A far cry from pretty trenches

From all-weather explorer gear and the trenches to chav chic and innovative online collaborations, we trace the history of a very British brand.

Early 1900’s – Burberry and British history

From the early 1900’s Burberry outfits became synonymous with some of the proudest and also some of the darkest periods of 20th century English history. In 1911 they provided the attire for Ronald Amundsen- the first man to reach the South Pole, then three years later for Earnest Shackleton’s trans-Antarctic expedition. Burberry would continue its association with pioneering British explorers providing Gorge Mallory’s jacket on his ill fated Everest attempted and sponsoring the 1937 Cape Town air speed record.

However it was the mud, blood and slaughter in the trenches of France that gave birth to one of Burberry’s most iconic garments – the Trench Coat. Burberry initially commissioned by the War office in 1914 to manufacture coats for British troops, found that after the war the garment became increasingly popular with civilians. In 1924 Burberry first began lining the now famous “Burberry Trench” with their iconic black, tan and red check, known as “Haymarket Check”.

Throughout the 1930’s and 40’s Burberry remained close to its routes and continued to design outdoor attire for the pursuits of the upper classes and people of leisure of both sexes, producing outfits for golf, fishing grouse shooting and similar pursuits.

When the spectre of war once again overran Europe, Burberry’s weatherproof garments were once again the staple outfit for all divisions of the armed forces and once again, the horrors of war led to a boom in Burberry’s popularity.

Post War Hollywood Burberry Boomers

In 1942 Humphrey Bogart came to immortalise the hard bitten, ice cool chic of Burberry and Hollywood, by wearing a Burberry Trench in Casablanca. After the Second World War, other stars came to adopt the Burberry Trench as the symbol of big city chic and icy cool. The Trench now with a more urban style of tailoring became the favourites for stars such as Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast in Tiffany’s. The brand continued to grow in popularity amongst the Hollywood set and the general public when Peter Sellers wore the Burberry Trench in the Pink Panther films.

In 1967 as Burberry began to expand its range of products the “Haymarket Check”, used to line the original 1920 Trench coats began to appear on luggage and other items making Burberry instantly recognisable the world over. However throughout t the late 1970’s until the 1990’s recognising Burberry Check would strike fear into the hearts of law abiding UK citizens as football firms began to adopt the brand as their unofficial uniform.

Watson works her magic for Burberry

1970’s 1990’s Football thugs and Bravo Rose Marie

The 1970’s saw the brand’s image became tarnished as the Burberry check became synonymous with violence, hooliganism and loutish behaviour. From this background of football violence sprang the so called “Chav” sub-culture. Burberry’s association with “Chavs” and violence became so linked in the public mind that Haymarket check was banned from many pubs and nightclubs across Britain.

In 1997 Rose Marie Bravo was appointed chief-executive as the brand sought to re-market and distance itself from its now negative connotations. Rose Marie Bravo began to turn the brand’s image around by advertising heavily in magazines such as GQ and Esquire, discontinuing the Burberry cap and appointing British Super model Kate Moss as the new face of Burberry. However Bravo’s biggest coup came when, in 2001, she recruited young designer Christopher Bailey who was working for Gucci at the time.

Burberry also greatly increased and diversified its product range, producing perfumes which accounted for a large percentage of Burberry’s profit increase throughout the following years. In 2005 Bravo was replaced by Angela Ahrendts as chief-executive, and Bravo became vice-executive.

Best of British Faces

On the 9th of June 2009 Burberry announced that young British actress Emma Watson, best known for her roles in the Harry Potter films, would become the new face of the brand. Advertising the Spring/Summer 2010 collection, Emma Watson was shot by photographic legend Mario Testino and directed by David Bailey. This new, young and vibrant look completed Burberry’s image transformation and re-affirmed its best of British roots. The wizarding star joins a whole host of well known British faces who have been chosen to represent the brand over the years, as Burberry constantly turns to home grown talent in their advertising campaigns in order to keep the brand true to its British roots. Kate Moss, Agyness Deyn and Rachel Weisz are just a few of the English roses who have proudly donned the Burberry trench, so Emma Watson has a rather large mac to fill.

The Art of the Trench

In November 2009, Burberry coupled up with The Sartorialist‘s Scott Schuman and embarked on an interactive innovation; Art of the Trench. Wanting to create a blog that depicted the glamorous life of the Burberry trench worn by hip folk on the street, Schuman began to snap subjects in their trench coats all over the world, which vary from toddlers to girls about town. It is now possible to send in your own trench image, and the best photos are then posted on the website for all to admire. The site also includes an interactive history of the trench coat, allowing readers to flick through designs throughout the decades. A living celebration of the trench coat, the site has attracted millions of Burberry aficionados and has allowed the brand to integrate into the blogsphere with style.

Burberry Autumn/Winter 2010

Trends 2010

Spring/Summer 2010 truly reflected the brand’s new focus on trend led fashion for young lithe things like Watson, as the collection boasted a particularly vibrant pastel palette and thigh skimming hemlines. Twisted fabrics and shimmering cupcake colours gave a playful vibe to the brand, and the lilac trench worn by Watson in the advertising campaign achieved cult status.

However, for Autumn/Winter 2010, Bailey returned to the roots of the brand, choosing a khaki-based colour palette with lashings of snuggly fleece that evoked war time practicality with a good dose of modern luxury. Sexed up with thigh high boots, the classic trench tailoring was omniscient, although the shaggy sheepskin adornment gave the Burberry trench a new look for the coming winter. It seems that Bailey has managed to do exactly what is needed for a brand with such a long running legacy; he has preserved the key ethos of Burberry whilst managing to update its image and bring it to the forefront of young, British fashion.

The Future

Burberry has regained its status as an iconic British brand and is now still as famous and recognisable the world over as it was in the 1950’s and 60’s. It currently has 119 mainline and 253 concession stores worldwide, including six stores in Beijing alone and recently celebrated a new store opening in Lebanon, which was graced by a performance from One Night Only, whose guitarist, George Craig, models for the brand. It appears then, that Burberry will continue its legacy in the coming years, dressing the world over in a truly English fashion and using the hottest stars to propel the brand onwards and upwards.