Aquascutum is a British heritage luxury fashion house that designs, licences and distributes ready to wear and accessories. It is owned by
Shandong Ruyi.
History
Beginnings
Aquascutum was established in 1851, the year of the
Great Exhibition
The Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations, also known as the Great Exhibition or the Crystal Palace Exhibition (in reference to the temporary structure in which it was held), was an international exhibition that took ...
, when tailor and entrepreneur
John Emary opened a high quality
menswear
Fashion is a term used interchangeably to describe the creation of clothing, footwear, Fashion accessory, accessories, cosmetics, and jewellery of different cultural aesthetics and their mix and match into Clothing, outfits that depict distinct ...
shop at 46
Regent Street
Regent Street is a major shopping street in the West End of London. It is named after George IV of the United Kingdom, George, the Prince Regent (later George IV) and was laid out under the direction of the architect John Nash (architect), J ...
. In 1853, after succeeding in producing the first
waterproof
Waterproofing is the process of making an object, person or structure waterproof or water-resistant so that it remains relatively unaffected by water or resists the ingress of water under specified conditions. Such items may be used in wet env ...
wool, he had his discovery patented and renamed the company 'Aquascutum',
Latin
Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...
for 'watershield'.
In 1901, Emary moved to 100 Regent Street in the heart of London. The company created other fabrics and coats using similar names, such as the ''Eiderscutum'' light overcoat and (in 1962) the multicoloured wool-yarn weave, ''Aquaspectrum''.
Coats for officers in the
Crimean War
The Crimean War was fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the Ottoman Empire, the Second French Empire, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and the Kingdom of Sardinia (1720–1861), Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont fro ...
(1853–1856) were made from Aquascutum's waterproof fabric, as were the
trench coats worn by soldiers of all ranks in both world wars.
Domestic and fashion applications followed, promoted in the 19th century by royal fashion leader King
Edward VII
Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until Death and state funeral of Edward VII, his death in 1910.
The second child ...
; he was Aquascutum's first royal client, ordering an Aquascutum coat in the
Prince of Wales check. In 1897, Aquascutum was granted a
royal warrant, the first that would mark the
British royal family
The British royal family comprises Charles III and other members of his family. There is no strict legal or formal definition of who is or is not a member, although the Royal Household has issued different lists outlining who is considere ...
's long patronage of the company. Aquascutum's trenchcoats have been worn by three Princes of Wales,
Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013), was a British stateswoman who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of th ...
and
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was a British statesman, military officer, and writer who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 (Winston Churchill in the Second World War, ...
. In 1900, Aquascutum opened a
womenswear
Fashion is a term used interchangeably to describe the creation of clothing, footwear, Fashion accessory, accessories, cosmetics, and jewellery of different cultural aesthetics and their mix and match into Clothing, outfits that depict distinct ...
department, offering water-repellent capes and coats, which were very popular among British
suffragettes
A suffragette was a member of an activist women's organisation in the early 20th century who, under the banner "Votes for Women", fought for women's suffrage, the right to vote in public elections in the United Kingdom. The term refers in part ...
.
The company has supplied aristocrats, political leaders, and actors, including three
Princes of Wales
Prince of Wales (, ; ) is a title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the English, and later, the British throne. The title originated with the Welsh rulers of Gwynedd who, from the late 12th century, used it (albeit inconsistent ...
,
Prince Rainier of Monaco,
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was a British statesman, military officer, and writer who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 (Winston Churchill in the Second World War, ...
,
Humphrey Bogart
Humphrey DeForest Bogart ( ; December 25, 1899 – January 14, 1957), nicknamed Bogie, was an American actor. His performances in classic Hollywood cinema made him an American cultural icon. In 1999, the American Film Institute selected Bogart ...
,
Lauren Bacall
Betty Joan Perske (September 16, 1924 – August 12, 2014), professionally known as Lauren Bacall ( ), was an American actress. She was named the AFI's 100 Years...100 Stars, 20th-greatest female star of classic Hollywood cinema by the America ...
