Machine-A and Byronesque create ‘phygital’ vintage retail concept

Contemporary vintage brand Byronesque and London-based concept store Machine-A have combined their two worlds to create a conceptual retail universe of curated designer goods.

Entitled Machine-B, the online-offline space brings together a curated collection of archival pieces and an edit of emerging and established designers. The final outcome is one that looks to blur the lines between the two categories, hoping to change buyer perspectives on individual pieces and see “beyond their industry-imposed shelf-time”.

“The idea of seasonality makes the lifespan of a product so short which is unfair to both the designers and the stores,” said Gill Linton, co-founder and CEO of Byronesque, in a release. “This feels like something that puts time to the side and the focus becomes on the design and the person behind it, which feels coherent with the rest of the collections.”

Housed under Machine-A, Byronesque has selected archival pieces from five luxury brands: Rick Owens, Maison Martin Margiela, Raf Simons, As Four and Gareth Pugh. Brands were picked based on the premise that they “have truly changed the creative history of fashion along with the norms and laws by defying their own eras”, as stated by the founder of Machine-A, Stavros Karelis.

Items incorporated into the curated collection include rare runway designs from as far back as 1988, made available to be worn and admired for years to come.

“When you understand fashion history, you can predict its future too…”

In addition to the partnership, Byronesque has also curated a selection of items from emerging designers to be a part of Machine-A’s ‘Future Vintage’ category. Pieces selected stem from designers seen to hold a strong future impact based on research data, instinct and cultural criteria.

“I realised that I already have the meaning of the vintage world within the space of Machine-A,” commented Karelis.

Linton added: “When you understand fashion history, you can predict its future too - and the many things that Stavros buys are pieces that people will be asking us to source in 10 to 15 years, either because of their financial or emotional value.”

Included in the lineup are garments by the likes of Kiko Kostadinov, GoomHeo and Stefan Cooke.

To further the message of the collaboration, a campaign developed by photographer Katja Mayer and stylist Harry Lambert aims to capture the narrative of breaking down the barriers between two worlds: the old and the new.

Machine-B is now live at Machine-A’s official e-commerce site, as well as in a London-based store on Brewer Street.