Two stories, one collection
Royal Selangor collaborates with Pestle & Mortar Clothing to release limited edition streetwear.
TWO Malaysian companies, born more than a hundred years apart – yet they have managed to find a common ground in artisanal creativity and the stories of their respective journeys.
Pewter brand Royal Selangor and streetwear label Pestle & Mortar Clothing have recently teamed up to come up with a rather unexpected collection of limited edition merchandise.
The RSXPMC collection sees Royal Selangor’s archive and rich history translated into a Pestle & Mortar capsule range consisting of four garments, a tote bag and a cap. Each item features an embedded bespoke pewter piece.
“I’ve always known Royal Selangor. It’s a household name. The company has been around for 133 years and it has so much legacy behind it,” says Hugh Koh, group CEO and co-founder of Pestle & Mortar Clothing.
“With this collection, I was allowed to go in and look at the archives of Royal Selangor. The designs we came up with are inspired by the things they have created before, but in our language.”
According to executive director of Royal Selangor International, Yong Yoon Li, there are many similarities between the two brands. However, the visceral connection is that they are both very Malaysian.
“I think the collection represents the growth of our country. Also, it tells of how Royal Selangor has been a part of that journey – told through the eyes of Pestle & Mortar,” Yong states.
Headlining the RSXPMC collection is an all-black worker shirt featuring pewter buttons. This is accompanied by a jacket carrying the Tiger Pewter touchmark, plus a pocket T-shirt that has been given a hammered finished surface.
There is also a white T-shirt featuring a pestle and mortar, depicted in a style similar to the illustration of a pewter teaset that was featured on Royal Selangor’s plastic bags during the 1960s and 70s.
Rounding off the collection is a tote bag featuring Royal Selangor’s first factory in Setapak during the 70s, and a cap with Pestle & Mortar’s iconic flying mechanic logo.
“When we designed the collection, the idea was to have each piece as something very different in itself. All of them can easily be worn for different occasions,” points out Koh.
“I think it’s fun to bridge the generation gap. The take home message for the collection is about our shared stories and the new frienship that we have come to build,” notes Yong.
Royal Selangor is a brand founded by pewtersmith Yong Koon in 1885, who was determined to succeed in the then burgeoning tin mining town called Kuala Lumpur.
Pestle & Mortar Clothing, on the other hand, was founded in 2010 by a trio of friends who share a passion for streetwear and a determination to show the world what Malaysia is capable of.
While the establishment of the two brands is more than a century apart, their stories share similar traits of passion, grit and entrepreneurship.