5 new names to watch out for at London Collections Men
The prodigious young designers tipped for future greatness...
As the fashion industry gears up for another anticipated edition of LC:M, ShortList’s style director, Adrian Clark, selects his pick of the prodigious young designers tipped for future greatness...
Edward Crutchley
Crutchley launched his eponymous label at Fashion East’s menswear installations for London Collections Men in 2015, using an innate knowledge of artisanal textile techniques from around the world to create pieces that are a reflection of true contemporary luxury.
Having worked with Pringle and Kanye West and currently collaborating with Louis Vuitton (amongst others) his experience and understanding of the menswear market is way beyond his years. A dedicated discipline of his Alma mater, Central Saint Martins’ “research, research, research” philosophy, his clothes are grounded in tradition with a true response to and rethinking of craftsmanship and materials.
Daniel W. Fletcher
Daniel W. Fletcher is an exciting addition to the London menswear scene. ‘Reality’ is referenced readily in his work while his natural knack of uniting sportswear and tailoring renders a melody of sharp modernism.
Daniel studied menswear design at Central Saint Martins and graduated last summer with a first class honours and his ‘Peckham’ inspired graduate collection was soon picked up by Opening Ceremony, launched in January in the form of a capsule 8-piece collection.
Originally from Chester Fletcher rose through the ranks via a number of roles and internships with brands including; Victoria Beckham, Burberry, James Long and Hussein Chalayan. He also spent time in Paris learning his trade under the guidance of Lucas Ossendrijver at Lanvin before heading to the leather goods department at Louis Vuitton.
Rachel James
Rachel James launched at LCM with her Autumn 2015 collection ‘Granny Flower/Man Power’ inspired by vintage 1970’s wallpaper designs and translated through bespoke prints encompassing scanned pressed flowers.
Her philosophy was to liberate men through gender-fluidity and change-up the conceptions of traditional menswear. Manufacturing out of the UK, her autumn collection, entitled ‘Glitch’ evolved from images of technical glitches: white noise, fragmented pixels and distorted shapes with sharp contrasting colours.
Having been featured in I-D, Vogue Italia and V Man, all of the garments in the collection are named after computer viruses: making something disruptive a deliberate and wanted idea. It is a sportier silhouette with a nod towards Japanese streetwear.
Charles Jeffrey Loverboy
Glaswegian designer, illustrator and radical creative, 25-year old Charles Jeffrey has been hailed by Dazed as “The ring leader of London’s next generation of club kids”.
His brand, Charles Jeffrey Loverboy encompasses a fashion label and a cult club night, each informing the other, with the Loverboy night and its colourful inhabitants forming the primary research for Jeffrey’s collections. While studying for his B.A at Central Saint Martins, Charles was invited to hold his birthday party at legendary venue Vogue Fabrics in Dalston.
After the event became one of the most talked about happenings in London, Jeffrey started the Loverboy series of nights to help fund his M.A course. While undertaking an internship at the couture house of Christian Dior he was spotted by Lulu Kennedy from Fashion East and he now shows as part of the MAN line up in partnership with Topman.
Cottweiler
Ben Cottrell and Matthew Dainty, collectively known as Cottweiler, are concept led designers who respond instinctively to their social environment. Forward thinking design and manufacturing is combined with an aspirational quality to form a relevant menswear label.
In addition to producing seasonal collections stocked worldwide, Cottweiler produce films and installations that have been showcased at The Institute of Contemporary Arts in London, the Haus Der Kunst in Munich and Alison Jacques Gallery, London. Past collaborators include; Fka Twigs, Skepta, Holly Herndon, Daniel Swan and Palmistry.
Cottweiler has been featured in many art and fashion publications such as Vogue Italia, Dazed & Confused, New York Times, The Guardian and i-D magazine.
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