Founded by the legendary Wimbledon champion, Fred Perry is an iconic, historic fashion brand with real roots in London’s Soho.
When the tennis star designed his first polo shirt in 1952, the garment was intended to be confined to the clean cut world of professional tennis and table tennis.
Despite winning Wimbledon three times, Perry was never fully accepted in the elitist tennis world due to his working class background. However, his shirts went on to become a key fashion piece for the everyday man, serving as a sub cultural uniform for its wearers whatever their status.
This idea was further reinforced as the years went by. In the late 1950s and early 60s, the polo shirt evolved into a key fashion item for British youth culture. Mods were the first to adopt the polo in the 60s, giving it a modern identity founded by the younger population.
In the 70s, the brand was embraced by the skinhead subculture, before being taken on by punks and football fans during the 80s.
As the decades passed, the shirts stood the test of time as a uniform for the rebellious youth subcultures thriving in Soho’s underground nightclubs.
The shirts remain relevant as ever today, with the brand having collaborated with various musicians and designers in recent times such as Craig Green and Comme des Garçons.
The British fashion stalwart recently launched its latest flagship store in Soho (20 March) which it described as a homecoming to one of the districts most closely tied to its history and cultural identity.
Designed by the business’s long-time collaborator Brinkworth, the shop seeks to blend retail with cultural storytelling, heavily drawing on Soho’s music heritage and the subcultural movements that have formed its identity throughout the decades.
Retail Gazette hears from Fred Perry head of brand Matthew Moore and Brinkworth associate director Katie Pengilly to find out more about the retailer’s arrival home.
The Soho Fred Perry flagship, based on the corner of Lexington Street, is far from the brand’s first venture into the area.
With the shirts passed down through the generations, the company has long been associated with Soho’s nightlife, music venues and youth movements. The brand’s former head office was even based in the district’s famous Golden Square.
Retail design agency Brinkworth has worked with Fred Perry for a number of years across multiple cities, which Pengilly says has given it “an amazing insight” into the brand.
For the Soho store, the company developed what it referred to as a “Big Sound” concept where it used music to influence the shop’s architecture.
Fixtures that reflect this include classic speaker cabinets and audio equipment from loudspeaker specialist Friendly Pressure installed in the space.
Additionally, nods to the area’s music legacy can be seen throughout the shop.
One of the biggest references is to Fred Perry’s long-time partner the 100 Club, Oxford Street, which provided physical space for subcultures like the 1960s Mods to thrive in. The store incorporates the music venue’s signature red tones and archive photography to inspire parts of the changing rooms and cash desk area.
Explaining the context behind the shop, Pengilly says: “Each store has its own unique identity, shaped by its context and the subcultures that define it.
“Here in Soho, the process was immediately clear. Just moments from the ‘Golden Mile’ of record shops, and in a neighbourhood at the heart of Fred Perry, Big Sound is a love letter to the clubs, the streets, the record shops, and the beat of Soho.”
Aside from the “giant tennis ball” in the store, Pengilly notes that the most stand out element of the shop is its “story telling plinths” which provide “a subtle reference to the Big Sound concept” while “also telling the Fred Perry story.”
A gathering space for the community
Rather than solely existing as a store, Fred Perry said its Soho flagship would serve as a gathering space for its community, as well as an events-ready venue as it gears up for its 27th anniversary in 2027.
Moore explains: “We have our official launch party planned for later in April where we’ll host some of our amazing ambassadors, collaborators and teams who worked on the shop.
“We also have an exciting event planned for May in collaboration with a magazine, to celebrate the launch of their latest edition which we collaborated on.
“We’ve got lots of other exciting events planned around collaborations this year which I can’t reveal just yet,” he adds.
“And of course, lots of music plans in collaboration with our amazing partners, the 100 Club.”
“Still keeping its cool”
Fred Perry trades from a number of stores across the UK, including its Camden, Manchester and Cardiff shops, as well as selling from various outlets.
However, while its other stores “reflect their local context,” Pengilly insists that the Soho site “amplifies it, whilst still keeping its cool”.
“The space is rich in texture and materiality, drawing on Soho’s cultural fabric to create something immersive and self-assured,” she adds.
The site is certainly a worthy tribute to the brand’s subcultural roots. But what about Fred Perry’s other upcoming store plans?
Moore reveals: “We’re consistently working on new shops in cities around the world.
“In the coming weeks we’re about to open new shops in Lisbon, Barcelona and Milan, and further afield in Sao Paolo and Yokohama.”
Although he refrained from sharing any visuals of the sites, he hinted they would go live “very soon” for its followers on social media.
While the Soho store serves as a nod to its legacy, Fred Perry’s future shops are sure to remain iconic as future generations don its famous polo shirts.
