London Fashion Week

Aquascutum
Herz and Fidler sound like just the men to apply charged-up paddles to the barely beating heart of a British brand. Since 2005, Michael H and Graeme F, ex of Guy Laroche and Ralph Lauren respectively, have had dual control of design at Aquascutum, a brand that still carries the whiff of Trevor Howard and Celia Johnson.

Aquascutum CEO Kim Winser was behind the very smart turnaround of Pringle and she knows the trick with this kind of operation is to play to a brand’s strengths, understand its iconic pull, without turning to cute parody. On the evidence of this collection, Herz and Fidler understand this perfectly.

The Aquascutum raincoat appeared but here in dramatic new cuts with asymmetric collars and as clever dresses. Here were staples of the very British lady, trouser suits, blazers, but in brave new shapes and materials, in a tempered pallet and blissfully free of fussy details. In fact, there was a quiet, contemporary correctness too it that felt quietly correct and very contemporary.

Images: Trendstop.com