Last week, LCCA welcomed two of Ted Baker London’s design team to The Gallery, where they gave a presentation on the brand, its history, the design processes, and what to expect from Ted in the near future.

On 19 January, senior women’s designer, Michelle Evatt, and print design manager, Rebecca Nye, delivered a fantastic industry presentation to an audience of LCCA fashion students, all keen to discover more about the brand and the opportunities it has to offer.

Kicking off with a visually enchanting video campaign filmed in the picturesque, Welsh village of Portmeirion, Michelle and Rebecca went on to discuss how a garment makes its way from conception through to campaign.

Michelle explained: “We design the garment and hand it over to the marketing team, who then create the story behind the collection.”

Ted Baker first launched in Glasgow in 1988 as a menswear brand, and has since expanded into womenswear, footwear, accessories, eyewear, and – most recently – sportswear, transforming into the High Street designer brand we all know and love today. It doesn’t come as a surprise that Ted Baker is known as one of the fastest-growing, leading lifestyle brands in the UK.

Michelle and Rebecca make reference to the company motto, ‘Ted Baker at ten paces’. “The idea is that you should be able to tell that a garment is Ted Baker from the other side of the room,” Michelle explained.

Asked what makes Ted Baker garments stand out from others, Rebecca said: “We have many different visual codes – our trims are one of these, and we’re also known for our exposed zips and over scaled, dramatic and bold prints.”

In terms of inspiration, Michelle and Rebecca talked about how they, as designers, find inspiration in a number of different places.

“When we look for inspiration, we might look at what exhibitions are on that are really inspiring, or we might look at vintage markets. We don’t really look at what’s going on in fashion right now; we aim to lead, not follow, but never go too far.”

After the presentation, students were lucky enough to get an exclusive look at what Ted Baker has in store for 2016. Michelle and Rebecca showcased some works-in-progress and some prototypes, as well as the garments that inspired them. They also presented some fashion sketches, showing how a garment evolves from concept to reality.

To put into perspective how lengthy the design process is, Rebecca explained: “A garment designed in December [of last year] will go on sale next Christmas – this gives you an idea of how long it takes to develop a garment.”

Opening the floor up for questions, Michelle and Rebecca were asked about the employment opportunities Ted Baker has to offer students and graduates.

“We take a lot of people for internships,” Rebecca said. “If you work at Ted the possibilities are endless. People on reception end up as buyers, for example. It’s a brand that’s all about hard work and shining, and then the opportunities will come.”