Idris wears The Runner Embossed crew, £75; The IE classic blue jean, £85. Photo by Rankin
Cotswolds based Superdry is expanding, adding a Premium Line with Idris Elba. Entering the Regent Street location, one delves headfirst into the brand’s bestselling DNA. No detail is overlooked. Printed T-shirts are piled high on plywood tables, expertly tarnished metal rails bearing vibrant shirts, compliment the exposed brick walls and spotlights pointed at a myriad product, guide through the maze-like display in half shade. Customers may purchase a complete Superdry wardrobe, including denim, outerwear and accessories. Today’s ample choice is a telltale sign of Superdry’s ascent; the first collection consisted of five T-shirts.
Two friends, fashion entrepreneurs Julian Dunkerton and James Holder, founded Superdry in 2003, combining their passions for vintage Americana, Japanese imagery and British tailoring. ‘We knew that, even when we started we had just one T-shirt and one Polo shirt, we would have the most perfect Polo shirt or T-shirt within that group and then we go deeper within that and then we are known for owning that product group’ explains Holder, his black leather jacket, worn over a grey T-shirt, a recent design. ‘Then we moved from Polos and T-shirts into outerwear and we released a leather jacket called the Brad leather jacket and we released a semi-technical jacket called the Windcheater.’
The Windcheater, in all its different variations, broke the one million sales barrier in 2010. Dunkerton, dressed in a sky blue cotton shirt and Superdry jeans, relates the company’s successes directly to his working relationship with Holder: ‘Our skills sort of marry each other perfectly. Neither one of us would be as successful as we are together.’
Superdry garments play on classic designs, altering cut and construction to fit a contemporary customer, to then evolve this product throughout following seasons. Employing over 25 designers, the brand releases about 6 000 items per year. ‘In essence it’s the same as when it started but actually, visually there’s twenty variants and a very sophisticated range based around a single product’.
Continuity in design has earned Superdry legions of returning customers, and the brand is sold in over 100 countries. ’The brand loyalty to us way exceeds almost everyone else in the market.’ Equally, Superdry’s demographic is made up of original customers and newcomers. ‘Age-wise it actually is a third between 16 and 24, a third 25 to 35 and a third 35 and above.’ reveals Dunkerton.
This large audience includes celebrities; David Beckham was an early adopter of their core item, the T-shirt. ‘Then the brand started to resonate, especially with the blokes.’
The premium line, Superdry + Idris Elba, marks a further move to becoming a complete and diverse lifestyle brand. On the night, an army of twenty male models are clad in sturdy woollen coats, cotton hoodies, cashmeres and leathers. The garments’ fits are true to Superdry’s existing range and a sleek, minimal design eschews vibrant hues and overt labelling. Elba explains that, ‘It’s pretty simple, it’s very easy to look at, it’s very easy to wear’. The classic styling is in tune with a renewed interest in easy basics, as pioneered by the Normcore movement. Elba is the first celebrity to collaborate with Superdry. ‘Idris was the perfect guy; he’s the perfect fit for our brand. He’s British, he’s cool, loves clothes’. Elba adds that, ‘We have a lot of things in common, we worked hard to get where we’ve got to. We’ve got a very specific audience and it just felt like a natural fit. They don’t usually do celebrity endorsements, I don’t usually do fashion endorsements.’
Taking just over six months to produce, the Golden Globe nominated actor was closely involved in all design processes; ‘It was a lot of me taking off clothes and showing clothes and you know, before you know we just had a system of sharing back and forth ideas and designs’.
Looking at the 250 pieces, one can’t help but wonder whether the understated Superdry aesthetic mirrors changes in lifestyle; products evolving in tandem with the founders’ own wardrobes. As Dunkerton adds, ‘We are always head to toe in Superdry, personally three quarters of Idris’ range I’ll be buying and wearing’. The trio is in the midst of planning a spring collection.
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