OPENING THE DOORS TO LUXURY
Brown Thomas is celebrating 175 years in business with a new exhibition that looks back over its illustrious history
EVERY major European city has its iconic luxury store. In London it’s Harrods, in Paris, Galerie Lafayette, and in Milan, Galleria Vittorio Emanuelle II. In Dublin, it’s Brown Thomas, which is celebrating 175 years as Ireland’s premier temple of style. The store has seen seismic change since it first opened in 1849 as Brown and Thomas, a general draper and haberdasher. It has moved premises, survived recessions, changed ownership and served consumers craving finery through thousands of trends. Throughout it has adapted and innovated to ensure its longevity. In 1971, Galen Weston — son of a
Seasonal: Michael Bublé turns on the Christmas lights in 2011
Canadian retail family who had married Dublin model Hilary Frayne — bought a share in Brown Thomas for just under £300,000 as a wedding present for his Irish bride. In 1983, the Westons bought the balance of shares, returning the store to private ownership. They maintained this until August 2022, when the Cambridge Retail Group bought Brown Thomas as part of a €4.5 billion deal for group assets, including Selfridges in the UK.
The store has welcomed the great and the good, including Christian Dior, Princess Grace and Prince Rainier, Liz Hurley, Pamela Anderson, Michael Bublé, Stella McCartney,
Tory Burch, Diane Von Furstenberg, Christian Louboutin, Victoria Beckham, Kate Moss and, most recently, Trinny Woodall. JW Anderson, the Loewe designer, worked there as a youngster, as have many Dubliners.
In the spring of 1995, Brown Thomas left 16-17 Grafton Street and decamped across the street to the Switzers building when BT bought the Switzers Group. The new store was a larger, more lavish space symbolising an acceleration into the modern era.
Perhaps the starriest events associated with Brown Thomas are the international Supermodel shows. These glamorous spectacles featured a host of big models and stars and stylist Catherine Condell produced all three in 1996, 2000 and 2003 in aid of ISPCC and Children of Chernobyl.
‘The highlight of my career was to produce the three International Fashion Shows that went out on live TV and in front of a 4,000strong audience at The Point Depot,’ she
recalls. ‘Famously we had supermodels, designers and rock stars all involved. It was beyond exciting, and the atmosphere was electric.’ Irish Daily Mail beauty editor Laura Bermingham modelled in those shows.
‘Brown Thomas has been a large part of my life in both modelling and beauty,’ she says. ‘Over the years, I met famous faces like Jerry Hall, Elle MacPherson, Bobbi Brown and Paris Hilton. More recently, it was a thrill to talk to Victoria Beckham, Kate Moss and Trinny London — Brown Thomas has been at the heart of so many exciting events. Anyone who’s old enough will remember the Supermodel show in the late 1990s. I walked in that alongside Christy Turlington, Naomi Campbell, Eva Herzigova and Yasmin Le Bon — that was a bit of a highlight.’
Brown Thomas always supported Irish designers — Louise Kennedy, Mariad Whisker, John Rocha, Lainey Keogh, Philip Treacy and Paul Costelloe have all sold in-store.
‘Brown Thomas holds a very special place in my heart,’ says Louise, the longest-stocked Irish designer. ‘In 1983, fashion directors Marie McCarthy and Cecily MacMenamin bought my college graduation collection. This was the greatest accolade and launchpad any young fashion designer could dream of.
‘In fact, the day I launched, John Redmond — who later became the group creative director — styled three windows on Grafton Street exclusively with my collection. To this day, it was a true pinch-me moment. It is a pleasure to wish Brown Thomas many congratulations on its 175th anniversary.’
More recently the shop has provided a vital showcase for Irish talent and Eddie Shanahan, fashion retail consultant, says it is to be especially commended ‘for 13 years of exemplary support for Irish designers through its Create project’.
Brown Thomas has survived by constantly reimagining what it sells and how it sells it. Just as the retail landscape has changed beyond recognition since 1849, BT has grown from a small rather staid shop to a world-class, luxury retailer, bringing glamour to Grafton Street with such enduring flair and style.
BROWN Thomas hosts a retrospective exhibition in Dublin’s Grafton Street from May 17 to June 3, see more at brownthomas.com