Boxfresh

Boxfresh was a British fashion label founded in 1989 by Roger Wade. The name originated from early hip hop slang for a pair of trainers being "fresh out of the box".[1]

Boxfresh
IndustryClothing and footwear
Founded1989 (1989) in London, England
FounderRoger Wade
Defunct2020
Area served
Worldwide
OwnerPentland Group
Websitewww.boxfresh.com

History

The first clothes produced were customised prints on vintage stock T-shirts and were sold on stalls at Greenwich Market and Camden Market, London.[2]

In 1991, Boxfresh clothing started to be sold in Japan and were licensed to the USA in 1995.

In 1992, the first flagship shop was opened on Seven Dials in Covent Garden. Its shop at Shorts Gardens was spread over three floors.[3]

Between 1999 and 2004, the company's turnover increased from £2.5million to over £10million, with its products sold by over 300 retailers in the UK.[4] As of 2004, 20 per cent of the company's output was exported outside the UK.[4]

Known as a 'street fashion' brand, its 2004 'Here and Now' collection was themed around "juveniles, rebels, smoking, kissing, hi rise [sic] flats, hanging out on the street, runaway girls, untamed youth".[5] The company used graffiti-style advertising, including 'graffiti stickers' based on those used by London tagger Solo One, which were freely distributed and widely used by taggers.[6][7] They subsequently did a deal with Solo One to distribute his stickers with their products.[7] In 2001, Boxfresh used a Zapatista guerilla stencil which was sent to distributors to spread the design.[7] The company has also sponsored dance music events.[8]

In 2005, Boxfresh was acquired by the Pentland Group.[9]

In 2014, to celebrate the company's 25th anniversary, it held a series of events, raves, parties, and exhibitions, and launched the limited edition '25' capsule collection.[2] In early 2015, the company announced that it would cease to produce clothing and would be concentrating on its core footwear products.[10][11] In December 2015, Boxfresh opened a showroom in Düsseldorf, Germany, which was its most successful territory outside the UK.[9][12]

The company's London shop appeared in several guides to London's best shops.[3][13][14] In December 2020, the label was discontinued after a "challenging year", with a statement on its website leaving room for a possible restart at a non-specified point in the future.[15]

References
  1. Tan, Katrina Ann. "Fresh out of the box". philstar.com. Retrieved 7 May 2020.
  2. Newman, Cheryl (2014) "Competition: fancy shooting the next Boxfresh campaign?", The Daily Telegraph, 8 February 2014. Retrieved 19 December 2015
  3. Fairchild, Jill & Gallagher, Gerri (2005) Where to Wear 2006: London Shopping Guide, Where to Wear, ISBN 978-0976687740, p. 30
  4. "Case study: Boxfresh is a fast-growing clothing company whose invoice financer has helped its exports", The Daily Telegraph, 8 June 2004. Retrieved 19 December 2015
  5. Wild, Abigail (2004) "How to make the nedlines; The world's obsessed with chav style. But dismiss it at your peril: some of it is cool", Glasgow Herald, 16 November 2004. Retrieved 19 December 2015
  6. Pearson, Beth (2005) "The writing's on the wall for adverts It looks like graffiti. It reads like graffiti. But it isn't graffiti. So who is behind the spray-painting?", Glasgow Herald, 23 December 2005, p. 13
  7. Ferrell, Jeff; Hayward, Keith; Morrison, Wayne; Presdee, Mike (eds.) (2004) Cultural Criminology Unleashed, Routledge-Cavendish, ISBN 978-1904385370, pp. 187-188
  8. Whitfield, Zoe (2013) "Before Monday Comes: Boxfresh", Clash, 13 June 2013. Retrieved 19 December 2015
  9. Reudenbach, Elena (2015) "Boxfresh with new showroom in Düsseldorf", Sportswear International, 25 November 2015. Retrieved 19 December 2015
  10. Geoghegan, Jill (2015) "Boxfresh to drop clothing and focus on footwear", Drapers, 22 April 2015. Retrieved 19 December 2015
  11. Hunstig, Maria (2015) "Boxfresh drops clothing line", Sportswear International, 23 April 2015. Retrieved 19 December 2015
  12. Hunstig, Maria (2015) "Nick Drury on Boxfresh's updated design direction", Sportswear International, 18 August 2015. Retrieved 19 December 2015
  13. Gayot, Andre & Evans, Mary Anne (2001) The Best of London, Gault Millau Inc., US; 7th edition, ISBN 978-1881066583, p. 348
  14. Britten, Fleur (2009) A Hedonist's Guide to London, Filmer Ltd., 2nd edn., ISBN 978-1905428236, p. 218
  15. "COVID-19 Update". www.boxfresh.com. Retrieved 18 August 2021.
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