AllSaints
AllSaints is a British fashion retailer headquartered in London, UK.[1][2][3] AllSaints sells menswear, womenswear, footwear, and accessories in 281 stores, and has approximately 2,400 employees across 27 countries and regions including the UK, France, Ireland, USA, Mexico, Canada, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea and China.
This article is about the clothing brand. For other uses, see All Saints (disambiguation).Industry
History[edit]
Founding (1994–98)[edit]
AllSaints was founded in 1994 by Stuart Trevor and Kait Bolongaro, who was the original womenswear designer at AllSaints and who went on to start Bolongaro Trevor. AllSaints started as a wholesale menswear brand that sold exclusively to high-end retailers such as Harvey Nichols and Harrods.[4][5][6] The company was named after Stuart Trevor's nickname, "The Saint", from his initials "ST", and All Saints Road in Notting Hill, London, where he spent much of his time.[7][8] The first stand-alone AllSaints store was opened in Foubert Place off Carnaby Street in London on AllSaints Day in 1997.[9][10] The company's first womenswear collection followed the next year in 1998.[5][11]
Growth and expansion (1999–2018)[edit]
By mid-2004, AllSaints had expanded to 10 stores in the UK.[12] Between mid-2004 and the end of 2005, fashion financier Kevin Stanford, co-founder of womenswear chain Karen Millen, bought out each of AllSaints partners besides Stuart Trevor, thereby acquiring a majority stake in the company.[6][12][13] In December 2005, Stanford bought Trevor's stake in the company as well.[6] In 2006, AllSaints sold a 35% stake in the company to Icelandic investment firm, Baugur Group, with Kevin Stanford remaining the majority shareholder.[14][15] In late 2006, the company launched its e-commerce website.[5][16]