Clare Waight Keller’s career has been an illustrious one. The British fashion designer has earned her stripes with fashion labels such as Calvin Klein, Chloé, and Givenchy. She then joined hands with Japanese casualwear behemoth Uniqlo to launch their first Uniqlo : C collection. This union — which took place in 2023 — married Keller’s sartorial discernment with Uniqlo’s technological advancements, resulting in it becoming one of the best-selling collections ever created.
This year, the success continues with the expansion of the Uniqlo : C. It is marked by the launch of the Fall/Winter 2024 collection and its first-ever menswear collection as Keller takes on her brand new role as the Creative Director of Uniqlo.
The latest Fall/Winter 2024 collection is designed for people from all walks of life, a concept that remains the foundation of it all. The collection also draws on Keller’s nostalgia for working in different countries during her tenure at the major fashion labels. And for the Uniqlo : C menswear collection, she takes her cues from the Barbican Centre, a brutalist landmark in London.
Capturing the essence of the city, Keller mixes her signature softness with the Barbican’s sharp lines. What results is a highly wearable, easy-to-style, and utilitarian collection created for fall and winter.
In conjunction with the release of the Uniqlo : C Fall/Winter 2024 and the first-ever Uniqlo : C menswear collection, we spoke to Keller about her inspiration, styling tips, and favourite pieces of the season.
What was the starting point of the collection and what was your creative process like?
The starting point for this collection was here at the Barbican Centre. It’s a beautiful architectural gem of London that’s always been on my radar. And I think one of the things that’s so interesting about it is actually the fact that it’s quite brutalist and it’s quite stark and graphic in its nature, but when you actually walk around it and you see the community that lives here. It’s that intersection of culture and art that interests me. Here, everyone is on the move.
Do you have a personal connection to the Barbican?
One of the interesting facts about the Barbican is that, at one point, it was actually called the ugliest building in England. And a lot of modernist architecture is poorly viewed at some point. But actually when you spend time here — one of my favourite memories is of walking through this central space here where you see the beautiful miniature lake — there’s this sense of nature in the middle of Brutalism. I’ve lived in so many cities, and having this centre of community is so important to everyday life.
How did the Barbican serve as a source of design inspiration? And how did you make that translation onto the collection itself?
So this particular space is hugely inspirational for me personally in terms of the architectural lines. Every vista that you look at, you’ve got incredible sharp lines and a real sense of perspective, grids and also colourways. There’s an amazing kind of neutral palette here, which is really unusual. This particular architectural space was so influential to the palette and the feel of the collection and the people here and how they live their lives. That sense of being always on the move, connecting to the rest of the city. I really wanted to centre the campaign here.
Who do you envision wearing this collection?
The Barbican is a microcosm of a giant city here. You’ve got students, a theatre, an art centre. You have residential blocks. You have people who’ve lived here 40 years and people who’ve just moved in recently. It’s really a fantastic range in demographics. And I think that really represents what Uniqlo is about. It’s for everyone. And I think this place really captures for me so much of that sense.
Can you share any styling tips for this season?
I think my top tips for the Fall/Winter season are all about layering. So it’s about utilising the shirtings, the lightweight cashmeres, the shirts under the beautiful kind of dry sweat hoodies. Even the coats, which are quite lightweight, work as great layering. So for me, that gives the richness and the beauty of autumn-winter dressing. It’s all about those cosy layers that give you that beautiful silhouette.
This season, you introduced menswear to Uniqlo : C. What are some of your favourite pieces in the capsule?
I love menswear checks, so we’ve created a really nice check coat. And I also love the essential sweat setup this season. It’s a new development that’s made of very fine cotton for a sculpted look. It looks a bit dressed up, but is still casual, with a wide open leg and a much baggier thigh for a slight taper at the bottom. Also, the men’s denim has a new tonality. It is deep indigo on the outside but tobacco on the inside. So you get a beautiful tan colour panning through the indigo on the surface.
Once you are done with this story, click here to catch up with our September 2024 issue.
