The Congress Culture Committee, as well as its counterpart in the Senate, have unanimously approved a non-legislative resolution urging the Government to implement, through adequate action, the measures outlined in the Líneas Estratégicas de la Moda de Autor. (LEMA).
ACME and FAME celebrate the institutional support from the Spanish Parliament, which acknowledges Spanish designer fashion as a strategic cultural and creative industry.
For the first time in Spain’s democratic history, Spanish designer fashion has been the subject of a specific debate in the Spanish Parliament. The Culture Committees of the Congress of Deputies and the Senate have unanimously approved two initiatives concerning the funding and the promotion of the Líneas Estratégicas de la Moda de Autor (LEMA), urging the Government to implement measures with adequate budget allocations.
The initiative, presented by the People’s Party Parliamentary Group, and led by Member of Parliament, María Soledad Cruz-Guzmán, received broad parliamentary support in both chambers. For the Asociación de Creadores de Moda de España (ACME) and the Fundación Academia de la Moda Española (FAME), this support represents an institutional milestone for the sector, and reaffirms the need to further acknowledge designer fashion as a cultural and an identity-based expression, as well as a social and economic driver.
“For those of us who have spent years championing designer fashion from within, this moment holds special significance. It represents recognition of the work entailed by many brands that have forged their own unique way of creating in Spain: they sustain traditional crafts, generate employment, and project a singular understanding of fashion. It is an important step towards better supporting the sector, allowing it to grow without giving up that which makes it unique,” stated Juan Duyos, President of ACME and FAME.
LEMA’s initiative, promoted by ACME and FAME within the Ministry of Culture, through the Permanent Committee of the General State Administration for Designer Fashion, constitutes a collaborative working tool between public administrations and the sector. The measures address the definition of a common identity for Spanish designer fashion, its relationship with traditional crafts and trades, the professionalization of fashion brands, access to financing, internationalization, digitalization, specialized training, and a sustainable and innovative transformation of the textile sector.
The parliamentary debate places designer fashion within the framework of cultural policies and creative industries from a transversal perspective that encompasses creation, craft, business, territory, training, innovation, and international projection. This recognition reinforces the importance of consolidating stable, well-resourced public policies that support the development of a sector comprised mainly of independent creative structures, ateliers, fashion designer firms, and companies linked to Spain’s artisanal and productive heritage.
In this regard, Ernest Urtasun, Minister of Culture, recently declared at the International Conference on European Designer Fashion, organized by FAME and promoted by ACME, that “designer fashion is not just an aesthetic expression. It is a first-rate cultural manifestation, a creative industry, and a vector for international projection. Ultimately, it is a way of expressing who we are and who we want to be. Let us continue working together so that this sector continues to grow, innovate, and contribute to the cultural, economic, and social development of our country and of Europe.”
“This parliamentary support confirms that Spanish designer fashion must occupy its own place within our country’s cultural policies. We are talking about creation, industry, craftsmanship, identity, and living heritage. LEMA’s initiative was precisely created to structure this dialogue between the sector and the government, and to transform it into a shared roadmap,” notes Pepa Bueno, Vice President of FAME and Executive Director of ACME.
On the other hand, Héctor Jareño, commissioner of LEMA, emphasizes that parliamentary support, from both Chambers, for LEMA, as well as for their demand for sufficient funding for the proposed projects, represents an unequivocal acknowledgement of the cultural, identity-related, and economic relevance of Designer Fashion in Spain. This, in addition to being a novelty, is a unique and long-sought opportunity to improve the sector’s competitiveness by strengthening its shared identity, protecting traditional crafts, promoting professionalization and access to financing, fostering internationalization, and safeguarding design through projects capable of generating a real impact on its value chain.”
ACME and FAME will continue working on the development of LEMA as a framework to strengthen Spanish designer fashion, to promote its recognition both within and outside Spain, and to consolidate its role as a creative industry, economic engine, and contemporary cultural expression.
