Kirin to launch exclusively at Browns in UK with Peggy Gou event

By

Sandra Halliday

Published
Sep 12, 2019

As London Fashion Week gets under way, on Friday, Browns will exclusively launch influencer Peggy Gou’s Kirin brand in the UK with a special event at its Browns East Shoreditch store.

The event follows a tour Gou has been on to unveil the new label, starting in Seoul’s Boon The Shop on September 4 then moving to Lane Crawford in Hong Kong the next day. She was in concept store KM20 in Moscow on September 11 and after the Browns event will move to Galeries Lafayette’s flagship in Paris on September 25.

The Kirin collection, which is being produced in partnership with New Guards Group, was first unveiled at Paris Fashion Week back in February with its debut offer hitting stores now. Browns owner Farfetch now also has a controlling stake in New Guards.

The Browns East event will echo the high-profile approach to the earlier unveiling and the events in those other key cities. It will include music and an in-store appearance from Gou, while a limited edition shirt will also be available. 

The Berlin-based South Korean pop culture phenomenon will be on hand to customise the shirts of anyone who buys one on the night, which is always a big selling point in an age when personalisation really matters.

As for the collection itself, it’s “high-end, high-octane streetwear”, featuring bold colour blocking, mythological Korean motifs and club culture graphics. Coordinated looks “reinforce a relaxed yet put-together statement that speaks to today.”

Gou said a vibrant mixed typography monogram plays out as a print and a jacquard, while a stylised haetae creature appears as a dynamic pattern and as pixelated embroidery. 

There are fluid, matching pyjama pieces and detachable dungarees that are said to be “quintessentially Peggy”, as well as contoured knit dresses with exposed backs that are intended to “become a going-out standby”. There’s also a vinyl trench, sliced backs on track jackets, and sleek suiting in eye-catching hues to “represent Kirin’s dynamic approach to more classic tailoring.”

Graphics are meant to be both “personal and positive”. T-shirts have mascot pairs that represent Peggy’s life on planes and producing music, while Smiley faces show up throughout.

In addition to the in-store event, Browns will also play host to a series of installations over London Fashion Week, including a next-generation showcase at its original South Molton Street store, while over at Browns East, the first womenswear collection from Berlin-based brand and publication 032c will be available.