Recently we told you that Mother of Pearl were teaming up on a pop-up shop with Harrods and now it's nearly here. The department store has dedicated a section of the designer studio on the first floor to the brand's pop-up, which will be opened from Friday 16th March - Friday 30th March and will feature their S/S12 collection in collaboration with arist Fiona Banner.
'We're thrilled to be working with Harrods - on the retail plane it's the king of kings," Maia Norman, creative director at Mother of Pearl, said. "We love their continued search for all things astonishing whilst still honouring the traditional. Working with such an iconic establishment is an exciting development for our MoP shop concept." Helen David, womenswear and general manager at Harrods, was as enthusiastic. 'The latest collection delivers beautiful pieces that fuse fashion and sportswear to create luxurious styles, that will sit perfectly alongside our diverse mix of contemporary labels."
One Monday back in January I spent the morning with Amy Powney, Head Designer at Mother of Pearl. Rather than meeting in a fancy restaurant or hotel in Central London, which is often the case, Powney invited me to the brand's studio based in the middle of East London's bustling creative scene. The team were in the middle of preparing for their A/W 2012 collection but were kind enough to devote their morning to talk me through the brand and transport me into the Mother of Pearl world; and I can safely confirm that that world is not a bad place to be. The team are uncompromisingly enthusiastic and passionate about what they do and it's infectious.
Whilst you may be unfamiliar with the brand now, give it a year or so and that will change. The company has actually been around for several years but it is only now that things have really come together. Teams have come and gone and the aesthetic has changed several times so it was only four seasons ago when Powney was appointed as head designer that things began to change. This fact isn't something they shy away from. In fact, Powney was pretty frank when asked about it. "People in the industry take fashion very seriously so if you've seen a brand through several different phases, people move on and lose interest. It has taken time to get people to come back and see it but I finally feel like it's at a good point and people can see that it's a good concept." It's the brand's present carnation that has helped win them a legion of fans and become on of the industry's best kept secrets. And while MOP, as the team call it, was established by Maia Norman who continues to serve as creative director, it is Amy who has managed to articulate her easy sports wear vision.
