John Lewis reveals major new fashion own-brand

By

Sandra Halliday

Published
Jul 12, 2018

John Lewis’s deep dive into fashion and its reinvention of itself under a new, tweaked, name continued this week as the UK retailer revealed details of its largest own-brand launch to date.

It shared news of a new womenswear collection, John Lewis & Partners, that was created in-house by the JL&P Design Studio team with a collection of 300 designs that it says shows “an unwavering commitment to quality, simplicity and style.”

The first line to carry its new name, the company said its launch “is an important step in John Lewis’s ambition to build a £500 million own-brand fashion business, [under which] half of its products [will] be either own-brand, or exclusive.”

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That’s a common sense approach as own-brands have been a growth driver at the firm and in 2017, sales of John Lewis’s own womenswear labels grew by 15%.

The first collection is for AW18 and is built on “the idea of individuality and the myriad ways the full collection of 800 bold and colourful womenswear pieces, handbags and accessories can be styled.” It goes on sale on September 4.  

Fashion Buying Director Christine Kasoulis said: “This launch is our most significant investment in fashion to-date and builds on the successful launches of our standalone brands Kin, And/Or and Modern Rarity. It’s our next confident step in positioning John Lewis as a leading fashion destination.”

To grow its own brand business John Lewis has also made its largest ever investment in product development roles, recruiting 50% more designers and 70% more technologists.

The new collection will launch in all John Lewis department stores and on Johnlewis.com. In sizes 8-20, prices will range from £10 for a cotton jersey tank to £250 for a cashmere coat.