Rachel Fowler – MA Fashion & Textiles

The 40-year-old who lives in Aberdeen graduated with a BSc in Fashion Technology in 2012 and returned to higher education after working in the furnishing industry.

Rachel was also part of The 2025 Startup Accelerator, where she pitched her business, Owned by None, which created handcrafted pieces from locally sourced leather and wool.

She said: “The course was focused on developing your practice rather than heavy academia, as a creative person and visual learner, this was appealing to me. It allowed me the space to try new things, like 3D scanning and printing and jewellery making.

“As my work is interdisciplinary, having the space to experiment and integrate new ways of working improved my understanding of how I work and like to work. It also allowed me to see areas that I would like to improve upon and hone further.

“I was able to learn a lot of new challenging things throughout my time, wool felting sheep hides to tanning deer hides and casting bespoke jewellery pieces, but the main area where I was out of my comfort zone was doing the live pitch at the business accelerator showcase.”

Rachel, who is originally from Falkirk, is now focused on moving forward with her business ventures and expects 2026 to be busy.

Having moved back to Scotland from Brighton to study at Gray’s School of Art, she found the course could fit into her life as a mature student.

Rachel added: “I’m working away behind the scenes building my leather accessories brand ‘Owned by None’, which is set to officially launch in 2026. And I’m also working on launching another project I’m excited about- ‘Harlington & Hannah’, which will focus on my experience within the home furnishings industry. Overall, my time at RGU has helped me focus on my creative passions and entrepreneurial aspirations for the future.”