Christopher Raeburn (designer)
Christopher Raeburn was born the youngest of three boys in Kent. He spent a lot of time in the outdoors in his childhood, using his imagination and inventing. "We were encouraged to draw something in the week and then challenged to make it with my dad on the weekend. From the age of 11, I was in air cadets, I learnt to fly. I was doing my Duke of Edinburgh. I was doing walks in Holland. I had this love of being prepared". Raeburn graduated from London's Royal College of Art in 2006. He freelanced as a pattern cutter before setting up his own studio in 2008, and later his label. Raeburn participated in the 'Camouflage' exhibition at London's Imperial War Museum and featured in Hywel Davies' publication '100 New Designers'. He ended 2008 with his first collection showcased during London Design Week, a capsule range of reversible garments titled "Inverted". In 2009, Raeburn showcased menswear in Paris, received an award from the International Ethical Fashion Forum, and gained support from Esthetica, allowing him to show his work at London Fashion Week that September. In 2010, Raeburn was the first designer to be awarded Topshop NEWGEN sponsorship for both men's and women's wear in the same season. Raeburn has become known for the ethical integrity of his work, although he admits it was never his intention. American Vogue's August 2010 issue highlighted Raeburn's contribution to all things green with the advice to "Remember the four R's – Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and Raeburn", accompanied by a Mario Testino shoot of Blake Lively wearing a Raeburn Duffle Coat. After viewing his Autumn/Winter 2011 London Fashion Week presentation at the disused Aldwych tube station, Style.com stated, "it's not unreasonable to assert that Christopher Raeburn is the single most radical designer working today". In 2010, Raeburn was approached by Victorinox to collaborate with them on a men's and women's wear capsule collection. Victorinox set up a "Remade in Switzerland" studio in Ibach, the birthplace of Victorinox founder Karl Elsener. Not only did Raeburn source the fabrics for his collection there, but he also managed to find the original house in which Elsener started the brand, and it was there that Raeburn chose to establish his Swiss LAB to produce the 100 pieces of each style by hand. The collaboration launched on schedule during New York Fashion Week in February 2011. In September 2011, Raeburn was nominated and won the 2011 "Emerging Designer" British Fashion Award for menswear, by the British Fashion Council. In the same year he was also nominated for the 'Observer Ethical Awards: Fashion Category' and 'Condé Nast Traveller award: design and innovation' prizes, and his 'REMADE IN SWITZERLAND' collaboration with Victorinox is shown on schedule at NYFW. In 2012, the brand started to widen its stockist list, counting more than 20 stores worldwide, including the Paris-based boutique Colette. In that year Christopher Raeburn also launched his first accessories collection, as well as the much-awaited first collaboration with Moncler. The following year, Raeburn's visibility continued to increase, with the designer receiving sponsorship from Woolmark for his SS14 season. 2013 was a big year for Christopher Raeburn, who in that year not only won Designer Business of the Year at the UK Fashion and Textiles awards but also launched two major collaborations, with Rapha and Fred Perry. He ended the year by being announced as artistic director of Victorinox Fashion, as a result of past collaborations. 2014 saw two Woolmark sponsorships for Raeburn, this time towards his AW14 and his SS15 seasons, menswear and womenswear. The designer was once again shortlisted for BFC/GQ Designer Menswear Fund, and also launched his Barbour collaboration. In the same year, Christopher Raeburn won Menswear Brand of the Year at the UK Fashion and Textiles Awards. In 2015, Raeburn was shortlisted for the second year for BFC/GQ Designer Menswear Fund and he was sponsored again by Woolmark for his AW15 collection. He launched two collaborations: one with Wool and The Gang, to create a joint line of knitted accessories, and one with knitwear specialised brand Unmade, to create an interactive bespoke knitwear. In the same year Raeburn received the award for Best Emerging Designer at the GQ Men of the Year Awards, and later on he launched his first footwear menswear and womenswear joint collections with Clarks. At the beginning of 2016, Raeburn saw his "Layers of Natural Innovation" partnership with The Woolmark company shown at the ICA during London Fashion Week in celebration of the versatility of Merino Wool, before being shortlisted for a third year for the BFC / GQ Designer Menswear Fashion Fund. That year Raeburn also launched a collaboration with MCM. In Autumn 2018, US lifestyle brand Timberland announced its appointment of Christopher Raeburn as global creative director of the brand. This was followed by the news that Raeburn would revive Left Hand and ST95, brands developed by Stone Island-founder Massimo Osti, in December 2020. In November 2021, RÆBURN created a partnership