The Prince’s Trust, George at Asda and Barbie have formed the unique partnership ahead of International Women’s Day to #ChangeAGirlsLife.

Ahead of International Women’s Day in March, The Prince’s Trust has partnered with George at Asda and Mattel’s Barbie to give 11 young individuals a once in a lifetime opportunity to design a limited edition Barbie-inspired range that launches into Asda stores and online from 26th February 2024.

The fashion collection was unveiled at an afternoon tea event that brought together the young designers in London on 6th February, celebrating the power of creativity and following your dreams.

The partnership marks the fifth year of The Prince’s Trust #ChangeAGirlsLife campaign, which raises vital funds to support young women to build better futures for themselves through employment, education or by starting their own businesses.

Giving the individuals a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, George and Mattel supported the young people in designing and creating a limited edition 21 piece fashion collection.

George at Asda and Mattel are proud to be donating £200,000 to help The Prince’s Trust support up to 2,000 young women to further support the #ChangeAGirlsLife campaign.

The longstanding partnership between The Prince’s Trust and George at Asda has been built on a shared value to empower young people with skills and confidence to succeed. This year in celebration of the Barbie brands 65th anniversary and history as the original girl empowerment brand, the partnership gave young people from The Prince’s Trust unique access to Barbie’s fashion designers and the opportunity to create Barbie-inspired fashion pieces.

The partnership began back in autumn 2023, when 11 young people from The Prince’s Trust came together to partake in a three-day ‘Get Started in Product Design’ programme with George at Asda and designers from Mattel’s Barbie brand. Here they began the design and development of a collection which celebrates the power of creativity and includes t-shirts, tote bags, sweatshirts and matching sets.

The collection was unveiled for the first time in London, at female-founded bakery Peggy Porschen’s, bringing together the young designers to celebrate the official launch of the range.

Liz Evans, chief commercial officer at George at Asda said: “We’re delighted to be working with The Prince’s Trust on such an important campaign. Now in its fifth year, #ChangeAGirlsLife has impacted so many young people’s lives and this year we’re thrilled to join forces with Mattel to bring a unique partnership to life. It gives a platform and opportunity for these young individuals, alongside a unique offering for our customers that raises awareness of the amazing work The Prince’s Trust does in supporting thousands of young women across the UK to build a better future for themselves”.

Tilly, a Prince’s Trust Young Person on the programme, said: “I was in a tough place before I came across the programme, but being surrounded by other creatives and professionals helped me believe in myself again. The programme helped me learn more about the industry and I have since found myself a job within the creative industry which has really helped with my confidence.”

Catherine Hutchinson, senior corporate partnership manager at The Prince’s Trust, said: “Beyond this beautiful collection bringing power and confidence to others, all funds raised will support #ChangeAGirlsLife and help to provide specialist support which enables young women to build the confidence and skills they need to move into work, training and education. On behalf of everyone at The Prince’s Trust, thank you to George at Asda and Mattel for this tremendous support.”