My alarm is set for 7am, the laptop is fully charged, fresh coffee is made, and I have my grocery list with me. Like thousands of other women across the UK, I was ready to shop the most exciting fashion collaboration of the year: M&S x Bella Freud.
I was expecting it to drop at 8am, but when I opened the M&S homepage at 7.30am on Thursday morning I saw it was already available for shopping. I was lucky enough to get everything I wanted except the pinstripe miniskirt, which, like most other items, sold out within minutes. Who knew M&S customers were fans of such high hemlines? Looks like M&S have done their homework.
It was one of two major high street collaborations launched on Thursday; the other was John Lewis x AWAKE Mode. But by 10 a.m. it was clear that one was significantly more commercially successful than the other. While the Bella Freud slogan knits and tailoring were largely sold out online, all of AWAKE Mode’s avant-garde sartorial pieces were still available to shop in all sizes.
As a fashion editor, I saw this coming. In the days leading up to the launch, every woman I encountered was talking about the Bella Freud collection. happened the the topic of conversation at the office tea station. The friends texted about which pieces they planned to buy. Various Instagram influencers received the items ahead of time, which meant my social media feed was full of models showing it off. This frisson told me it would sell out as fast as Taylor Swift tickets, so early morning shopping became my strategy.
The thinking woman’s slogan was knitted
That’s a rarity in an age where a new fashion collaboration is announced every five minutes. I tend not to get caught up in the hype, except for Anya Hindmarch for Uniqlo around this time last year. But like many British women, I’ve loved Bella Freud knits, priced at over £245, ever since I saw them on Kate Moss and Alexa Chung in the early to mid-2000s.
The designer, who is the granddaughter of Sigmund Freud and the daughter of the late artist Lucien Freud, has developed a following for her sweaters featuring slogans that nod to the beatnik era. Jane Birkin, poet Allan Ginsberg and filmmaker Jean-Luc Godard; They suggest that the user is also primed for these cultural references; The slogan of the thinking woman was woven.
“Even if you don’t know who Bella Freud is as a designer, whether you’ve seen it on Kate Moss or Claudia Winkleman, you’ll want one of these sweaters. They are for everyone, just like M&S,” says Virginia Norris, co-founder of PR agency Aisle 8, which has worked with high street giants such as Mango, Reiss, Sezane, Missoma and, in the past, M&S.
“Most high street retailers have t-shirts and sweatshirts with logos or text that become bestsellers year on year, giving them huge volume,” he explains. “People love wearing logos and things that are clearly identifiable, and Bella Freud does this on so many levels.”
Taste and direction, but not sales success
In contrast, no one outside the fashion table mentioned AWAKE Mode’s collaboration to me before its launch. The brand is undeniably great and has a loyal following, but perhaps it was too niche a label for the John Lewis customer to appreciate.
Wearability and price point are also critical. There’s nothing too complicated about wearing a jumper or suit – Bella for M&S has a good mix of fitted and plus sizes, some in cashmere, others in wool; nothing too scary or over £139. Some of the AWAKE Mode pieces, such as the £149 red, cable-knit, off-the-shoulder jumper, are tempting, but the £399 cape falls a bit flat – it’s definitely not going to hit the spot in this exaggerated oversized shape. The fan base at John Lewis?
The AWAKE Mode collaboration wasn’t designed with sales potential in mind: it was set up through the British Fashion Council, which wanted to introduce young contemporary brands to high street audiences, to celebrate the 40th anniversary of London Fashion Week; mission.
This is also a brand positioning opportunity for John Lewis and shows a certain level of taste and direction from its creative team, but it is not a sales success. “I love AWAKE Mode,” says Norris. “This does something completely different for John Lewis in terms of the fashion-forward brand and the company’s fashion history. [But John Lewis] “A collaboration that will please the audience is needed right now to lay the foundations for the brand love it deserves.”
This battle of retail establishments comes at a time when the high street is saturated with collaborations. This season alone there’s Barbour x Alexa Chung, Cult Gaia x Gap, Roxanda x George at Asda, Clare Waight Keller jewelery for Reformation, Tabitha Simmonds x Next, Reiss x Les 100 Ciels, Farm Rio x Adidas… each trying to attract customers. to buy something newsworthy and now – these limited edition items may be sold out tomorrow.
M&S has finally figured out what customers want
In fact, they’re having such a moment that their original high street collaborators are also returning: Zara is launching a party wear collection with Kate Moss in November; This collection harkens back to the glory days of 2007, when the supermodel joined forces with Topshop. A launch that blocked half of Oxford Street in London.
Now for a collaboration to stand out, it needs to check a few boxes: wearability, affordability, and desirability. M&S has them all, but the real X-factor of the Bella Freud slogan knits that won me over is that they’re in the same font as the £300 versions; you can actually transfer them as a designer.
“This is a real coup for M&S and continues the brand’s recent fashion path,” says Norris. “They work with much-loved fashion influencers and it really pays off.”
M&S told the Telegraph that unfortunately it would not be restocked, which only added to the appeal. After years of trying and failing to find its fashion footing, the retailer has finally figured out what its customers want. Now it’s up to John Lewis to try and achieve the same feat.