Left to right: Gen.G streamer Krysta ‘Krystalogy’ Eason, Burberry global VP of brand protection Melissa Roth Mendez and Enlight.gg founder Eunice Chen
British fashion brand Burberry has partnered with esports organisation Gen.G for a new educational content series designed ‘to champion women and the importance of inclusivity within gaming’.
The four-part series will be part of Gen.G’s ‘NetWork: Inspire’ program and marks Burberry’s first foray into the world of esports.
Burberry, which was founded in 1856, is headquartered in London and is listed on the London Stock Exchange, will promote the content on its website, TikTok, YouTube and Twitch channels to its millions of followers.
The content series will be hosted by entrepreneur and content creator Emily Ghoul, and feature women in gaming, other creators and influencers from across the industry, alongside members of the Burberry team. One session will also feature a man – caster Evan “Raynday” Raynr – and look at how men can champion women and the role men can play as allies.
Each episode will consist of an open discussion about the common challenges facing women within gaming, including toxic online environments, stereotyping and underrepresentation. The episodes are as follows:
- Episode 1 – My Platform is My Power – featuring Gen.G influencer and variety streamer, Krysta “Krystalogy” Eason, Founder of Enlight.gg, Eunice Chen, and Burberry’s Vice President of Brand Protection, Melissa Roth Mendez, this episode unpacks the idea that platforms have unmatched power in creating real change for the future and discussed the women that are already driving this change.
- Episode 2 – The I in Imagination – featuring Gen. G and Logitech content creator, Jessica Kim, singer and Twitch streamer, Stephanie Poetri, and Burberry Senior CAD Manager, Lucy Goodyear, this episode will explore how we can use our creativity as a force for good, to inspire women online and to encourage self- expression.
- Episode 3 – Voices and Choices for Change – featuring Netflix TV personality and Twitch streamer, Jacki Jing, YouTuber and esports commentator, Evan “Raynday” Raynr, and voice actor, gaming creator and former KPop singer, Shannon Williams, this episode turns up the volume on the importance of championing women within all spaces and discusses how they use their voice to inspire advocacy as well as the role men can play in allyship.
- Episode 4 – Supercharging Self-Care – featuring Gen.G content creator, Gloria “Ploo” Shin, Founder and President of Latinx in Gaming, Cristina Amaya, and Burberry Vice President of Diversity & Inclusion, Geoffrey Williams, the final episode will focus on the importance of self-care, mental health and how to evade the pitfall of burnout.
Burberry will also be donating to the Gen.G Foundation Scholarship. This aims to develop talented young gamers with the potential to lead the industry’s next generation, whilst promoting a culture of diversity and inclusion. Burberry will select a scholarship recipient in September 2022, with the scholarship funds being shared with their selected college or university.
Rachel Waller, global VP of channel innovation at Burberry, said:
“We are so proud to partner with Gen.G and to support the next generation of women within gaming to go beyond. Through our programming and scholarship, we hope to equip young leaders with the skills they need to succeed and achieve their aspirations.”
Rachel Waller, Burberry
“It’s an honour to collaborate with an iconic brand like Burberry on NetWork: Inspire. They share Gen.G’s vision of celebrating and empowering underrepresented voices in the gaming space and beyond,” added Gina Chung Lee, chief marketing officer at Gen.G.
“We envision a community of creatives that is inclusive and diverse; we hope this content series inspires fans in gaming, fashion and music alike.”
Two years ago, Burberry partnered with Twitch to livestream its fashion show which was set in the British outdoors.
This is the latest announcement bridging the worlds of fashion and esports. Earlier this year, the Gucci Gaming Academy with FaceIT was announced, and last year, UK CoD League talent Lottie Van-Praag hosted Esports Fashion Week.
And in 2019, Louis Vuitton teamed up with League of Legends for a capsule collection, in-game skins and a trophy case for the World Championship.
Dom is an award-winning writer and finalist of the Esports Journalist of the Year 2023 award. He graduated from Bournemouth University with a 2:1 degree in Multi-Media Journalism in 2007.
As a long-time gamer having first picked up the NES controller in the late ’80s, he has written for a range of publications including GamesTM, Nintendo Official Magazine, industry publication MCV and others. He worked as head of content for the British Esports Federation up until February 2021, when he stepped back to work full-time on Esports News UK and offer esports consultancy and freelance services. Note: Dom still produces the British Esports newsletter on a freelance basis, so our coverage of British Esports is always kept simple – usually just covering the occasional press release – because of this conflict of interest.
