London, Tolworth, Gypsy Hill; not exactly a roll call of the world’s fashion capitals, but a glimpse into a brand’s proud roots. ‘Stain Shade’ is leading the charge of tie-dye returning to our wardrobes. Also know as, James Brackenbury, 31, Stain Shade was mobbed at the recent CIFF AW20 fashion trade show in Copenhagen with people who couldn’t get enough of his hand tie-dyed T-shirts and hoodies. I thought I’d find out more from the UK's new king of tie-dye. Will the real Stain Shade please stand up?:

:eft - James from Stain Shade at CIFF, Copenhagen, 2020

CG: Where are you based? From originally? 

SS: I live with my wife in Gipsy Hill, but I grew up in Surbiton/Tolworth in South West London. This is where my mum still lives and her house is the base of the Stain Shade operations.

CG: What is your background? 

SS:I studied contemporary art in Leeds then moved to London and worked for Vivienne Westwood on the wholesale side of things. I continued to work in the fashion wholesale world after that, and continue to do so, along side running Stain Shade. 

CG: Are you doing this full time? 

SS: Yes, amongst other things, some consultancy etc. 

CG: Tell me more about Stain Shade. Where is the name from? When did it all start? 

SS: I was always interested in hand dyeing, tie dyeing and was always on the lookout for good vintage tie dye stuff. One day I ordered a kid’s tie dye kit off amazon and did a few bits, some tees and a pair of jeans if I remember correctly. I posted a picture of the tee on my personal Instagram and a few people were asking me where it was from. 

This lead to discussions with the guys at LN-CC and the subsequent launch of Stain Shade. We did a few tees and some hoodies for them. I didn't have a name for it and basically tried to think of synonyms for 'dye' or 'dyeing' and Stain Shade was the result. I drew the logo and then got some woven neck labels ordered, set up an Instagram etc and we were good to go. 

Left - James' mum's house in Tolwroth is the production centre

CG: Where does Tolworth come into all this? 

SS: Like I mentioned before, this where everything gets dyed, in my mum’s back garden in Tolworth. It's where I grew up, and, fortunately, my mum has a space there which I can use, she's involved as well and helps me on all the dyeing side of things. 

CG: Where are the base clothing items from? 

SS: It varies, depends on what the store/brand/client wants really. I can do organic ethically sourced blanks or can do more price sensitive mass produced options. 

CG: Where can you buy it? What type of pieces do you produce? 

SS: We have worked with retailers like Selfridges, Browns, LN-CC, Liberty, Bloomingdales, Lantiki etc. There are plans to work with all of these guys again some sooner than others. Some retailers do still have Stain Shade in stock but you can always contact us directly for custom items. 

CG: How can you tell the difference between good and bad tie-dye? 

SS: I think it's down to personal taste. One thing you do see a lot of though is printed tie dye, where the manufacturer was just printed the pattern all over the item and not dyed it. You can normally tell if this is the case if the reverse of the garment is still the original colour. 

Right - Stain Shade in Selfridges

CG: Why do you think tie-dye has/is becoming such a big trend atm? 

SS: I think its always bubbling in the background and I think that good tie dye/hand dyeing will always have a place in popular fashion. It just so happens that it's having a moment these past few seasons and I think there will be at least another summer where it's at the forefront. 

Left - The Stain Shade production line

CG: What are your future plans? 

SS: I am looking at different ways of working that don't necessarily exist in the conventional fashion wholesale environment. I am trying to do more collaborations and special project work on shorter lead times rather than the traditional order it and receive it 6 months later system. As a set up, we are designed to be very reactive and can get stuff done quickly so we can be more responsive to customer or retailer needs. 

CG: What would you say to those who think tie-dye is just for hippies or ravers? 

SS: I’d say if there isn't a part of you that is a bit 'hippie' or 'raver' then something is wrong. 

Right - Stain Shade - Hoodie - Green/Acid - £130

See TheChicGeek's picks of SS20 menswear tie-dye - HERE

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How redundant is the handbag if you don’t leave the house? Same goes for shoes. This sounds like a surrealist-type manifesto of some ancient and useless items of dress or culture, yet perfectly sums up how quickly something can go from essential to unused. Fashion has always had a intertwined relationship with ‘want’ and ‘need’, they coexist; one propels the other, and, the other way around, it justifies it.

We’ve suddenly lost a lot of the need and therefore the want has waned. For many, clothing is a need only option and, apart from a new pair of joggers or PJs, all those prom outfits, wedding outfits, birthday outfits and all the other fashion treats that keeps the wheels of fashion turning have lost all momentum and become a missed sale.

