Mithridate names Daniel Fletcher as creative director

Luxury Chinese fashion house Mithridate has appointed London-based designer Daniel Fletcher as its new creative director, effective immediately.

The British designer, who launched his eponymous label shortly after graduating from Central Saint Martins in 2015, will split his time between China and a London studio and oversee the men’s and womenswear collections, leather goods and accessories.

Fletcher, who held design roles at JW Anderson and Louis Vuitton before becoming artistic director of Fiorucci, will work closely with Mithridate’s chief executive officer Tina Jiang, who will lead on operations and business.

The Chinese contemporary brand said the move would align with its design strategy to work towards “a greater global footprint that maintains artistic integrity and prioritises craftsmanship throughout” to drive its ambitions to become a global brand.

Fletcher's vision for the brand is expected to be unveiled during London Fashion Week in February.

Commenting on the appointment, Jiang said in a statement: “This is a really exciting new chapter for Mithridate as we align the East and West and present our customers with a new vision. I’ve always loved British culture so it makes sense that I would want to bring in a creative director like Daniel who not only has lots of great experience working in the global fashion industry, but who also has great taste that I admire.

“Our customer knows what they want and I’m certain they’ll get on board with Daniel’s sophisticated design signature. Going forward, we want transparency between the brand and a customer as we see they are becoming increasingly more interested in the behind-the-scenes decisions. So, we want to play this game of fashion with them, as, with Daniel on board, we make the most of a great opportunity to make Mithridate a truly global brand.”

Daniel Fletcher to drive creative vision for Chinese brand Mithridate

To coincide with the appointment, Mithridate has launched a new campaign featuring British presenter Alexa Chung, shot by Fabien Kruszelnicki in New York, which takes inspiration from Nineties-era leisurewear catalogues and heritage athlete portraits. Fletcher states that Chung was chosen for the campaign as she represents “the Mithridate woman I imagine when I’m designing”.

In addition, Mithridate also revealed a new logo that centres around the M insignia. The new typeface is inspired by antiquities that would have held the semi-mythical mithridate remedy, created by Mithridates VI Eupator of Pontus in the 1st century BC, as well as Savile Row and Jermyn Street shop signs, as it looks to unite the house’s two new points of reference.

Fletcher added: “I am extremely grateful to begin this new chapter in my career with the total trust of the whole Mithridate team. My aim is to create a new legacy that brings together influences from my British culture and heritage and aligns them with the remarkable Chinese craftsmanship that Mithridate has access to.

“This feels like such a unique position to be in as I present new original ideas of my own and develop an identity that is not weighted heavily on an archive’s influence but allows me to expand on my vision while also exploring new areas of technique thanks to Mithridate’s established infrastructure.”

Mithridate was founded in London in 2018 and is headquartered in Guangzhou, China. The brand opened its first store in Shanghai in 2022 and now has seven independent retail stores across China.