,
Sophia Loren
Sofia Costanza Brigida Villani Scicolone (; born 20 September 1934), known professionally as Sophia Loren ( , ), is an Italian actress, active in her native country and the United States. With a career spanning over 70 years, she is one of the ...
,
Cary Grant
Cary Grant (born Archibald Alec Leach; January 18, 1904November 29, 1986) was an English and American actor. Known for his blended British and American accent, debonair demeanor, lighthearted approach to acting, and sense of comic timing, he ...
,
Sean Connery
Sir Thomas Sean Connery (25 August 1930 – 31 October 2020) was a Scottish actor. He was the first actor to Portrayal of James Bond in film, portray the fictional British secret agent James Bond (literary character), James Bond in motion pic ...
and
Michael Caine
Sir Michael Caine (born Maurice Joseph Micklewhite, 14 March 1933) is a retired English actor. Known for his distinct Cockney accent, he has appeared in more than 160 films over Michael Caine filmography, a career that spanned eight decades an ...
. In 1953 its wyncol fabric - designed to withstand 100 mph winds - was used by explorer
Edmund Hillary
Sir Edmund Percival Hillary (20 July 1919 – 11 January 2008) was a New Zealand mountaineering, mountaineer, explorer, and philanthropist. On 29 May 1953, Hillary and Sherpa people, Sherpa mountaineer Tenzing Norgay became the Timeline of M ...
in the first confirmed ascent of
Mount Everest
Mount Everest (), known locally as Sagarmatha in Nepal and Qomolangma in Tibet, is Earth's highest mountain above sea level. It lies in the Mahalangur Himal sub-range of the Himalayas and marks part of the China–Nepal border at it ...
.
During the 1980s and 1990s, Kingsley Matheson Pink, managing director of the Regent Street flagship store, dressed UK prime minister
Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Hilda Thatcher, Baroness Thatcher (; 13 October 19258 April 2013), was a British stateswoman who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of th ...
, including her visit to the USSR, and comprised coats and tailored suits, dresses and evening wear. He also was subsequently responsible for dressing Prime Minister
John Major
Sir John Major (born 29 March 1943) is a British retired politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 1990 to 1997. Following his defeat to Ton ...
, as well as a number of other international dignitaries including the King of Malaysia.
[
]
Renown International, 1990–2009
Aquascutum was family owned until 1990, when it was purchased by Japanese textile conglomerate company Renown Incorporated for about 20 billion yen ($163.3 million)
In 2005, Renown was the Aquascutum ready-to-wear
Ready-to-wear (RTW)also called ''prêt-à-porter'', or off-the-rack or off-the-peg in casual useis the term for garments sold in finished condition in standardized sizes, as distinct from made-to-measure or bespoke clothing tailored to a partic ...
licence holder in Japan with retail value of €50 million. Also in 2005, Aquascutum presented its first runway at the London Fashion Week
London Fashion Week (LFW) is a clothing trade show that takes place in London, England, twice a year, in June and September. Showcasing over 250 designers to a global audience of influential media and retailers, it is one of the 'Big Four' fash ...
.
In April 2006, Aquascutum appointed Kim Winser as president and chief executive officer. By 2007, the company entered into license agreements with Novaseta, the accessories company owned by Ermenegildo Zegna, and Antichi Pellettieri to produce ties and scarves for the Aquascutum men’s and women’s collections.
In 2008, Renown announced that it would sell Aquascutum, after the parent company experienced three straight years of losses. In May 2009, Renown rejected a corporate buyout
In finance, a buyout is an investment transaction by which the ownership equity, or a controlling interest of a company, or a majority share of the capital stock of the company is acquired. The acquirer thereby "buys out" the present equity holde ...
bid led by Kim Winser.[ After the bid was rejected, Winser left Aquascutum.]
