Born in 1971, the roots of Mulberry are in Somerset,
England.
Mulberry’s founder, Roger Saul, established the brand at his
kitchen table, with £500 backing from his mother. His sister designed our
instantly-recognisable tree logo - both that, and the name “Mulberry” come from
the trees he would pass each day on his way to school. All of this represented
a love of nature, the importance of family and the growth of a fundamentally
British brand.
The first designs were buckled leather belts - soon, other
accessories followed, including iconic bags and a womenswear line in 1979. The
hallmarks of these Mulberry creations - timeless design coupled with
traditional quality and a sense of the here and now - are the threads that run
through everything we make. Then, today and tomorrow.
Mulberry's heritage - and hence our identity - is
quintessentially British. Early inspiration was drawn from the styles
synonymous with English rural pursuits - hunting, shooting, fishing - and
Mulberry's immediately-identifiable, utterly individualistic style came to be
dubbed "Le Style Anglais" in 1975. This idea is still inspires us.
Between town and country, between Somerset serenity and London pace, Mulberry
combines authentic, age-honoured craft with an innovative fashion character.
Heritage meet rebellion - rules are broken, to make something new.
For more than forty years, Mulberry has been a leading
British lifestyle brand, internationally acclaimed for our quality and design.
Mulberry’s handbags - the Trout satchel, the Bayswater and the Alexa - have
become contemporary classics, iconic examples of British design and
manufacturing expertise. Roger Saul’s successors, Design and Creative Directors
Nicholas Knightly, Stuart Vevers, Emma Hill and, from 2015, Johnny Coca have
each placed their own stamp on Mulberry, reinterpreting the brand to chime with
the fashion moment.
Mulberry today offers a unique point of view on heritage. We
continue to celebrate the contradictions of a truly British identity, looking
back to our archives and rich British traditions and examining them from a new
perspective. A sense of the past reinvented with the spirit of now. Heritage
yet modern, classic, yet unclassic.
Play with the classic, twist the conventional, use the
familiar to make something inspiring and new.
Johnny Coca
Creative Director
Mulberry's sales of luxury goods fall
sharply in UK
British bag manufacturer says weak
pound causing tourists to shop elsewhere in Europe
Angela Monaghan
Wed 13 Jun 2018 14.27 BST Last modified on Wed 13 Jun 2018
14.56 BST
Mulberry’s UK sales have been hit in recent weeks as wealthy
tourists favour Paris and Milan over London for their luxury shopping sprees.
The British designer bags manufacturer said foreign tourists
were choosing other European destinations because rival luxury brands had
raised their UK prices to compensate for the weak pound.
Sales in Mulberry stores that have been open for more than a
year fell by 9% in the 10 weeks to 2 June, as domestic shoppers as well as
overseas tourists stayed away. Sales outside the UK rose 1%.
Thierry Andretta, the chief executive, said that over the
period Mulberry products had been sold at full price, with no discounting,
adding he was confident demand in the UK would pick up.
“We are playing a
luxury game and we have a lot of attractive products that appeal to new, young
customers and to our loyal customers,” he said.
Mulberry’s bestselling bag is currently the Amberley,
launched last year with prices starting from about £500 for a small satchel.
Approximately 70% of Mulberry’s sales are in the UK, and
Andretta said that while the company was “totally committed” to the domestic
market, he hoped that over the long-term the split between UK and international
sales would be closer to 50/50.
Alongside its annual results, the company announced a joint
venture with SHK in South Korea as part of its international expansion plan.
Mulberry will own 60% of the newly created entity, investing £3.1m. SHK will
own the remaining 40% and invest £1.5m.
The luxury brand also created new entities in in China, Hong
Kong, Taiwan and Japan in the year to 31 March 2018, as it seeks to capitalise
on Asia’s swelling middle-classes.
“Although the UK market remains challenging, we will
continue to invest in our strategy to develop Mulberry into a global luxury
brand to deliver increased shareholder value,” Andretta said.
Pretax profit over the year fell to £6.9m from £7.5m, after
£2m of startup costs and £2.4m of operating costs relating to its new Asia
subsidiaries. Revenue edged up 1% to £169.7m.
Beyond Heritage - Mulberry SS'18 at Spencer House
To celebrate the launch of the Spring Summer ’18collection Mulberry took over the magnificent Spencer House in central London
to host ‘Beyond Heritage’: a series of presentations and workshops throughout
the weekend. Open to the public on Saturday 17th and Sunday 18th February,
guests were able to enjoy the Palm Room tea house and shop the new collection
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