By Allison Watkinson
TLL Reporter
The Laura Ashley brand has entered a partnership with Basford Brands to launch a soft furnishings range in Australia and New Zealand.
“As we celebrate 70 years of Laura Ashley, we are continuing to grow our network of carefully selected and like-minded global partnerships to celebrate our iconic prints from the past seven decades,” said Laura Ashley Global president, Carolyn D’Angelo. “As industry leaders, this new partnership with Basford Brands is a perfect fit to reintroduce the Laura Ashley brand back to Australia with a brand-new collection developed especially for this market.”
Established in 1953, Laura Ashley is a British lifestyle and fashion brand that offers products in a broad range of categories. The brand’s offerings include home furnishings, women’s sleepwear, accessories, children’s apparel, hospitality experiences, and more. The Laura Ashley brand, design archive, and IP was aquired by the Gordon Brothers investment firm in 2020.
“Our two teams have done an outstanding job of developing a new range of in demand soft-furnishing products that merge modern design with the undeniable British charm of the historic Laura Ashley brand,” said Basford Brands manager, Pip Collins.
Basford Brands is an acquisition, design, marketing, and distribution company that specializes in branded soft furnishings and homewares. The Basford x Laura Ashley collection will include products such as cushions, throw blankets, curtains, and made-to-measure fabrics adorned with signature prints from the Laura Ashley brand.
The licensing deal was facilitated by Laura Ashley’s brand representative, IMG.
“We are delighted to further expand Laura Ashley’s presence in Australia and New Zealand, two valued markets for the brand,” said IMG SVP, Tim Smith. “This is an important addition in Laura Ashley’s expanding global portfolio of products and partners, as the brand’s ever-green designs continue to resonate with customers around the world.”
A subsidiary of Endeavor, IMG is a global company that offers a variety of services in sports, fashion, licensing, events and media.
The Basford x Laura Ashley product collection is expected to launch at homeware and furnishing retailers across Australia and New Zealand later this year.