RI Studio By River Island
River Island is hoping to be the brand to bridge the gap between high street and high-end with a new luxe menswear line. Fresh from its recent Joseph Turvey collaboration, the chain has launched the RI Studio range. The in-house designs have a greater luxury feel than the store’s mainline pieces, featuring rich details and a minimal colour palette. A recent announcement from bosses confirmed that River Island intends to release capsule collections under the Studio label throughout the year. FashionBeans spoke to Melanie Wilkinson, head designer on menswear special projects at the firm, she said: “With RI studio we wanted to really flex our design muscle and show an affinity for key trends on this season’s catwalks. We focused on using classic sportswear shapes with luxe functional details to give a slightly more mature feel to the collection.” “There’s an authenticity and individuality in each of the hero pieces from Studio which I really love, we wanted every customer to be able to relate to the collection. The Kline tee is a personal favourite of mine, the navy brushstroke pattern looks really chic with an all black ensemble,” Wilkinson added. RI Studio SS14 will debut with a five-piece monochrome and navy collection range next month. The largely sportswear-inspired pieces are very affordable with the top priced item coming in at £40. Wilkinson’s favourite, the Kline T-shirt, priced is priced at £30. The oversized black/navy two-tone piece’s brushstroke print creates a wet effect look. Other pieces include a classic navy polo shirt with leather detailing (£30), a white shirt with mandarin collar (£40) and a mesh bomber jacket. The debut RI Studio collection will be available at selected River Island stores and online at Riverisland.com from March. It has already been confirmed that the second drop, expected to be AW14, is scheduled for September.
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RI Studio By River Island Collection
