Designer Spotlight: Cath Kidston
Quintessentially British. Would you like a cup of tea?
Cath Kidston is a fashion designer, businesswoman and author from across the pond — England to be exact. While her brand is famous in the UK, it’s less so in the US. But that’s about to change, because Cath Kidston is our latest Designer Spotlight feature.
So grab that cuppa, perhaps a crumpet or a slice of cake, get comfy, and let’s take a look at Cath’s journey…
The Early Years
Cath Kidston was a boarding school kid from Hampshire, England who moved to London at the age of 18. She landed her first job with interior designer and socialite Nicky Haslam and then left to set up her own interior decorating business.
In 1993, near Notting Hill in London, Cath opened her first store, which she described to the Daily Mail as a “glorified junk shop.” Using vintage fabric finds, she began crafting and creating her own products, including cushion covers, cotton bags and ironing board covers.
After an ordering mistake and receiving way too much fabric, she also began fashioning aprons, swimsuits and other practical products to use up the excess. This ultimately turned into Cath’s first fashion collection.
By 1999 the brand started to branch out, introducing more and more prints and patterns, with collaborations and overseas partnerships. It soon became famous across the UK.
Letting Go
According to Cath’s official website, Cath sold the majority share in her business in 2010, order to drive future expansion. Despite this, the philosophies of the brand still stick to the founder’s vision: ‘modern vintage,’ fit for a purpose with a sense of fun and quirky and definitely, wholeheartedly British.
Today, Cath Kidston continues to fill the world with multicolored polka dots and a feminine, flowery palette.
Disney X Cath Kidston
This summer it was announced that Disney and Cath Kidston would be partnering up to create a range of limited edition collaborations over the course of a number of seasons, combining Cath’s iconic floral and spot prints with Disney’s well-loved classic characters.
The first range from this collaboration launched in September 2016, just in time to mark 90 years since the first A. A. Milne story was published. The collection features everyones favorite chubby little cubby all stuffed with fluff, Winnie the Pooh!
The collection was an instant hit with products being sold out online within minutes of its launch, and completely gone from stores within hours.
Francesca Gianesin, VP of fashion and lifestyle from The Walt Disney Company, stated to fashionunited.uk,
“Cath Kidston’s playful and iconic prints provide the perfect backdrop for our classic Disney characters, and we’re looking forward to creating more new and exciting products together.”
As if the Winnie the Pooh prints weren’t cute enough, Cath Kidston made many a Christmas wish list with the next collaboration featuring the one, the only, the leader of the club… Mickey Mouse.
After the overwhelming success of the first Disney collab, the second included even more patterns and products. Alongside fun novelties and scenic, story-telling prints, five classic patterns received the Mouse treatment with Disney granting the designers at Kidston access to the archive of original character illustrations.
The result is jam-packed full of fun, with a playful energy that pays tribute to Mickey and Minnie’s heritage as mischievous animated characters, as well as their enduring love story.
Admittedly, I actually own a few pieces from each of these collections. (Being a Disney Princess in Training how can I not?)
Today, Cath Kidston continues to design and fabricate products and designs that you can’t hep but adore. I wouldn’t be surprised if she becomes much more popular in the states soon.
What do you think?
Is Cath Kidston your cup of tea? What other designers would you like to see featured here? Let us know in the comments below.
Source: #Fashionblogger #fashiontrends