Discover East
EAST is a much loved fashion brand. We design clothing for women who love individual, natural fabrics, with an ethnic touch. We are well known and well respected for our heritage, which is steeped in Indian influences and our love for bright colours and vibrant prints.
OUR HISTORY
EAST was founded by Clive Pettigrew, Penny Oliver and Jonathan Keating who met whilst working at Monsoon. They shared a passion for hand crafted Indian products. They loved the way the vivid colours danced with the vibrant prints, and they had a particular fondness for the women's clothing from Anokhi. Anokhi were then, and still are today, the pioneers of hand block printing for textiles and fashion based in India. The three friends initially formed Anokhi Wholesale Ltd, to bring Anokhi women's fashion to the British high street.
Eight years on, the business had grown to ten branches and four concessions. The collections had increased considerably and the Anokhi product, whilst still significant, was supported by additional ranges from other suppliers.
In order to reflect the expansion of the product on offer, it was decided in 1994, to change the name of the business. The stores were renamed and EAST was born. This new name perfectly captured the inspiration behind the product design whilst nodding to the ethnic heritage of the brand.
EAST TODAY
Today, the EAST brand has grown significantly to 99 outlets, with 64 stores and 35 concessions. The original founders are still involved in the business and we remain true to our founding values: to design fashion for women who love individual designs, natural fabrics, with an ethnic feel.
Our products continue to be influenced by the time honoured traditions of the Far East incorporating, 'hand' crafted embroideries, wonderful evocative prints and vibrant colours. Wherever possible we also use natural and organic materials such as soft merino wool, organic cotton, beautiful silks, simple linens, wood and shell beads and even seed pods.
Our designers explore the world for the very best materials and as a result they are inspired by the many people they meet and places they visit. They use this inspiration to painstakingly design every detail of every product. This ensures that our products are especially unique and true to our brand. All of our clothing, jewellery and accessories are designed exclusively by us. You won't see them anywhere else - they are genuinely one-of-a-kind.
This season, we have launched two new sub brands - EAST Artisan and EAST Boutique. Artisan brings heritage inspired style back into the spotlight though hand worked Anokhi prints and Boutique also celebrates craftsmanship through a very limited edition of intricately beaded and crafted precious pieces.
Finally, we work uniquely to other high street brands in that we launch a new collection every few weeks. So there is always something new and enticing to see. Our eclectic collections of clothing, jewellery and accessories create the most distinctive outfits. Every piece is designed to complement the other so that it's easy to style and create your look. You can hear about the latest launches by signing up to receive our emails. Enjoy.
