Miss Selfridge

Paving the way for youthful British high street fashion since 1966 UK brand Miss Selfridge has always been a stylish cutting-edge and original choice for contemporary young women The brand was first conceived as a youthful fashion alternative to Selfridges the UK department store giant whose high-end stores across the country had been transforming the retail shopping experience since the opening of their first store on Oxford Street in 1909 Currently they have hundreds of stores worldwide and cater to a global customer base through their website Creative collaborations with renowned fashion designers supermodels and popular TV shows have cemented the brand’s staying power as they constantly re-define the concept of the London It-Girl and entice young women all over the world to fill up their wardrobes with the latest collections from Miss Selfridge

When Charles Clore the owner of Selfridges in 1966 travelled to New York City and visited the fashion store Bonwit Teller he discovered an interesting concept in their window display A collection of ‘Miss Bonwit’ dresses aimed specifically at an audience of teenage girls inspired Charles Clore to take this idea back to London and install it in a number of his Selfridges and Lewis stores across the country The first mannequins used in the store were based on 60’s mod icon Twiggy The new section of Selfridges quickly caught the attention of fashion-forward teenagers all over London and the brand soared high on a reputation of creating fresh colourful and modern designs for British youth Proving that they were the innovative darlings of the fashion industry the brand’s first release was a collection of paper dresses designed in collaboration with eccentric designers Sylvia Ayton and Zandra Rhodes The paper outfits exploded with colour and artistic flair and were made to be worn once and then thrown away After this, a successful collaboration with French fashion designer Pierre Cardin saw him release an exclusive collection of outfits for Miss Selfridge four times each year

Since its beginnings Miss Selfridge has creatively collaborated with some of the world’s most influential designers models and actors They became one of the first fashion retailers in the industry to hire a then little-known Kate Moss to model their designs in their marketing campaigns Naomi Campbell Nicollette Sheridan Saffron Burrows Yasmin le Bon and Tess Daly have also followed suit and participated in various campaigns before they became famous In 2005 cult-status fashion designer Bella Freud brought her distinctive edge to the label when she designed and contributed three capsule collections In 2010 they joined forces with Eric Damon the stylist of the hit TV show Gossip Girl to launch a collection of eight dresses based on the wardrobes of the four leading female characters

The Miss Selfridge brand has always been aimed at young women in their teens and twenties who are sociable confident and have a strong sense of self-identity in a fast-paced world Their vast collection of outfits showcases the leading edge in any category including dresses knitwear tops bottoms outerwear shoes and accessories Throughout the decades the brand has maintained its unique fusion of modern designs with a vintage twist Vintage fashion experts skilfully select the most on-trend vintage patterns and colour combinations from a range of sources around the globe such as vintage markets collector archives and shops to provide that unmistakeable quirkiness that has become a fun trademark of the Miss Selfridge style

While fans of the brand have always been certain that they are wearing the latest trends in fashion they can also always be confident that they are purchasing outfits from a company who are ethically and morally sound The brand developers have maintained a philosophy of integrity and consciousness throughout the span of its existence, with a strong set of values that the brand has been built upon The brand has openly embraced the core values of honesty courage passion and respect for itself and its customers They famously refuse to work with any company that practices animal product testing or who contributes to the discrimination of others All international trade dealing is conducted fairly and lawfully with a strong focus on providing decent working conditions free of exploitation and an approach that is safe and harm-free for the surrounding environment