Walpole, the industry body for the British luxury sector, has named 12 early-stage brands that will participate in its year-long Brands of Tomorrow programme, including sustainable knitwear label Navygrey and ethical jewellery brand Roxanne First.

The programme, which is now in its 16th year, will offer each of the brands workshops and mentoring to help develop their business skills and “set them on a path to growth”. The brands are mentored by some of the UK’s most experienced luxury executives, editors and founders who will provide a year of one-to-one coaching and share their knowledge and expertise.

Helen Brocklebank, chief executive at Walpole, said in a statement: “Walpole’s Brands of Tomorrow programme was launched with the goal of ensuring long-term growth for the UK’s luxury sector by supporting and mentoring early-stage British luxury brands.

“Fast forward sixteen years and over 140 brands - Bremont, Orlebar Brown and Emilia Wickstead to name but three - have benefitted from the programme’s unique combination of mentoring, masterclasses and immersion in the world of British luxury and I’m incredibly excited to see the twelve who join us in 2023 follow in their footsteps.”

Fashion and beauty brands Navygrey, Monpure London and Anglo-Italian are among the recipients of Walpole 2023 Brands of Tomorrow programme

Image: Roxanne First

The 2023 cohort of Brands of Tomorrow act as a “microcosm of consumer trends in the high-end space, pinpointing emerging consumer expectations and behaviours,” explains Walpole, and are a new generation of brands with purpose-driven commerce at their core.

The 12 brands span fashion, jewellery, hair and beauty, interiors, stationery, and coffee, including tailoring-focused menswear brand Anglo-Italian led by Jake Grantham and sustainable label Navygrey that creates luxurious British knitwear underpinned by the timeless palette of navy and grey.

Other fashion and beauty participants will include jeweller Roxanne First who uses ethically sourced gold and gemstones in her designs, natural deodorant brand Akt London, the world’s first dedicated scalp and hair health brand Monpure London and skincare brand Baz & Co.

Image: Monpure London

Completing the luxury line-up are Holmes Bespoke, Maison Margaux, Goldfinger and Edward Bulmer Natural Paint, who are at the forefront of interiors, furniture and homewares, as well as London-based stationery brand Makers Cabinet, and Difference Coffee, which sources rare and limited reserve beans from the world's most prestigious coffee estates.

Brocklebank added: “During the selection process, I was struck not only by the ‘Class of ‘23’s creativity and entrepreneurship but also by their strong sense of purpose – without exception the defining philosophy was one of doing well by doing good. As we look at the brands of the future, it’s a fundamental principle that tomorrow’s customer likes beautiful brands to buy, but they must also be brands to believe in.”

This year’s brands will receive mentoring from the likes of Annalise Fard, director of beauty, home and fine jewellery and watches at Harrods, Carla Filmer, chief marketing officer at Manolo Blahnik, Sean Ghouse, director of retail, UK at Fortnum & Mason, Nick Keyte, chief product and brand officer at Charles Tyrwhitt, luxury footwear designer Rupert Sanderson, and Michael Ward, managing director at Harrods.

Image: Baz & Co