"Our success and growth across the board is a result of our unique and distinct point of view and we believe there is a void and big opportunity in this category of business. Simon Mendez and his team at The British Apparel Collection are a talented group with a solid track record and we are excited to have them as our partner,” said Neal Kusnetz, President, Robert Graham.
The collection, targeted to hit stores for Holiday 2009, will consist of a wide assortment ranging from dress, formal and sportswear styles to fashion athletics. The visually revved-up collection will tout dress styles of colorful ribbed solids, patterned fancies and include the taller and dressier over-the-calf (OTC) knee-high silhouette as well as the shorter and more popular, mid-calf styles. The Sportswear category will feature a bevy of casual classics, from argyles and stylized paisleys to colorful stripes, all geared to chicly partner with jeans and khakis. Cotton, Merino wool along with cashmere and cashmere blends, will be included throughout dress and sportswear groups. Athletics will include crew styles along with quarter-tops and low-cut ped-styles. Silk formals, including novelty and conversational styles, rounds out the primary menswear styling.
According to Simon Mendez, President of The British Apparel Collection, “our just-inked Robert Graham alliance delivers a dynamic, one-of-a-kind brand that’s chock full of visual wallop and renowned for its youthful irreverence and typically au contraire but always daringly bold, designs.”
Designer Robert Stock, founder & owner of Robert Graham, will spear head design with Mendez and his design team and the British Apparel Collection sales force will sell the categories.
Retail prices will range from $25 - $30 for sportswear and dress styles while cashmere and silk-formals will retail in the $65 neighborhood.
For the New York-based British Apparel Collection, this first-ever licensing deal ranks as a milestone in the storied company’s 36-year-long history. For Mendez, landing the highly coveted and competitively fought Robert Graham brand adds an edgy and irreverent, fast fashion designer attitude missing from his luxe-niched stable of labels, a portfolio that currently boasts a peppering of ritzy Italian labels among its top, Brit-based luxury brands.
Robert Graham known for its eclectic men’s & women’s sportswear is on a hot streak right now and growing exponentially into a full lifestyle brand. Current licensed categories include Dress Shirts, Neckwear, Belts & Small Leather Goods, Cufflinks & Button Studs and a recent deal signed for hats, gloves & scarves. The brand is distributed in Nordstrom, Saks Fifth Avenue, Neiman Marcus & better specialty stores both domestically & internationally.