by What do you think Mark & Spencer could do better? Plus size clothes? Prints that pack more punch? Trend-driven tailoring?
The retailer is hoping undiscovered British design talent will hold the answer – and is inviting us to join its search with a new ITV reality show hitting our screens this autumn.
M&S: Dress of the Nation will be hosted by Vernon Kay and AJ Odudu, and will see a diverse group of people take part in the job interview of a lifetime, including a former dancer, a finance director and an alteration shop owner. Not Central Saint Martins grads, but the kind of people who represent the diversity of M&S customers. The prize? A job on the chain’s design team and the opportunity to create their own collection for M&S.
Along with existing members of the design team, the judging panel will include celebrity guests In the morning host Cat Deeley, model Rosie Huntington-Whiteley (who already creates an underwear line for M&S), Spice Girl Mel B, former footballers Alex Scott and Ian Wright, and media personality Vogue Williams.
Marks & Spencer’s mission to become more relevant as a fashion brand has been well documented, and this venture appears to be part of that strategy. Although there have been some low points in recent years, 2024 was very strong thanks to a great collaboration with Sienna Miller, and one of her best autumn/winter collections in recent years.
The optimist would say that this new TV show will increase consumer affection for the brand. It promises to shed light on the complexities of high street design, considering factors such as affordability, mass appeal, and how to accommodate a wide range of body shapes and sizes.
“Successful product design has a clear plan and direction,” says designer Bella Freud, another of the guest judges. “It was really interesting to see where the contestants drew their inspiration from, and how that translated into the final garment.”
The show will also feature the design team behind M&S clothing, although it’s the contestants who promise to be the show’s strongest feature. “The judges and I have been blown away by the talent, drive and originality of the amazing designers who have taken part,” says Anna Braithwaite, M&S clothing and home marketing director, and one of the executives appearing on the show. “It was a joy to see the different people shine through the product they created as the series progressed.”
Then again, a cynic might say it’s little more than a marketing exercise, an attempt to create TV buzz ahead of the Christmas season, when all the big retailers start drowning each other out with cheesy Christmas adverts.
Fashion and television are not the most natural bedfellows. While we’ve long been inspired by the wardrobes of fictional characters – oh Sex and the City to Emily in Paris – we don’t have to be dominated by fashion reality shows. What Not To Wear Trinny and Susannah may have become household names, but others have, for example Project Runway and Next in Fashion that they failed to resonate equally. There is also no guarantee that high viewership will translate into sales at the till.
Whatever the case, the number of celebrities suggests that no expense has been spared on this show, so this might just be the show that bucks the trend. The set-up is tried and tested: a panel of judges, a celebrity guest judge, a themed weekly challenge, and a contestant removed from the competition each week.
Deeley’s participation is a special achievement, and her enthusiasm is encouraging. “The stakes were really high, not only because the M&S job was available, but also the opportunity to reinvent and sell their product in M&S stores and online,” she says. “The passion and dedication of the contestants, and this life-changing opportunity came through and how much this really meant to them.”
Due to his challenge, Wright described himself as “the toughest customer ever”, adding: “My remit was to design clothes for them that I could wear on TV in my role as a student, and make as an expression of their own. own style. The end results were absolutely stunning.”
Williams, a mother of three, was the guest judge on childrenswear week: “I was secretly hoping they would design a version in my size,” she said.
If the designers are strong, there is potential – and Odudu insists they are: “The contestants were absolutely incredible,” she says. “They really gave it their all and I loved being on the journey with them. I can’t wait for everyone to meet our designers, and see their talent and brilliant ideas come to life.”
