Top Designers- Wylie

"After several years pursuing her options at St Martins, Luella Bartley finally settled on the path of journalism. Leaving college for a job in the fashion dept at the Evening Standard, until a job at British Vogue called. There she happily stayed for two years before her true calling took hold and she left to set up her own label.

Her launch season SS'00 was a very British inspired collection entitled 'Daddy I Want a Pony', shown at her friend's flat; it was hard to tell who were the guests and who were the models. Although small and low key, a spark had been ignited with the press, buyers and London's in crowd who were all keen for more. The following season Luella came back with 'Daddy Who Are The Clash'. A chat with Paul Simonon post-show provided Luella with a quote which would go on be a huge inspiration "Pink is the only true rock and roll colour".

The SS01 collection entitled 'Dial F for Fluro' catapulted brand awareness to an international level. Supers, such as Kate and Kirsten Owen, modelled graffiti dresses that were still being sprayed with cans as the girls lined up backstage. Now being hailed as London’s hot young designer Luella took a risk and started what she now refers to as The Luella Roadshow, taking her team and shows first to Milan for AW01 and then to New York for SS02. It was a risk that paid off and Luella proved herself to be a Young British Designer who could take on the big boys at their own game, on their home turf. Global distribution soon followed for both ready-to-wear and accessories - it was not long before Luella made a triumphant return to London in September 2007, coinciding with the launch of her first flagship store on Brook Street, Mayfair.

2008-2009 have also been an incredible couple years for Luella, seeing the brand win four 'Designer of the Year' awards, including the British Fashion Council’s prestigious "Designer of the Year" in November 2008, having been nominated previously for two consecutive years. With a book and exciting new launches planned for the end of the year, roll on the rest of 2009…"