In 2009, Crombie expressed interest in Aquascutum’s U.K. and European businesses. However, Renown only continued acquisition talks with YGM Trading, a Hong Kong fashion retailer, which held licenses to sell Aquascutum clothes in Asia, the brand's biggest market;[ in 2008, YGM Trading hired Cantopop star Sammi Cheng to market the Aquascutum brand as part of its 160 anniversary campaign.
]
Broadwick, 2009–2012
In September 2009, Broadwick Group Ltd. – the corporate vehicle of the management team behind the revival of retailer Jaeger, Harold Tillman
Harold Tillman CBE (born 15 October 1945) is an English retail entrepreneur and investor. He was formerly head of Jaeger and Aquascutum, who was awarded CBE in 2010. Until September 2014, Tillman was chair of the British Fashion Council. I ...
and Belinda Earl – bought the company's non-Asia businesses for an undisclosed sum. As part of the Aquascutum deal, YGM Trading, which had been tipped as a bidder for the whole business, bought the rights for the brand's business in Asia.
Within the first year after the takeover, Graeme Fidler, head of menswear design, and Michael Herz, head of womenswear design, stepped down in 2010. From 2010 to 2012, Joanna Sykes served as the brand's design director.
However, on 17 April 2012, the Financial Times published an article citing sources "familiar with the company's plans" stating that the company would shortly go into administration with the potential loss of up to 250 jobs. In April 2012, the company indeed went into bankruptcy administration. FRP Advisory was chosen to act as the administrators. Within days, FRP Advisory began to shut down the firm’s factory in Northamptonshire.
YGM Trading, 2012–2017
Shortly after it went into bankruptcy administration, Aquascutum's Asia licensee, YGM Trading, acquired the company for £15 million.
Under YGM's ownership, the company's primary focus was China, with 135 of its 146 outlets located in mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan. By 2013, the Aquascutum factory in Northamptonshire was again put up for sale, and was purchased by a British owner. The original factory was renamed The Clothing Works. The retailer had to close 14 stores in China, its main market, as well as one in Taiwan.
In 2015, Aquascutum signed a licensing deal with the Canadian firm Jaytex to distribute the main collection, 1851 London, in the U.S. and Canada. In 2016, Te Dinh Sy joined the brand as its new head of men’s wear; he took over responsibility for women’s wear in 2017, too. Under Dinh Sy, Aquascutum launched Supreme x Aquascutum, an eight-piece collection with American clothing and skateboarding
Skateboarding is an extreme sport, action sport that involves riding and Skateboarding trick, performing tricks using a skateboard, as well as a recreational activity, an art form, an entertainment industry Profession, job, and a method of tr ...
lifestyle brand Supreme.
Shandong Ruyi, 2017–present
In December 2016, the ''BBC'' reported that Aquascutum was due to be sold for $120 million (£97 million) to two buyers, one of which was Chinese textile firm Shandong Ruyi. The unnamed acquirers made a $5m down payment for exclusive rights to the deal. In March 2017, YGM Trading confirmed it would sell Aquascutum to Jining Ruyi Investment Co, a holding company of Shandong Ruyi, for $117 million (£95 million).[
In September 2020, Aquascutum went into administration again. In the same month, Aquascutum granted Trinity Limited exclusive rights to design, manufacture and distribute its products in Greater China and appointed Trinity as its exclusive licensing agent to manage its global licensing business. Trinity is a publicly listed company on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and a subsidiary of privately held Beijing Ruyi Fashion Investment Holding Company Limited. Trinity manages four international brands, namely Cerruti 1881, Gieves & Hawkes and Kent & Curwen, which it owns, and D’URBAN, which it operates under a long-term license in Greater China.
]
Icons srl, 2023–present
Since 2023
Icons srl
(multidisciplinary studio in the textile industry based in Rome) has been the official licensee of the Aquascutum Active and Aquascutum Beachwear collections in Europe, UK and Russia and sells its products through the official websit
aquascutum-active.com
The Aquascutum Active line combines brand heritage with a contemporary view of urban and city life, highlighting thermal insulation amongst modern technical fabrics and detail. functionality is key.
