Yahoo Lifestyle Filippa K Marks 30th Anniversary With a ’90s Retro Capsule
SPECIAL K: Filippa K is looking back, and forging ahead, with a capsule collection marking the brand’s 30-year anniversary and a new coffee table book in collaboration with the Swedish photographer J.H. Engström.
Liisa Kessler, Filippa K’s new creative director who worked previously at Chloé under Clare Waight Keller and with Anthony Vaccarello at Saint Laurent, has overseen both projects.
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In an interview, Kessler said she’s eager to return Filippa K to its roots in sensual, practical, well-made clothes and offer up a fresh idea of what Scandinavian style can be.
“The brand pioneered the stripped-back, ’90s aesthetic” and helped to create the Scandinavian minimalist aesthetic in fashion, Kessler said.
“Now we’re asking ourselves what Scandinavian style means today, and the answer is effortless clothing that isn’t overdesigned. It’s also about intimacy, how the garments feel on the body, and timeless, sustainable, ‘real’ products for every day,” she added.
The company has been rebranding, repositioning and tweaking its prices to compete more effectively in an overcrowded market where raw material prices have been on the rise. Filippa K has also introduced a new, and very discreet, tone-on-tone monogram inspired by the year 1993, which will be featured on select garments.
The brand, which offers womenswear and menswear, has positioned itself alongside brands such as Toteme, A.P.C., Ami and By Malene Birger.
Prices range from 160 pounds for a double-face cashmere scarf, to 225 pounds for wool trousers and 830 pounds for the double-breasted, tailored check coat.
Kessler said she takes a “unified” approach to men’s and women’s design and puts a big emphasis on tailoring for both collections.
The 1993 Capsule Collection, which launched Tuesday, is selling through the brand’s stand-alone stores, on its website, and via select wholesale partners and marketplaces including Tmall.
It comprises 19 “essential” pieces for men and women with languid, ’90s-inspired fits and denim styles with a vintage black wash. Fabrics, according to Kessler, are “sustainable, low-impact and long-lasting.”
The wider Filippa K clothing offer is sold at stores and platforms including Galeries Lafayette, 24S marketplace, Farfetch and Tmall. As of spring 2024, it will also sell at Selfridges online.
The book, which is called “It’s Been 30 Years,” will be released on Nov. 16. It mixes never-before-seen photography from Engström’s archive with fresh images of key garments from the brand’s history.
Kessler said the still life images in the book aim “to look beyond the polished mask” of Swedish culture and society and offer a glimpse of real life, nature and the outdoors. “It’s very arty, and personal,” she said.
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