Aiming Higher
Reiss, the British high street fashion brand, is shifting gears to go more premium with its new line, Atelier.
The name of the line is an homage to the in- house team of designers at Reiss, who have all held positions at luxury fashion labels.
“It stemmed from a gap we identified in the market between the top end of the high street and the premium brands,” Una Joyce, womenswear director at Reiss, told WWD.
“A lot of the premium brands are becoming so unaccessible in terms of price point and at the top end of the high street, particularly with the American brands, they're all becoming quite safe and a little bit boring,” she added.
Since the pandemic, Reiss has stepped up its conservative designs to become sleeker and versatile for in and out of the office.
The Atelier collection has a strong tailoring focus and uses a neutral color palette with silk, Italian wool and cashmere blend fabrications.
Reiss' design director, Jamie O'Hara, is a former Tom Ford designer, which is evident in the DNA of this debut collection.
Atelier launches on Sept. 13 online and in select stores with prices running two or three times he main collections at Reiss, which start around 150 pounds.
“There were no restrictions,” explained Joyce, referring to the long lengths and design ambitions the team had when designing the collection, which for a main line collection would have been cut for price and audience.
It's clear that this collection is not for the ordinary British shopper looking to buy officewear. This is Reiss' forway into elevated eveningwear as party season looms.
Atelier is going to launch twice this season, with a second drop coming in October. The quantities are running low, with
300 units a style, which is a 10th of the main collections at Reiss.
The brand has become a royal fixture with the likes of Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle, but it has recently become the official travel partner for the McLaren Racing Formula 1 team as well.