I’m thankful for people like Natasha who helped me navigate those rocky waters and I owe much of who I am today to her tutelage and patience with me when she really didn’t have to do so,” Mome wrote. “People like Natasha are a rare find in this cold city.”
Campbell will be present at a “Rising Women in Leadership” panel on Nov. 27 from 4:00 to 6:00 pm at the KPU Richmond campus conference room 4900. The event will allow students and alumni to network and learn about what it takes to be innovative in today’s marketplace. Campbell will moderate four guest speakers.
To learn more about Campbell, visit www.natashaec.com.