with circular fashion platform Responsible.us and Christopher was appointed as an Advisory Board Member, supporting the reCommerce platform in broadening its credibility and reach within the circularity category. In April 2022, Christopher revised his relationship with Timberland, continuing his commitment to eco-innovation and style in a new role as a collaborator at large, where he’ll continue to lead creative for the Earthkeepers platform, as well as assist with a roster of collaborators for Timberland. Raeburn's awards include: Raeburn has been involved in collaborations and partnerships, including: Raeburn collaborated with Victorinox to create the 'Remade in Switzerland' collection, that launched during New York Fashion Week. Raeburn collaborated with Moncler to create an outerwear collection, 'Moncler R'. Raeburn collaborated with Rapha to create a capsule collection of city-riding garments named 'Rapha Raeburn'. The Raeburn x Victorinox 'Festival Ready' project launched; consisting of an 11-piece collection of camping gear and outdoor-wear. Raeburn collaborated with Fred Perry as part of the Fred Perry Blank Canvas project to produce several limited edition polo shirts. The project saw Raeburn transforming the Fred Perry polo shirt into a stuffed hare for Fred Perry's 60th anniversary. Raeburn worked with Oki Ni to launch his SS15 collection and in 2015 launched a video campaign showing how vintage materials can be re-created. Raeburn launched his joint collection with Barbour. Raeburn was Lavazza's partner at London Collections: Men, using an elliptical shark print. Raeburn launched his first footwear collection with Clarks and received a sponsorship from Woolmark for both menswear and womenswear. Raeburn launched a "sustainable" ready to wear and accessories collection, "Made to Move", with MCM. Raeburn collaborated with Disney to create a collection of bags which pay homage to Mickey and Minnie. Raeburn collaborated with Save The Duck to create a collection of recycled and animal-friendly outerwear. The collection was presented at Pitti Uomo and continued for Spring/Summer 2018. Raeburn and Glasgow-based watch brand Instrmnt launched a line of watches. Raeburn's collaboration with Porter Yoshida launched at Porter Stand in Tokyo. Raeburn unveiled a new footwear collaboration with Palladium at London Fashion Week: Men's. Raeburn collaborated with Eastpak to produce a range of backpacks remade from old camouflage jackets. Raeburn collaborated with the Victoria and Albert Museum to redesign their staff uniform. Raeburn and Finisterre collaborated on a capsule collection of ready to wear and accessories inspired by oceans. Raeburn collaborated with CanO Water to design a recyclable water can to replace plastic bottles from London Zoo. Raeburn worked with Secret Cinema to dress actors for 'Blade Runner - The Final Cut'. Raeburn and Umbro collaborated on a capsule collection for the FIFA World Cup in Russia. Raeburn and Timberland unveiled a ready to wear collaboration at London Fashion Week Men's, which deconstructed old Timberland pieces. Raeburn and The North Face collaborated on a capsule collection of bags remade from North Face tents that can no longer be repaired. Raeburn and Timberland collaborated for a second year, producing a ready to wear collection including accessories and footwear, using organic and recycled materials. Raeburn and design agency LAYER collaborated on a furniture project, 'The Canopy Collection'. Launched for London Design Festival in September 2019, the pieces featured recycled ex-military parachute and steel frames. Raeburn's work appeared in the Design Museum's "Moving To Mars" exhibition with their New Horizons collection, including repurposed solar blankets and parachutes. Raeburn collaborated with global fashion marketplace Depop to jointly launch the Depop × RÆBURN Reversible Bucket Hat project. The Autumn/Winter 2020 collection saw Raeburn collaborate with Icelandic photographer Ragnar Axelsson. It was announced in September that Raeburn would be collaborating on a product launch with skincare brand Aesop for 2021. Raeburn took on the task of reviving Left Hand and ST95, brands developed by Stone Island-founder Massimo Osti, both set to relaunch in Autumn 2021. A outerwear collection was launched in partnership with Tokyo based technical fashion group Onward Advanced System in January. Raeburn collaborated with the brand Boardies on a swimwear capsule consisting of recycled materials and animal prints. The North Face RENEWED by RÆBURN was announced in partnership with Zalando and The North Face. The first drop consisted of a series of limited edition Panda Rucksacks. The second drop of The North Face Renewed by RÆBURN launched in July 2021. The project upcycled original The North Face garments in a bid to extend their lifespan. The Lab E20 opened in July; a 3,500sq ft space produced and designed by Raeburn. It will form Get Living’s new creative hub in East Village, London.
Career
Christopher Raeburn (born 13 August 1982) is a British fashion designer, known for reworking surplus fabrics and garments to create menswear, womenswear and accessories.