The latest figures from the IMRG Capgemini Online Retail Index, which tracks the online sales performance of over 200 retailers, saw online retail sales growth was down -2.2% year-on-year in the first week of the Government’s lockdown guidance, but the clothing sector saw growth plummeting -26.7% year-on-year, and -22% week-on-week. Those result were even more stark across footwear, with growth tumbling -38.2% year-on-year, and -22.9% week-on-week.

Online sales too will grind to a halt with some large retailers closing their websites. 

But, there has been an online boom, it's just that it doesn't include fashion. Adobe Analytics analysed data from trillions of visits to retail websites and from millions of product SKUs, finding that online grocery purchases are leading the eCommerce boom. Among the most popular items in people's internet shopping carts: Health products, gym equipment, toilet paper and canned foods. Online orders for fitness equipment like kettlebells, dumbbells and treadmills a saw 55% boost.

People too have begun spending money on board games, puzzles and video games. Notebooks are flying off the shelves and Mike Norris, chief exec at Computacenter - one of Europe's largest resellers said he has been signing "500, 1,000 or 2,000 laptop deals" with business customers that are equipping employees for remote working. He noted similar spikes in sales of monitors, virtual private network services and wireless LANs.

Fashion may not be fully redundant, just yet, temporarily and creatively furloughed, you could say, but with so many things cancelled in the future, even months after lockdown finishes, fingers crossed, those occasion spending needs will take even longer to turn into wants.

BUY TheChicGeek's new book - FASHIONWANKERS - HERE

Recently, a government advisor, Professor Neil Ferguson, director of the modelling programme at Imperial College London's MRC centre for global infectious disease analysis, estimated that up to two thirds of people who die from coronavirus in the next nine months are likely to have died this year from other causes. He said that many of those deaths were likely to be old and seriously ill people who would have died from other conditions before the end of the year. What COVID-19  is doing, sadly, is speeding up the end of life and it’s the same for brands and retailers. 

Some retailers have started to fall into administration, pointing the finger of blame at the COVID-19 coronavirus. The majority of these brands and retailers were sickly patients to start with. Brands like Beales, Laura Ashley, Carluccio's and BrightHouse were on wobbly ground way before this devastating virus was on the horizon. The coronavirus has just cut short the inevitable. Bournemouth based department store Beales closed earlier than scheduled and left unsecured creditors £17.6m out of pocket.

Left - The Beales flagship store in Bournemouth

Other patients at risk are brands like shopping centre group Intu, struggling under a £4.5bn debt mountain, and who failed to secure new funding before the crisis hit. They’ve also been hit by stores holding back their rent payments recently. Frasers, owner of Jack Wills, has been cutting off vast limbs of its retail network to save their critically ill patient, Cath Kidston is looking for a buyer to save the business and up to 800 jobs and New Look has requested a three-month rent holiday from landlords. H&M has threatened landlords with walking away from 300-plus store leases if sales fail to match pre-coronavirus levels once the pandemic passes. How others like Debenhams and the Arcadia come out of this pandemic is anybody’s guess.

Right - Laura Ashley has fallen into administration

The patient metaphor has one big and important point; the third of previously healthy people who could potentially die. This is where the government efforts to help businesses should be focussed. Those businesses who were previously healthy, but, due to unforeseen circumstances, have been thrown into jeopardy should be given the largest help. Whether it’s down to the sector they are in or the way they sell, these previously healthy retailers should be given the ventilator of loans and payment holidays to give them life. 

The longer this crisis goes on the larger that third will become. It is survival of the ones who were the fittest going into all of this.

Read more from TheChicGeek Archive -  Comment Fashion For Clean Air

BUY TheChicGeek's new book - FASHIONWANKERS - HERE

Now is the time to invest in gold and PI London is a company creating a refined edit to stop you trawling through eBay and being able to trust what you are buying.

They’re trying to put a rift on gold jewellery being sustainable, but then we already know that. I actually saw a company mention ‘recycled silver’ the other day. Eyeroll.

PI London Founder, Isobel Procter says, “I’m keen to disrupt the current interpretation of ‘antiques’ because, given the chance, I really believe they can answer some of the most timely needs of both the people and the planet. 

“My Mother, an antique’s dealer herself, instilled a great appreciation for unique pieces in me from a very young age. But there was always something about the industry that felt a bit inaccessible, often associated with dusty old shops or elitist auction houses.” she says.

Left & Right - PI London - Buckle Keeper Ring - £790

There’s something about antique jewellery that has a depth and life to it. I particularly like this Edwardian belt and buckle ring. Made from 18ct gold, circa 1910 with a diamond, it symbolises protection, authority and victory. And, couldn't we all do with plenty of that right now!

BUY TheChicGeek's new book - FASHIONWANKERS - HERE 

Below - PI London showing you how to load the rings on