If you're starting a fashion business, it seems that London is the perfect place to do it. The city was recently ranked fashion capital of the world for the second consecutive year by the American analytics company Global Language Monitor.

You can see why: students flock from all over the world to study at institutions such as Central Saint Martins, London College of Fashion and the new Conde Nast College of Fashion and Design, and the capital's thriving design scene makes it hard for fashion graduates to leave. According to Caroline Rush, the CEO of the British Fashion Council, many international students stay on to start up businesses in London.

The capital is far from the only fashion hotbed in the country. Manchester is to become the next destination of Vogue's much celebrated Fashion's Night Out event, which encourages consumers to shop in order to support the fashion industry in a tough economic climate; other Northern cities such as Leeds, Newcastle and York are also praised for the variety of shopping opportunities on offer.

But with recent figures showing a fall in retail sales, how can fashion startups thrive? And what does it take to start up successfully in the fashion sector?

We'll be hosting a live Q&A on starting up in the fashion industry on Thursday 23 May between 1pm and 2.30pm. We'll be looking at:

• How to find your niche and develop your brand.

• The help and advice available to fashion startups.

• Weighing up the benefits and disadvantages of online retail and selling in a physical shop.

• How small fashion retailers can compete with larger high street stores.

• Any other questions our readers have about starting a small fashion business.

Leave your questions or comments below and our panel will get back to you, or join us at 1pm on Thursday for the live discussion.

Our panel:

Lisa Keir is brand communications manager at Cruise, a luxury designer clothes retailer

Lisa is responsible for increasing brand awareness and devising and delivering integrated marketing campaigns.

Caz Moss is the founder and director at The Style Factory, a social enterprise in Cheshire

Caz is a Young Ambassador for The Prince's Trust. The Style Factory has a shop which sells new and vintage clothing and also runs fashion and craft workshops.

Jon Heaton is the technical director and co-founder at Jeanography, a denim retailer providing an at-home fitting service for designer jeans

Prior to this role, Jon worked in the technology and e-commerce sectors.

Helen Davis is the founder of EKO, an ethical fashion company

Helen has a BA in Fashion from the Surrey Institute of Art and Design. She then worked in commercial brands before founding EKO in 2009.

Jake Allen is the CEO and founder at King & Allen Bespoke Tailoring, a suit business

Since 2004, Jake developed the business from selling dinner jackets from the back of a black cab into a successful label with shops all over the UK.

Tom Carl is a senior associate in the intellectual property team at international law firm Taylor Wessing, specialising in fashion and luxury brands.

Tom advises a wide range of clients in the fashion industry, from up-and-coming designers to established, internationally known brands.

Joanna Booth is the founder of MyFashionShop.co.uk

MyFashionShop.co.uk is a website offering fashion at prices suited to a student market.

Beverley Edmondson is the owner of Beverley Edmondson Millinery, a hat shop

Beverley started her business five years ago and opened the shop in Farnham, Surrey in 2010.

Paul Alger is the director of international business development at the UK Fashion and Textile Association (UKFT)

Paul used to be executive director of UK Fashion Exports. He is a representative on the all-party parliamentary group on trade and investment and the BIS Creative Industries Strategy Group.

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