At the opening of London’s brave new digital Fashion Week, Daniel Fletcher has managed to pull off a feat: a new collection—honestly, his best and most distilled yet—which people can buy from his e-commerce site tomorrow. So, hello, Daniel: How on earth did you manage to get these heart-lifting, preppy pieces of yours ready to sell right in the middle of London’s lockdown? “Well, it was a challenge, but I think my best work since I was a student has always come from having few resources—it goes back to that,” Fletcher related on the phone from his studio. “I can sew, and I have been—that’s how I design—but the production only happened because of the amazing women who’ve been sewing for me since my graduation collection at Central Saint Martins, who agreed to work from home. We got used to having conversations at ten o’clock, when their kids had gone to bed. So this collection is totally a testament to them.”
Being indomitable, super-practical, and socially principled is as much at the basis of Fletcher’s brand as the looks he’s nailed down as his signatures. During the last few weeks, he’s been donating 10% of his sales to COVID-19 charities; as of tomorrow, he will be directing the same percentage of profits to benefit Black Lives Matter. And well, the guess is that his traffic is going to be brisk and eager, due to the fact that the vibe of the pink and white awning stripe shirt, the lace-trimmed boxers, the contrast piping, the split-hemmed trousers, and duffle coats will be highly familiar to everyone who watched Netflix’s “Next in Fashion” series.
Fletcher placed second after Minju Kim in the competition. “After it went out in February, the response was incredible, we did 700% more on our e-commerce site than in the whole of the year before.” A couple of things here were in the Netflix show: the shirt with the appliquéd stars, the lace-trimmed shorts. Realizing them while fabric shops were closed meant Fletcher had to whittle down on numbers. “I looked around the studio for leftovers. It made me focus on these 12 looks.” All to the good: smaller numbers, no waste, direct sales, and in-built social responsibility. As a package, it’s a young, modern enterprise which much bigger companies would do well to emulate.
