Will M&S strike gold digging through its archive with Alexa Chung?

Hoping to broaden its demographic and increase sales, retailer Marks and Spencer is set to launch an exciting fashion range with fashion’s favourite “it” girl Alexa Chung. Archive by Alexa Chung will be released in April. 

The inspiration of the highly anticipated 31-piece womenswear collection comes from M&S’s extensive fashion archive. Retro-chic pieces that were selected by Chung and the retailer’s design team will be given a contemporary touch by using a modern colour palette and fabrication.

After reporting a 5% drop in its merchandising sales during the 2015 Christmas period, the prominent retailer is eager to turn things around with this particular collaboration. Celebrity-endorsed products are known for garnering a lot of press coverage. However, does widespread media exposure necessarily guarantee a boost in sales? Indeed, when Alexa Chung is involved, it certainly seems to be the case.

Chung’s previous engagement with the brand was back in 2015, where the fashion muse was photographed wearing an M&S brown suede skirt. The image created such a buzz before its official release that over 3,500 shoppers put their names on a waiting list. Once the skirt was available, it sold out immediately. M&S is therefore hoping to recreate that success in addition to attracting a younger audience. 

Alexa’s credentials as a popular TV presenter, model and street style icon certainly harbour great potential for sales of the upcoming range by shoppers under 30. However, despite such hopeful prospects, there are many more competitors present in British high street fashion than in the past. With the likes of Topshop, River Island and Urban Outfitters catering so well to the younger demographics’ fashion needs, M&S needs to find that extra edge that distinguishes it from the rest of the pack. Only time will tell if Archive by Alexa Chung will fulfil the retailer’s ambitions.

Geneve Anderson