The Verse’s Rosie Smith shares her thoughts on Burberry’s new Christmas Ad Campaign, ho ho ho and a cashmere Christmas!
Since the late 1800s when Thomas Burberry established the company, and invented the fabric gabardine, creating the iconic trench, Burberry has evolved into one of the most iconic British fashion brands, driven by heritage and innovation. Therefore, the promotion of their collections overtime have become highly anticipated events.
The most recent Spring/Summer 2017 show supports British talent, from British actors on their front row, to the orchestra who accompanied the models throughout the event. The company is a true representation of British talent and heritage which, by promotion of the brand, is shared with the world. The show venue Burberry used only seated around a third of their attendance from previous years, creating an intimate feel, which allowed the guests to feel more relaxed and connected to the show experience. It would give a sense of home, which bodes well with the British ideal behind the brand.
Burberry focused on a trend that worked for men and women simultaneously, using ruffles for men and creating women’s clothes with, traditionally, masculine tailoring. Burberry was inspired by Virginia Woolf’s novel Orlando, which focuses on gender fluidity. Combining their men’s and womenswear collections for the first time is also a key moment in fashion history and one which will affect it’s future. However, the gender fluidity concept may distance the brand from other designers who pride themselves in creating clothes which suit/ flatter individual genders, going against the norm will always bring up risks of how it is going to affect the future of the fashion industry. Burberry recently released their 2016 festive film called “The Tale of Thomas Burberry”. I believe this short film is a true representation of them as a brand. As previously mentioned they are a very traditional and historic brand, therefore, a film re-producing their history suits their brand greatly. They are living up to their reputation of supporting British talent and heritage.
Burberry CEO, Christopher Bailey said “This Christmas, as we celebrate our 160th anniversary we wanted to tell the story of Thomas Burberry – pioneer, inventor, innovator, and the man behind theiconic trench coat – in our own words. […] The film we have made is a brief glimpse inspired by his full and extraordinary life, which threaded its way through the history of the twentieth century in all its tumultuous highs and lows. […] We feel very proud to be sharing The Tale of Thomas Burberry this Christmas – his spirit and his vision are still at the heart of everything we do at Burberry today.”
Like the Spring/Summer 2017 show “The Tale of Thomas Burberry” also supports British talent. The festive film was directed by the Academy Award-winner Asif Kapadia, who was born in Hackney, London. Despite Thomas Burberry being played by Domhnall Gleeson who is Irish, Dominic West and Lily James are featured, those who are both English, and in the eyes of the viewer representations of British culture.
