Welcome to TCFWA

Textile Clothing Footwear Resource Centre of WA

Providing support and resources for Designers and Industry

The Textile, Clothing and Footwear Resource Centre of Western Australia Inc (TCFWA) provide a valuable resource for the design industry. Since being established in 1998, the centre has been so successful, that it now receives requests from across Australia and overseas, from organisations and designers wishing to be involved.

Providing business skills and industry mentoring, a helpline service and development of specialised industry workshops to better equip those operating in the industry is one of the main areas that TCFWA has been recognised as a leader and role model organisation across Australia an overseas.

Designedge Fashion Incubator and co-ordinating trade missions to national & international fashion exhibitions are further examples of the great work the centre has been involved. Fashion trade events have included Australian Fashion Week, Fashion Exposed, World Boutique, Hong Kong Fashion Week, Singapore and Bali Fashion Weeks.

TCF Global is a new project aimed at networking designers and fashion organisations from across the world in addition to providing linkages to TCF Global village community projects providing micro enterprise support for women to start a small sewing business. TCF Ormoc, Philippines is one example where TCFWA through the donation of sewing machines and equipment has assisted 21 community sewing centres to commence which has provided 130 men and women the chance to start a small sewing business.

The brainchild of TCFWA is Carol Hanlon, who is also Manager of the Belmont Business Enterprise Centre. Carol said “TCFWA remains the first of its kind in Australia and was established to provide support for the textile, clothing, footwear and leather industry”.

“Having 27 years experience in the fashion industry in Victoria both as a fashion designer, clothing manufacturer, I am very aware of how difficult it can be to get started and survive in the industry and I created TCFWA to provide more specialised support and focus to better assist designers and the industry in WA.”

The TCFWA centre is located at the Belmont Business Enterprise Centre Inc. and currently has in excess of 1,500 businesses listed and receiving services, indicating that there is a real need for this resource.

TCFWA also provides support and specialised resources such as a trade library containing International fashion publications, label & textile directories and fashion forecast videos and advice and guidance for textile artists, designers and raw material suppliers. TCFWA has also been instrumental in a number of business skills development projects that have provided support to Indigenous and CaLD diverse women to start textile and fashion related businesses.

TCFWA is a non profit community organisation which is supported by Memberships, Sponsors, supporters and volunteers and through fee for service through the delivery of numerous range of programs and projects.