British luxury brand Mulberry opens their first pre-loved pop-up in the UK, a celebration of the brand’s pioneering circularity programme the Mulberry Exchange.
Open to the public from the 16th of September and located in the heart of Soho, London, the bespoke space showcases a curated pre-loved range of rare treasures and archive styles. Plus an exclusive selection of artfully reimagined pre-loved bags from Mulberry x Stefan Cooke, the brand’s new limited-edition collaboration with the British design duo.
Mulberry’s pre-loved offering is part of The Mulberry Exchange, the scheme established in 2020 in which Mulberry buy bags back from their customers, before expertly authenticating and rejuvenating them in their Lifetime Service Centre at the Rookery, one of Mulberry’s carbon neutral Somerset factories. Each refreshed bag is then made available for purchase. Each year, Mulberry’s artisans use the brand’s extensive leather and hardware archives to masterfully restore over 12,000 bags, ensuring every Mulberry bag can lead multiple lives.
The Soho pop-up invites customers to discover pre-loved through a considered edit, and will include some of Mulberry’s most loved styles – such as the Bayswater, Alexa, Roxanne, and Antony. The Mulberry x Stefan Cooke capsule sees the independent label put their unique spin on 27 pre-loved bags, which have been transformed by Mulberry’s artisans into one-off pieces that redefine the perception of pre-loved today.
The pop-up’s design continues the customer’s discovery of the Mulberry Exchange, bringing to life the brand’s Made to Last ethos with interiors drawing inspiration from traditional symbols for longevity – continuous f lowing lines feature heavily in the sustainably plastered walls and wool plinths. Key Stefan Cooke design codes are woven into the pop-up design, with the slash technique translated on the mirror. Behind the scenes footage will be shown in the space, which gives a glimpse into both the design process and the craft of each Mulberry x Stefan Cooke bag.
Throughout the eleven days, a specially curated programme will be open to the public to celebrate Mulberry’s values of creativity, heritage, and craft, and bring together the brand’s community. The activations include a poetry evening in partnership with ‘Adult Entertainment’, founded by South London wordsmith James Massiah; an intimate live performance from South London’s Flowerovlove, and an in-conversation with the design duo behind Stefan Cooke, where the pair will discuss their creative processes and inspirations as well as offering practical advice to the next generation starting out in the creative industries.
The Mulberry Exchange is available in UK and US stores and online, plus globally via the brand partner page on Vestiaire Collective. This month, The Mulberry Exchange will also expand into China for the f irst time, launching with a series of travelling pop-up exhibitions in Shenzhen, Beijing, Shanghai, and Nanjing, where visitors will be offered the chance to browse from a selection of pre-loved bags, as well as create their own customised Bayswater and explore Digital ID, the authentication technology that will soon be available in all pre-loved bags. Digital ID is part of Mulberry’s ongoing push towards circularity highlighted in the brand’s Made to Last Manifesto, a commitment to transform the business to fully circular and regenerative by 2030.
“As a cornerstone of our business, I am proud that we are investing in the Mulberry Exchange and elevating pre-loved during London Fashion Week. Mulberry products are designed to be passed down from generation to generation, and the continued success of our circularity scheme is a testament to each bags’ longevity””
— Thierry Andretta, Mulberry CEO
The Mulberry Pre-Loved Pop-Up is open to the public from the 16th to the 26th of September, and is located at 12 Poland Street, Soho, London, W1F 8QB. The Mulberry x Stefan Cooke collection will be available online and in Mulberry’s Regent Street f lagship store on the 15th September and in the Pre-Loved Pop-up on the 16th September
About Stefan Cooke
London-based designer Stefan Cooke founded his brand with partner Jake Burt upon graduating from the Central Saint Martins MA in 2017. The combination of Cooke’s subversion of textile techniques and Burt’s skill for silhouette and design underpin the brand’s signature style. Cooke’s MA collection was awarded the L’Oréal Professionnel Creative Award and is the recipient of the H&M Design Award 2018. Stefan Cooke was a finalist for the LVMH Prize 2019.
Images supplied