Campaigns
Aquascutum campaigns have in the past featured Pierce Brosnan
Pierce Brendan Brosnan (born 16 May 1953) is an Irish actor and film producer. He was the fifth actor to play the fictional secret agent Portrayal of James Bond in film, James Bond in the List of James Bond films, James Bond film series, starri ...
(2006), Julia Stegner (2006), Brett Anderson
Brett Lewis Anderson (born 29 September 1967) is an English singer best known as the lead singer and primary lyricist of the band Suede. After Suede disbanded in 2003, he fronted the Tears with former Suede guitarist Bernard Butler in 2004� ...
(2007), Gisele Bündchen
Gisele Caroline Bündchen (, , born 20 July 1980) is a Brazilian fashion model. Since 2001, she has been one of the highest-paid models in the world. In 2007, Bündchen was the 16th-richest woman in the entertainment industry and earned the ...
(2007–2008), Jamie Dornan
James Peter Maxwell Dornan (; born 1 May 1982) is an actor, model, and musician from Northern Ireland. The recipient of two Irish Film and Television Awards, he has been nominated for a BAFTA Television Award and a Golden Globe Award. In 202 ...
(2007–2008), Karlie Kloss
Karlie Elizabeth Kloss (born August 3, 1992) is an American model. She was a Victoria's Secret Angel from 2013 until 2015, when she resigned to study at New York University. By 2019, Kloss had appeared on 40 international ''Vogue (magazine), V ...
(2010), Guinevere Van Seenus (2012), and Damian Lewis
Damian Watcyn Lewis (born 11 February 1971) is a British actor, musician and producer. He rose to prominence portraying U.S. Army Major Richard Winters in the HBO miniseries ''Band of Brothers (miniseries), Band of Brothers''. Lewis won a Prime ...
(2014).[Jess Edwards (11 July 2014)]
Homeland's Damian Lewis fronts fashion campaign, looks hot
''Cosmopolitan
Cosmopolitan may refer to:
Internationalism
* World citizen, one who eschews traditional geopolitical divisions derived from national citizenship
* Cosmopolitanism, the idea that all of humanity belongs to a single moral community
* Cosmopolitan ...
''.
Royal Warrants
* 1897 The Prince of Wales
Prince of Wales (, ; ) is a title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the History of the English monarchy, English, and later, the British throne. The title originated with the Welsh rulers of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd who, from ...
, later King Edward VII
Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until Death and state funeral of Edward VII, his death in 1910.
The second child ...
* 1903 The Prince of Wales
Prince of Wales (, ; ) is a title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the History of the English monarchy, English, and later, the British throne. The title originated with the Welsh rulers of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd who, from ...
, later King George V
George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until Death and state funeral of George V, his death in 1936.
George w ...
* 1911 King George V
George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until Death and state funeral of George V, his death in 1936.
George w ...
* 1920 The Prince of Wales
Prince of Wales (, ; ) is a title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the History of the English monarchy, English, and later, the British throne. The title originated with the Welsh rulers of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd who, from ...
, later the Duke of Windsor
Duke of Windsor was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 8 March 1937 for the former monarch Edward VIII, following his Abdication of Edward VIII, abdication on 11 December 1936. The Duchy, dukedom takes its name from ...
* 1947 Queen Elizabeth, Queen Consort to King George VI
George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until Death and state funeral of George VI, his death in 1952 ...
* 1952 Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother
Elizabeth Angela Marguerite Bowes-Lyon (4 August 1900 – 30 March 2002) was Queen of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 to 6 February 1952 as the wife of King George VI. She was al ...
Coat of arms
References
External links
*{{official website, https://www.aquascutum-active.com
Clothing brands of the United Kingdom
Manufacturing companies established in 1851
Retail companies established in 1851
High fashion brands
British royal warrant holders
1851 establishments in England
Companies that have entered administration in the United Kingdom
Clothing companies of England
Clothing retailers of England
Companies based in London