Mulberry’s LFW return puts Britishness back at the heart of its revival

Christopher Kane’s debut for Mulberry will bring the British luxury house back to the London runway for the first time in years, as its turnaround strategy enters a new phase focused on brand desirability, ready-to-wear and British identity. The label will be returning to London Fashion Week for a show on September 20, where Kane is expected to unveil the first major expression of his vision in the form of a women’s collection.

Kane, who was appointed as creative director for the category in March 2026, is leading part of Mulberry’s efforts to rebuild its creative positioning and reestablish its fashion credentials, years after the brand exited ready-to-wear in 2020. With this latest collection due to become available from January 2027, the runway is therefore less about immediate commerciality and more about adding to a new creative narrative Mulberry has been trying to build over the past year.

A creative reset for a brand rebuilding its relevance

Mulberry first entered its turnaround strategy, ‘Back to the Mulberry Spirit’, in January 2025, after experiencing an 18.3 percent drop in group revenue for the critical 13-week holiday period ended December 28, 2024. Struggles remained into FY25, when the company’s revenue fell 21 percent to 120.4 million pounds and its loss before tax widened to 23.7 million pounds. The weakening financial performance caught the attention of Frasers Group, a major shareholder which applied pressure on leadership to address the downward trends and suggested a takeover would be on the cards if struggles continued.

After the British retail giant scrapped acquisition plans due to governance tensions, Mulberry’s chief executive officer, Andrea Baldo, sought to simplify the business, restore margins and reconnect the brand with customers. While a more considered approach to global expansion pointed to broader operational transformation, at the crux of the strategy was a mission to reposition Mulberry back towards its British identity, a shift overseen by a new creative team tasked with driving “cultural relevance and seasonal innovations”.

The picture has since improved significantly. FY26 revenue increased 4 percent to 125.5 million pounds, gross margin rose to 72 percent and loss before tax narrowed to 8.9 million pounds. Positivity followed through into Q1 FY27, when revenue subsequently rose 23 percent, with UK retail and digital up 17 percent and wholesale and franchise revenue up 56 percent. With that, Mulberry is moving from stabilising efforts towards brand rebuilding, making Kane’s arrival and the LFW return an integral next step.

Why Christopher Kane makes sense

While Kane’s arrival may appear at first as a creative gamble, the designer does closely align with Mulberry’s efforts to restore its British identity. Having previously been a regular on the London Fashion Week runway under his eponymous brand, which fell into administration in 2023, Kane has a well-established reputation for fashion experimentation and a subversive take on luxury. His appointment brings Mulberry beyond its traditional perception as primarily an accessories house, already introducing greater fashion credibility to the brand.

Kane’s further partiality for eccentricity doesn’t stray too far from what Mulberry had been known for in past RTW collections. The brand had previously played with British heritage aesthetics through the combination of classic English country tropes, like tartan checks and quilted ponchos; retro and mod influences; and eclectic colour palettes. In his own collections, Kane does nod to nature, albeit references sat between either a literal translation of biological and botanical themes or more tongue-in-cheek ideas, such as ‘sex in nature’ motifs.

The designer’s British roots still came through in many collections, however, whether that be through an Argyle vest, a PVC trench coat or cut-out tartan dresses. Graphic elements seen in collections from 2011 and 2020 also bear a resemblance to mod styles of the past, another tie to Mulberry’s history. Yet, whether the brand wants to entirely depart from its former apparel identity is another question.

Its RTW line was seemignly shelved less for the designs themselves and more for the minor part they played in overall revenue. The category was first produced under what was deemed an expensive licensing agreement with the Onward Luxury Group as part of a heavily criticised decision to move the brand from contemporary luxury into the exclusive luxury bracket. This pushed clothing prices sit between 250 and 1,500 pounds, alienating Mulberry’s core consumer and putting it up against well-established fashion-first houses. When the pandemic came round in 2020, and luxury took a major hit, Mulberry management sought to address any costly operational burdens. With clothing accounting for less than 10 percent of turnover, the category was ultimately scrapped.

Shifting to the present day, the question of pricing remains a factor, but what will be particularly interesting to follow is how Kane will tackle Mulberry’s renewed emphasis on ‘Britishness’. Since the launch of its transformation, beyond product, the brand has attempted to solidify its efforts through distinctly British campaigns. Its three-part ‘Rooted in Craft’ story, for example, deliberately put its craftspeople from local factories at the centre of the narrative. Its British Pasture Leather collaboration, meanwhile, similarly connected farming, tanning, manufacturing and finished product within a British supply chain.

In this context, Mulberry isn’t just returning to London for convenience. It is reinforcing a wider repositioning around Britishness and craft, mirroring the British Fashion Council’s own attempt to put Britishness back at the centre of LFW. The September season sees Alexander McQueen return to London alongside Mulberry, while the BFC’s new Fashion Britain programme is extending LFW activity across the UK. For LFW, and Mulberry, this mutual evolution demonstrates a goal to make ‘British fashion’ more than just a heritage story, but a commercial proposition.

During an event celebrating the announcement of Mulberry’s return to LFW, Laura Weir, CEO of the BFC, said bringing British brands back to the event was one of her earliest ambitions as the council’s head. She added: “As one of Britain's most iconic luxury houses, [Mulberry’s] return strengthens LFW creatively, culturally, and commercially. This marks an exciting new chapter for the brand under Christopher Kane's creative leadership and an important moment for British fashion.”

Why LFW matters to Mulberry now

On the more practical front, LFW presents an opportunity and platform for Mulberry to continue reestablishing its fashion authority beyond handbags and leather goods. The show will allow Kane to introduce his vision to international buyers, media and consumers in a physical setting that can help to build a narrative around the return to RTW. This is therefore a first chapter in what is expected to be a longer brand-building exercise.

As one of LFW’s most anticipated events, speculation over what to expect has naturally been mounting. Will Mulberry’s renewed British focus feel make heritage contemporary and culturally relevant? How prominently will local manufacturing and craftsmanship translate into the collection? Can Kane create pieces that generate desire while remaining compatible with a transformation strategy rooted in full-price selling and a reduced reliance on promotion?

With this in mind, Mulberry’s return to LFW feels like more than a homecoming. For a brand that has spent the past 18 months simplifying its business and rebuilding its financial foundations, the September show reflects an attempt to continue rebuilding something less tangible yet just as important, brand desirability. And with the BFC also positioning London as the home of British creativity while expanding the fashion week’s reach regionally, Mulberry’s return arrives amid a period in which both the house and the platform are attempting to redefine what British fashion can mean commercially.